JP6226047B2 - Composite material, reactor core, and reactor - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a composite material suitable for a constituent material of a magnetic part such as a reactor, a reactor core made of the composite material, a reactor including the core, a converter including the reactor, and a power conversion device including the converter. It is about. In particular, the present invention relates to a composite material having low loss, high saturation magnetic flux density, and excellent manufacturability.

  Magnetic parts, such as a reactor and a motor, including a coil and a magnetic core on which the coil is disposed are used in various fields. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a reactor used as a circuit component of a converter mounted on a vehicle such as a hybrid vehicle. Patent Document 1 discloses a composite material composed of a magnetic powder such as pure iron powder and a resin (binder resin) containing the powder as a constituent material of the magnetic core provided in the reactor. This composite material can be manufactured by filling a mixture of a magnetic powder as a raw material and an uncured liquid resin into a molding die having a desired shape and then curing the resin.

JP 2008-147403 A

  Characteristics desired for the magnetic core include low loss such as iron loss (hysteresis loss + eddy current loss) and high saturation magnetic flux density.

  When using the composite material as a constituent material of the magnetic core, for example, if a powder composed of fine particles is used as the magnetic powder of the raw material, the eddy current loss can be reduced due to the small particle size. A material is obtained. In addition, when fine powder is used, it is easy to increase the filling rate in the composite material, and the composite material having a high saturation magnetic flux density can be obtained by increasing the ratio (content) of the magnetic component. However, depending on the material of the magnetic powder, if the particle size becomes too small, it is difficult to handle, leading to a decrease in workability and, in turn, a decrease in manufacturability of the composite material. Therefore, there is a limit to the improvement of the saturation magnetic flux density and the reduction of loss due to the refinement of the raw material powder.

  On the other hand, as the resin component in the composite material is reduced and the magnetic powder is increased, the ratio of the magnetic component in the composite material can be increased and the saturation magnetic flux density can be increased, but the relative permeability becomes too high. Moreover, when there are too many raw material magnetic body powders, the viscosity of a mixture will become high and fluidity | liquidity will become low, it will be difficult to inject | pour into a shaping | molding metal mold | die, and it will be inferior to manufacturability. In particular, in the case of a complicated shape, the molding die cannot be sufficiently filled with the mixture, and the shape accuracy may be lowered. Therefore, in consideration of loss reduction and manufacturability, there is a limit to increase the content of the magnetic powder.

  Accordingly, one of the objects of the present invention is to provide a composite material having low loss, high saturation magnetic flux density, and excellent manufacturability.

  Another object of the present invention is to provide a reactor core having a low loss and a high saturation magnetic flux density, and a reactor including the core.

  Conventionally, a magnetic powder having a particle size distribution (for example, a normal distribution) having only one peak has been used as a raw material for composite materials. That is, the conventional raw material powder can be said to be a powder in which there are many particles having a certain particle size and few particles having a particle size other than this particle size. When using magnetic powder having a particle size distribution with a single such peak (powder with a broad peak or powder with a steep peak) as a raw material, if the powder is fine, work When it is made coarse and coarse, a saturation magnetic flux density is lowered due to a decrease in filling rate. On the other hand, when a magnetic powder composed of particles with a large particle size and a magnetic powder composed of particles with a small particle size are used as raw materials, the filling rate of the magnetic powder in the composite material can be easily increased. And gained knowledge. Moreover, since the obtained composite material has a high proportion of the magnetic component, the saturation magnetic flux density is high, and a fine powder is frequently contained, so that the loss is small. The present invention is based on the above findings.

  The composite material of the present invention contains a magnetic powder and a resin that encapsulates the powder in a dispersed state. The magnetic powder is composed of a plurality of particles made of the same material. When the particle size distribution of the magnetic powder is taken, there are a plurality of peaks.

