Study of a Null-Flux Suspension System Using Permanent Magnet Halbach Arrays

This work is the study of a passively stable null-flux suspension system for maglev vehicles. The electrodynamic suspension is based on eddy currents that arise in a conductive material exposed to a variable magnetic field, establishing repulsive forces. The figure-eight-shaped coils, responsible for the train's levitation and orientation functions, provide a high levitation-drag ratio and establish a passively stable suspension system at high speeds. It is currently utilized by the JR-Maglev, Japanese levitation train proposal. However, unlike this, aiming at simplifying the structure, the source of the magnetic field is composed of permanent magnets arranged in Halbach arrays. First, the system is modeled by the theory of dynamic circuits. The emphasis is on the direct calculation of forces through the variation of energy in the coils. Then, simulations using the 3D-dimensional finite element method are used to check results. The forces acting on the magnets are characterized as a function of the magnet's position and speed, seeking to optimize the Halbach matrix's dimensions.