Chargers for electrical equipment (electric cars, computers, phones), electric motor controllers, renewable energy production (solar panels, wind generators, etc.), and storage (batteries) systems. The size, weight, cost, efficiency, and risk of overheating of power converters depend to a large extent on these components.

Industries that rely on electrical energy converters are constantly looking for new ways to increase efficiency and reduce the size of magnetic components. According to most of our customers, it is becoming increasingly difficult to meet their specifications and offer designs that can meet all their needs. Several simulation packages are commercially available for a similar purpose, but they lack an intuitive user interface, are very expensive, especially for startups, and require a powerful processor to run the software.

Calculation of inductance, efficiency, and thermal management are the three most common parameters for numerical optimization of transformers and chokes. Among all, analytic and empirical estimates for high-frequency applications oftentimes underestimate losses and are the most challenging.

The best, most modern way to optimize them is to model numerically allowing engineers to build and test a virtual prototype of a design relatively quickly. With the use of specialized simulation software, we can account for nonhomogeneous and temperature-dependent properties of ferrites and electrical steels, and achieve greater accuracy.

Convective heat transfer can be approximated with special boundary conditions and two parameters. Heat transfer coefficient and external air temperature are parameters that are defined on all boundaries representing the interface between air and solids. Alternatively, a more accurate approach is using the coupling capabilities of our software EOF-Library and adding CFD software OpenFOAM for Conjugate Heat Transfer analysis.