Electric motor design is about more than just reducing cost -- it’s about the chance to get innovative and exceed performance expectations.
If you’re already experimenting with new electric motor solutions that are a little "different,” consider incorporating powder metallurgy (PM) into your plan. Whether you’re looking for electric motor efficiency or cost reduction, chances are a PM solution exists.
Use this hub as a resource for understanding the advantages of powder metallurgy for motor applications vs. competing technologies like electrical steel laminations. Below you can learn more about the untapped potential powder metallurgy holds for motor makers -- and how you can use it to push the boundaries of your design.
Using powder metal parts to cut costs is nothing new. Using powder metal components to further the “electrification” of transportation and other electromagnetic applications is the new frontier for driving performance and cost-efficiency to new heights.
In the case of transportation, these opportunities go far beyond the traditional automobile. Powder metallurgy processes and materials are seeing more use in:
Powder metal materials and processes can optimize both AC and DC motors -- everything from axial flux motors to magnetic torque tunnels. Basically, anything that needs to be small and efficient needs to include metal powder parts.
Resource: 3 Trends in Manufacturing Auto Parts: Does Powder Metal Have a Place?
A powder metal part is born when premixed iron alloy is pressed into a desired shape to produce 3D structures. Because it’s a material-efficient, net-shape process, it’s dramatically easier and more efficient to design with powder metal vs. machining or another subtractive process.
Think about how engineers place electric car motors on the front or rear axle -- space is at a premium. Today it’s possible to redesign the motor with powdered metal components to use space more efficiently. You can use the extra space to include other components or just make the entire product smaller and lighter!
Advanced powder metallurgy manufacturers are here to help e-motor designers meet the increasing demand for smaller electric and hybrid motors.
Resource: Electric Motor Efficiency & 4 Other Uses for Soft Magnetic Composite
Manufacturers are committing to further optimizing electric drive components to reduce weight in e-vehicles.
A smaller motor is naturally lighter. Using fewer and smaller components is where powder metal shines.
Resource: A Groundbreaking Rotor Material
Developments in ultra-high-temperature sintering coupled with advanced materials can create solenoids and relays used in actuators that need more rapid response times.
Additionally, rotors used in brushless DC motors can achieve high magnetic performance when you use sintered soft magnetic powders.
Resource: What Is Sintered Soft Magnetic Material?
Soft magnetic materials are the perfect match for motors and stators. They possess competitive magnetic properties, but with higher electrical resistivity.
Use one of the many unique grades of soft magnetic composite as your new electric motor material to attain the highest frequencies possible.
Cutting costs for a growing variety of pressed and sintered motor components remains the heart of powder metallurgy.
If your current design is cumbersome and producing excessive scrap, consider a redesign with powder metal. PM produces a more compact design with virtually no leftover material -- scrap waste rarely exceeds 3%.
Sometimes powder metallurgy can even reduce the number of parts needed in an assembly traditionally made with electrical lamination steel.
Resource: Soft Magnetic Composites: A Visual Crash Course on Improving Motor Efficiency
In the race to innovate, electric motor designers no longer need a “good enough” solution, they need a great solution. Powder metallurgy’s benefits go hand in hand with cutting-edge design.
How can Horizon help you brainstorm a solution? Share your design challenges via the form, and an expert engineer will get back to you shortly.
Fran Hanejko is an industry-leading expert who works with Horizon as our Senior Advanced Materials Engineer. Fran has decades of experience in powder metallurgy, including managing customer applications for a world-leading raw material supplier. He graduated from Drexel University in 1974 with a master’s degree in materials engineering.
Contact Fran with your materials questions by filling out the form on this page.
Different branches of powder metallurgy (PM) materials have very different design considerations. It’s a fact of life for PM manufacturers but sometimes a hard lesson for the OEM buyer/engineer.
In powder metallurgy, there are two branches of magnetic materials. For the sake of simplicity, we’ll say that one serves DC electromagnetic applications, and the other AC.
Soft magnetic composites (SMCs) are an excellent, energy-efficient option for AC electromagnetic applications. However, they're not suitable for DC components because they lack the rapid magnetic response of sintered materials. By the same token, sintered soft magnetic materials are unsuitable for AC applications because they generate significant heat and core losses.
(If your project calls for an AC machine, refer to Part 1 of this series, where we explored designing for manufacturability for soft magnetic composites.)
As an engineer tasked with bringing your product into the future, you probably have many decisions to make when choosing the motor design of your AC project.
The most common applications of electrical motors fall into two main categories -- axial flux motors vs. radial flux motors. There’s also a third category -- transverse flux motors -- but this configuration is not as widespread (yet).
For decades, radial flux motors were the most common solution. However, for reasons we’ll discuss below, axial flux machines are becoming the standard for AC motor quality.
“Conventional” sintering is synonymous with structural powder metallurgy components.
The majority of today’s powder metal parts are sintered at 2050° in a nitrogen-hydrogen atmosphere. This has proven satisfactory for legacy applications, and will remain “good enough” for many future applications.
With the ongoing “electrification” of transportation, many engineers are leaving the world of “good enough.”
People. Passion. Powdered Metal.
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