Brushless Doubly Fed Motor for Electric Aircraft Propulsion

Balcones Technologies, LLC, teamed with the University of Texas Center for Electromechanics, proposes to develop a second-generation electric aircraft propulsor Brushless Doubly Fed Motor (BDFM). This effort builds build on our team’s previous BDFM STTR Phase I and Phase II efforts and two small subsequent Phase III efforts. The previous efforts yielded the following: Identification of a propulsor BDFM configuration within an Electrified Aircraft Propulsion (EAP) power grid that eliminates approximately 80% of required propulsor power electronics (PE) compared to traditional permanent magnet and induction motors. This reduces overall mass for the motor-PE system by approximately 40% and also improves efficiency. Advanced BDFM analysis, design, and controls capabilities, fully documented, and supported by MATLAB scripts and a library of more than 120 journal articles. First generation propulsor BDFM and test rig to support development of BDFM analysis, design, and controls technology. After testing, the first generation BDFM was updated with an improved stator and an experimental rotor. Identification and preliminary investigation into an emerging, non-traditional BDFM rotor, subsequently supported by 2020-2022 journal articles that document successful design and testing of one variant of the non-traditional rotor. The non-traditional rotor features of most potential significance to the EAP application include increased torque, increased rotor RPM capability, increased power density, improved efficiency, higher RPM capabilities. The primary objective for our team’s proposed Phase I effort plus the potential follow-on Phase II effort is to design, fabricate, and test a pseudo-optimized Second Generation propulsor BDFM at a meaningful scale. If feasible within SBIR funding, the result would be one BDFM stator and up to two different rotor units – one traditional rotor and one emerging non-traditional rotor – to enable performance comparisons.

NASA High Voltage Hybrid Electric Propulsion (HVHEP) Program, Distributed propulsor systems, NASA flight demonstration programs evolving from HVHEP

Small scale wind energy , small scale commercial and military microgrid power systems (500 KW or less), small single and twin engine commercial aircraft (private jets), energy infrastructure entities, green energy groups and environmentally sensitive electric machines

This is early/mid-stage (TRL 2) — the most realistic path in is NASA SBIR/STTR, which funds small businesses and research institutions to develop technology aligned with NASA's needs (equity-free, phased funding). Check whether a current SBIR/STTR solicitation topic overlaps with this project's technology area, or contact the project directly (above) to ask.

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