Use of An Equivalent Thermal Network For The Analysis of a Coupled Thermo-Magnetic problem

The coupled magneto-thermal problem is analyzed, with reference to a particular heating application, by means of an equivalent thermal network, that is based on a first-approximation interpretation of the field equations. The connections between the thermal characteristics and the magnetic ones are taking into account by considering the skin-effect and the dependence of electric conductibility on the temperature. Also the dependence of the produced heat – by Joule effect – on frequency is taken into account. A specific and straightforward applicative case is analyzed in order to underline the validity and the advantages of the proposed model. A single conductive loop is lighting by an impressed perpendicular magnetic field and both the forward and inverse problems are analyzed. An integration technique, based on Matlab-Simulink, is shown for the solution of the problem. Moreover, the dependence of the achieved results on the geometric characteristics of the analyzed system is studied. Key-Words: Electroheat applications, Coupled thermo-magnetic problem, Numerical method, Thermal network