In the present invention, the peak is the frequency of the particle size r _{s that} is smaller than the particle size r _x by a predetermined value k (k is a design value) when the frequency f _x of the particle size r _{x having} a particle size distribution is taken. f _s and the frequency f _l of the particle size r _l larger than the particle size r _x by a predetermined value k (k is the design value), and the frequency f _x satisfies the frequency f _s , f _l 1.1 times or more Say.

  The composite material of the present invention is manufactured by mixing a raw material magnetic powder and a resin and curing the resin. And since the shape and particle size of the magnetic powder used as the raw material do not substantially change before and after the production, the particle size distribution of the composite material of the present invention is substantially equal to the particle size distribution of the magnetic powder used as the raw material. .

The presence of a plurality of peaks in the particle size distribution means that there are peaks (high frequency values) at a point where the particle size is small and a point where the particle size is large in the histogram of the particle size distribution. In other words, when there are at least two peaks: a first peak and a second peak, the particle size taking the first peak is r ₁ , and the particle size taking the second peak is r ₂ , the particle size r ₁ is That is, the particle size is smaller than r ₂ . The composite material of the present invention frequently contains both fine magnetic powder and coarse magnetic powder. By containing a relatively large amount of fine magnetic powder, the composite material of the present invention can reduce eddy current loss and has low loss. Further, in the production of the composite material of the present invention, a composite material having a high magnetic component ratio can be obtained by using a mixed powder of a fine powder and a coarse powder as a raw material to easily increase the filling rate of the magnetic powder. Therefore, the composite material of the present invention has a high saturation magnetic flux density. Furthermore, since the filling rate can be easily increased by using the mixed powder, it is not necessary to use an excessively fine powder, and the raw material powder is easy to handle. Therefore, the composite material of the present invention is easy to handle the raw material powder and is excellent in manufacturability.

As one form of this invention composite material, the said particle size distribution has the form in which the 1st peak and 2nd peak which satisfy | fill the following exist.
When the particle diameter taking the first peak is r ₁ and the particle diameter taking the second peak is r ₂ , the particle diameter r ₁ is 1/2 or less of the particle diameter r ₂ (r ₁ ≦ (1/2) × r ₂ is satisfied).

According to the above embodiment, and a fine powder of particle size r _1, grain and coarse powder having a particle diameter r ₂ diameter differences: r ₂ -r ₁ is that sufficiently large, the particle size r ₁ fine particles Can sufficiently intervene in a gap formed between coarse particles having a particle size r ₂ . Therefore, the above-mentioned form is easy to increase the filling rate, has a high saturation magnetic flux density, and has a low loss due to the presence of sufficiently fine particles at a high frequency.

  As one form of the composite material of the present invention, a form in which the composite material contains a nonmagnetic powder composed of at least one kind of material can be mentioned. Particularly, when the particle size distribution of a mixed powder obtained by combining the magnetic powder and the nonmagnetic powder is taken, the maximum particle diameter that takes a peak in the nonmagnetic powder among the plurality of peaks is the magnetic substance. A form smaller than the minimum particle diameter that takes a peak in the powder is mentioned.

  The “magnetic material” of the magnetic powder contained in the composite material of the present invention is a ferromagnetic material in a broad sense, typically a soft magnetic material. On the other hand, the “non-magnetic substance” of the non-magnetic substance powder is not a ferromagnetic substance. Examples of the non-magnetic powder include powders made of inorganic materials such as ceramics and metals such as Al, and powders made of organic materials such as resins such as silicone resins. Non-magnetic powders made of the materials listed above are easy to handle even if they are fine. By containing the fine non-magnetic powder in addition to the magnetic powder in the raw material, it is possible to effectively reduce the precipitation of the magnetic powder in the resin during the production of the composite material. By suppressing the sedimentation, the magnetic powder can be uniformly dispersed in the mixture. By curing the resin in this state, a composite material in which the magnetic powder is uniformly dispersed can be obtained. That is, the said form can have a uniform magnetic characteristic and is reliable. In addition, since the non-magnetic powder is finer than the magnetic powder, and the non-magnetic particles can intervene in the gap formed by the magnetic particles, the above-mentioned form is a ratio of the magnetic component due to the inclusion of the non-magnetic powder. Can be reduced.

