This paper gives a comprehensive review of advanced cooling schemes and their applications to the permanent magnet synchronous motors (PMSMs), as well as investigating the electrical motor’s topologies its thermal design issues, materials and performances. Particularly, the electromagnetic and electric performances, machine sizing, together with the structural design, are given. In addition, the work addresses the motor’s material design and properties along with its insulation performance, which is the main goal of optimization. Mainly, thermal mapping with analysis is provided according to the different cooling methods, including air-cooling, water-cooling, oil-cooling, heat-pipe-cooling, potting silicon gelatin cooling, and as well as cooling strategies for tubes and microchannels. The most common special features and demands of the PMSMs are described in the appearance of the motor’s failures caused by uncontrolled temperature rise. In addition, heat sources and energy losses, including copper loss, core loss versus motor speed, and output power, are analyzed. The review of the proposed cooling methods that will achieve the required heat transfer of the PMSM is presented with numerical simulations and measurements data. A review of numerical methods and results, including the finite element methods (FEM), such as the Ansys CFD software, to obtain a high-accuracy thermal mapping model of the PMSM system is given. The revived methods and design requirements due to PMSM temperature profile and cooling flow at different rotor speeds and torque loads are investigated. Finally, the motor design recommendations, including the newly developed cooling solutions, which enable it to effectively redistribute the temperature and heat transfer, increasing the efficiency of the PMSM machine, are laid out.

Using TRNSYS software, a comparison of the energy performances of flat-plate collectors (FPCs) and evacuated-tube collectors (ETCs) in domestic solar water heating systems located in different climate areas was carried out in order to ascertain solar energy utilization. Investigations were carried out on single FPCs and ETCs and also for strings of four panels connected in series. Tests were conducted using simulations for water as heat transfer fluid with a fixed fluid flow rate and varying the temperature of the collector’s returning fluid. The maximum power peak decreases with the increase in the inlet temperature of the fluid to the collector in the FPC. The maximum outlet temperature of the FPC is higher than the ETC, most of the time. The evacuated-tube collector performs better only in cold climate areas. Simulations suggest that the use of the FPC is strongly discouraged in cold climatic areas due to thermal losses, whereas the ETC works well with reduced dispersion of heat. In warm seasons, on the contrary, the FPC takes advantage of the high environmental temperature which heats the fluid. The maximum yearly outlet temperature and useful power peak predicted in different climatic areas were investigated by varying the temperature of the fluid inlet fed to the two strings of four FPCs and ETCs. In all cases, the outlet temperature is higher in the ETC technology.

Nowadays, air conditioning consumes, on average, around one-fifth of the total power used in buildings globally. The present paper aims to provide the present status on the employment of Earth-to-Air Heat eXchangers (EAHX) to contain the consumption of energy and to reduce the effect on the environment in response to the Montreal and Kyoto protocols in a way to achieve cleaner energy production with a low Global Warming Potential (GWP) and a low ozone depletion potential (ODP). Different peculiarities and applications (direct or hybrid) are critically analyzed and reviewed. Specifically, in this paper, the different hybrid applications presented in the literature, where the Earth-to-Air Heat eXchangers are coupled to advanced systems, are reviewed. Finally, an IoT-based EAHX control system plan is reported and discussed to optimize energy efficiency and thermal comfort to suit operating conditions under different time zones.