Numerical model of a thermoelastic actuator solved as a coupled contact problem
Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to investigate the parameters and operation characteristics of an actuator working on the principle of thermoelasticity whose structure was designed by the authors. Design/methodology/approach - The mathematical model of the system describes the effects of three physical fields (electromagnetic field, temperature field, and field of mechanical strains and stresses due to thermoelasticity). While the electromagnetic field was solved independently, the thermomechanical task in common with the contact problem was solved in the hard-coupled formulation. The computations were mostly carried out by own codes. Findings - This type of actuator is characterized by extremely high forces acting in its dilatation element. Research limitations/implications - The parameters of the system may still be improved using a longer field coil and dilatation element. Attention has to be paid, however to the mechanical stability of the system. Another improvement could be achieved by suitably designed cooling of the coil that would allow increasing parameters of the field current (its frequency or amplitude). Practical implications - The device is promising for various fixing tasks in the industrial environment. Originality/value - Although the methods of numerical processing of particular fields are known, the paper provides an algorithm for their simultaneous solution while respecting the temperature dependencies of the material properties and continuous change of the contact surfaces.
actuators numerical analysis elasticity