As a form containing the non-magnetic powder, the maximum particle diameter that takes a peak in the non-magnetic powder: r _n max is 1/3 of the minimum particle diameter that takes the peak of the magnetic powder: r _m min The following forms may be mentioned (r _n max ≦ (1/3) × r _m min is satisfied). Further, as a form containing the non-magnetic powder, the particle size r _n that a peak in the non-magnetic powder include forms is 20μm or less.

  In the above embodiment, since the non-magnetic powder is sufficiently small, the fine non-magnetic particles can be sufficiently interposed in the gap formed between the magnetic particles, and are easily dispersed uniformly on the outer periphery of the magnetic particles. Therefore, sedimentation of the magnetic particles can be effectively suppressed. In addition, since the non-magnetic powder is sufficiently small and non-magnetic particles exist so as to fill the gap, the above-described form can reduce a decrease in the ratio of the magnetic component due to the inclusion of the non-magnetic powder.

  Examples of the form containing the nonmagnetic powder include a form in which the total content of the nonmagnetic powder with respect to the entire composite material is 0.2% by mass or more.

  In the above-mentioned form, the non-magnetic powder, preferably the fine non-magnetic powder as described above is sufficiently present, so that the precipitation of the magnetic powder can be effectively suppressed.

  As one form of the composite material of the present invention, there is a form in which the magnetic powder is made of a coating powder comprising magnetic particles and an insulating coating covering the outer periphery of the magnetic particles.

  In the above embodiment, when the magnetic powder is made of a metal, an eddy current loss can be reduced by providing an insulating coating, and the loss is low.

  As one form of the composite material of the present invention, a form in which the total content of the magnetic substance powder with respect to the whole composite material is 30% by volume or more and 70% by volume or less can be given. The total content of the magnetic powder is more preferably 40% by volume to 65% by volume.

  In the above form, the magnetic powder is 30% by volume or more, so that the ratio of the magnetic component is sufficiently high and the saturation magnetic flux density is high. Moreover, the said form is excellent in manufacturability because the mixture of magnetic substance powder etc. and resin is easy to flow at the time of manufacture because magnetic substance powder is 70 volume% or less. In particular, if the magnetic powder is a material with a saturation magnetic flux density of about 2T, such as iron or Fe-Si alloy, the saturation flux density of the composite material can be easily increased to 0.6T or more because the content is 30% by volume or more. Furthermore, when the content is 40% by volume or more, the saturation magnetic flux density of the composite material is easily set to 0.8 T or more. In the composite material of the present invention, as described above, by using a mixed powder of fine powder and coarse powder as a raw material, it is possible to easily achieve a high filling rate such that the content of magnetic powder is about 65% by volume. Can do.

  As one form of this invention composite material, the form whose saturation magnetic flux density of the said composite material is 0.6 T or more is mentioned.

  The above-mentioned form has a low loss as described above and a sufficiently high saturation magnetic flux density. Therefore, the composite material of the above aspect can be suitably used for a magnetic core of a magnetic component that requires the above characteristics, for example, a reactor core provided in a converter mounted on a vehicle such as a hybrid vehicle.

  As one form of this invention composite material, the form whose relative magnetic permeability of the said composite material is 5-20 is mentioned.

  In the above embodiment, since the relative permeability is relatively low, saturation of magnetic flux hardly occurs. By using the composite material in the above embodiment, for example, a magnetic core having a gapless structure can be configured. Moreover, since the said form has a magnetic characteristic suitable for the core for reactors provided in the converter mounted in vehicles, such as a hybrid vehicle, it can utilize suitably for the said core for reactors. A method for measuring the saturation magnetic flux density and the relative magnetic permeability will be described later.

  One form of the composite material of the present invention is a form in which the circularity of the particles constituting the magnetic powder is 1.0 or more and 2.0 or less.

