Boundary element analysis of 3-D magnetostatic problems using scalar potentials

A boundary element formulation for 3-D nonlinear magnetostatic field problems using the total scalar potential and its normal derivative as unknowns is described. The boundary integral equation is derived from a differential equation for the total scalar potential where a nonlinear operator term can be separated from a linear term. The nonlinear term leads to a volume integral which can be treated as a known forcing function within an iterative solution process. An additional forcing term results from the magnetic excitation coil system. It is shown that the line integral of the magnetic source field which can be defined outside of the current-carrying regions as a gradient of a scalar potential acts as an excitation term. The proposed method is applied to a test problem where an iron cube immersed in the magnetic field of a cylindrical coil is investigated. The numerical results for different saturation stages are compared with finite element method (FEM) calculations. The comparison with FEM calculations shows a good agreement only in highly saturated iron parts