  When particles satisfying a specific circularity as in the above-described form are used, a gap in which other particles can intervene between the particles can be sufficiently formed, and the filling rate can be easily increased, and the powder is excellent in fluidity. Therefore, the said form has a high saturation magnetic flux density and is excellent in manufacturability. The circularity is preferably 1.0 or more and 1.5 or less, and particularly preferably 1.0 or more and 1.3 or less. A method for measuring the circularity will be described later.

  As one form of this invention composite material, the form whose said magnetic body powder is iron alloy powder containing Si is mentioned. Or the form whose said magnetic body powder is a pure iron powder is mentioned as one form of this invention composite material.

  Since the iron alloy containing Si has a high electrical resistivity and can easily reduce eddy current loss, the form in which the magnetic powder is the iron alloy powder has low loss. Since pure iron has a higher saturation magnetic flux density than iron alloys, the form in which the magnetic powder is pure iron powder has a higher saturation magnetic flux density.

As a form in which the magnetic substance powder is pure iron powder, the plurality of peaks have two peaks, a first peak and a second peak, the particle diameter taking the first peak is r ₁ , and the second peak is When the particle diameter to be taken is r ₂ , a form satisfying r ₁ <r ₂ , the above particle diameter r ₁ : 50 μm to 100 μm, and the above particle diameter r ₂ : 100 μm to 200 μm can be mentioned.

In the above-described embodiment, since fine particles having a particle size r ₁ of 50 μm to ₁₀₀ μm are frequently present, eddy current loss can be effectively reduced and the loss is low. Since the particle size r ₂ is 200 μm or less, it is easy to reduce eddy current loss. In addition, the particle size r ₁ fine particles present in high frequency is 50μm or more, during manufacture, easy to handle pure iron powder raw material, the form is excellent in manufacturability. Furthermore, the above-mentioned form has a sufficiently large particle size difference between the particle size r ₁ and the particle size r ₂ because the particle size r ₂ is 100 μm or more. Is expensive.

  The composite material of the present invention can be suitably used for a magnetic core used for a reactor as described above. Then, the thing which consists of the said composite material of this invention is proposed as a core for this invention reactor.

  Since the core for reactor of the present invention is composed of the composite material having a low loss and a high saturation magnetic flux density as described above, it has a low loss and a high saturation magnetic flux density. Moreover, the core for reactors of the present invention is excellent in manufacturability.

  As the reactor according to the present invention, a reactor including a coil and a magnetic core on which the coil is disposed, in which at least a part of the magnetic core is composed of the composite material according to the present invention is proposed.

  The reactor of the present invention can have a low loss and a high saturation magnetic flux density because at least a part of the magnetic core is made of a composite material having a low loss and a high saturation magnetic flux density as described above. .

  Alternatively, the reactor of the present invention includes a coil and a magnetic core on which the coil is disposed, and part of the magnetic core is configured by a powder compact, and the other part is configured by the composite material of the present invention. It can be in the form. For example, in the magnetic core, at least a part of a portion disposed inside a cylindrical coil formed by winding a winding wire is formed of a powder compact, and a portion disposed outside the coil. In which at least a part of the composite material is composed of the composite material of the present invention (hereinafter, this form is referred to as an internal compacted form). Alternatively, for example, at least a part of a portion of the magnetic core disposed inside the cylindrical coil formed by winding the winding is made of the composite material of the present invention and disposed outside the coil. A form in which at least a part of the portion is formed of a green compact (hereinafter, this form is referred to as an external compact form).

  The above-mentioned inner powder form is provided in a place (hereinafter referred to as an outer core) provided with a green compact at a place (hereinafter referred to as an inner core) disposed inside a coil in a magnetic core. By providing the composite material of the present invention, the saturation magnetic flux density of the inner core tends to be higher than that of the outer core. Since the saturation magnetic flux density of the inner core is high, the entire magnetic core is made of a material having a relatively low magnetic permeability, and the cross section of the inner core can be made smaller than when the saturation magnetic flux density is uniform. That is, since the inner core can be reduced in size, the coil can be reduced in size following the small inner core. Therefore, the said internal compacting form can be made into a small reactor. Further, the reactor can be reduced in weight by downsizing the coil. On the other hand, the above external powder form has a higher saturation magnetic flux density than the inner core by providing the composite material of the present invention in the inner core and the compacted body in the outer core, contrary to the above-mentioned internal powder form. Since it is easy, the leakage magnetic flux from the outer core to the outside can be reduced. In any of the above forms, since the relative magnetic permeability of the entire magnetic core can be lowered because a part of the magnetic core is composed of the composite material of the present invention containing the resin component, for example, a gapless structure and can do. Since the magnetic core having the gapless structure does not affect the coil by the leakage magnetic flux from the gap portion, the coil can be brought close to the inner core, so that a small reactor can be obtained from this point. Furthermore, since the winding can be shortened by downsizing the coil, it is possible to reduce the weight of the reactor.

  The reactor of the present invention can be suitably used as a component part of a converter. The converter of the present invention comprises a switching element, a drive circuit that controls the operation of the switching element, and a reactor that smoothes the switching operation, and converts the input voltage by the operation of the switching element. The form whose reactor is this invention reactor is mentioned. This converter of the present invention can be suitably used as a component part of a power converter. The power converter of the present invention includes a converter that converts an input voltage and an inverter that is connected to the converter and converts between direct current and alternating current, and drives a load with the power converted by the inverter. And the converter is a converter according to the present invention.

  The converter of the present invention and the power converter of the present invention have a low loss by including the reactor of the present invention having a high saturation magnetic flux density and a low loss.

  The composite material of the present invention, the core for a reactor of the present invention, and the reactor of the present invention have low loss and high saturation magnetic flux density. The composite material of the present invention and the core for reactor of the present invention are excellent in manufacturability.

(A) is a schematic perspective view of the reactor according to Embodiment 1, and (B) is a cross-sectional view of the reactor cut along line BB. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing an assembly of a coil and an inner core portion provided in the reactor according to the first embodiment. (A) is a schematic perspective view of a reactor according to Embodiment 5, and (B) is a schematic perspective view of a magnetic core included in this reactor. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram schematically showing a power supply system of a hybrid vehicle. It is a schematic circuit diagram which shows an example of this invention power converter device which provides this invention converter.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described more specifically.

(Embodiment 1)
A reactor 1 according to a first embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. The same reference numerals in the figure indicate the same names. The reactor 1 includes one coil 2 formed by winding a winding 2w, and a magnetic core 3 that is disposed inside and outside the coil 2 to form a closed magnetic circuit. The feature of the reactor 1 is the constituent material of the magnetic core 3. Hereinafter, each configuration will be described in detail.

[Coil 2]
The coil 2 is a cylindrical body formed by spirally winding one continuous winding 2w. The winding 2w is preferably a coated wire having an insulating coating made of an insulating material on the outer periphery of a conductor made of a conductive material such as copper, aluminum, or an alloy thereof. The conductor may have various shapes such as a rectangular wire having a rectangular cross section, a circular wire having a circular shape, and a deformed wire having a polygonal shape. The insulating material constituting the insulating coating is typically an enamel material such as polyamideimide. The thicker the insulation coating, the higher the insulation. Specific thickness includes 20 μm or more and 100 μm or less. The cross-sectional area and the number of turns (number of turns) of the winding 2w can be appropriately selected so as to obtain desired characteristics. The end face shape of the coil 2 is a shape in which the outer shape such as an annular shape or an ellipse shape shown in FIG. 2 is configured only by a curve, or a flat shape in which the outer shape such as a race track shape or a rounded rectangular shape is configured by a curve and a straight line. Is mentioned. A cylindrical coil having an annular end surface is easy to wind and form a winding.

  Here, the coil 2 is an edgewise coil formed by edgewise winding a coated rectangular wire having a conductor made of a copper rectangular wire having a rectangular cross-sectional shape and an insulating coating made of enamel. The shape is annular.

  Both ends of the winding 2w forming the coil 2 are appropriately extended from the turn and pulled out to the outside of the magnetic core 3 (outer core portion 32). A terminal member (not shown) made of a conductive material such as aluminum or aluminum is connected using welding (for example, TIG welding) or pressure bonding. An external device (not shown) such as a power source for supplying power is connected to the coil 2 through this terminal member.

  In the reactor 1 shown in this example, the combination of the coil 2 and the magnetic core 3 is housed in a bottomed cylindrical case 4, and the coil 2 is housed so that its axial direction is orthogonal to the bottom surface of the case 4. (Hereinafter referred to as a vertical type). The vertical configuration can reduce the installation area of the reactor 1 with respect to the installation target on which the reactor 1 such as a cooling stand is installed.

[Magnetic core 3]
The magnetic core 3 is a member that forms a closed magnetic path when the coil 2 is excited. As shown in FIG. 1 (B), at least a part of the magnetic core 3 is disposed inside the coil 2, and a columnar inner core portion 31 covered with the coil 2 is disposed outside the coil 2. The outer core part 32 formed so that a part of core part 31 and the cylindrical outer peripheral surface of the coil 2 may be covered substantially is provided. In this example, the constituent material of the inner core portion 31 is different from the constituent material of the outer core portion 32, the inner core portion 31 is formed of a powder compact, and the outer core portion 32 is made of magnetic powder. And a composite material (molded and cured product) containing a resin encapsulated in a dispersed state. The reactor 1 is characterized in that the magnetic powder contained in the composite material has a specific particle size distribution.

《Inner core part》
Here, the inner core portion 31 is a columnar body along the inner peripheral shape of the coil 2. The cross-sectional shape and outer shape of the inner core portion 31 can be selected as appropriate, and may be, for example, a rectangular column shape such as a rectangular parallelepiped shape, an ellipsoidal shape, or the like along the inner peripheral shape of the coil. The shape may be similar to Here, the inner core portion 31 is a solid body that does not include a gap material or an air gap, such as an alumina plate, but is a material having a lower magnetic permeability than a powder compact or a composite material, typically non- A gap material made of a magnetic material or an air gap may be interposed.

  The green compact is typically formed by molding a magnetic powder having magnetic particles and an insulating coating made of silicone resin on the surface thereof, or a mixed powder in which a binder is appropriately mixed in addition to the magnetic powder. It is obtained by firing at a temperature lower than the heat resistance temperature of the insulating coating. In the production of a green compact, by adjusting the material of the magnetic particles, the mixing ratio of the magnetic powder and the binder, the amount of various coatings including the insulating coating, etc., or adjusting the molding pressure The magnetic properties of the green compact can be easily changed. For example, a powder compact with a high saturation magnetic flux density can be obtained by using powder with a high saturation magnetic flux density, increasing the proportion of the magnetic component by reducing the blending amount of the binder, or increasing the molding pressure. It is done.

  The material of the magnetic particles is an iron group metal such as Fe, Co, Ni (for example, pure iron composed of Fe and inevitable impurities), an iron alloy containing Fe as a main component (for example, Fe-Si alloy, Fe- Ni-based alloys, Fe-Al alloys, Fe-Co alloys, Fe-Cr alloys, Fe-Si-Al alloys, etc.) and soft magnetic materials such as rare earth metals and ferrite. In particular, the iron-based material is easy to obtain a green compact having a saturation magnetic flux density higher than that of ferrite. Examples of the constituent material of the insulating coating formed on the magnetic particles include a phosphoric acid compound, a silicon compound, a zirconium compound, an aluminum compound, and a boron compound. The insulating coating is preferably provided when the magnetic particles are made of a metal such as the iron group metal or iron alloy, so that eddy current loss can be reduced. The insulating coating may not be provided when the magnetic particles are made of an insulator such as ferrite. Examples of the binder include thermoplastic resins, non-thermoplastic resins, and higher fatty acids. This binder disappears by the above-mentioned baking, or changes to an insulator such as silica. In the green compact, an insulating material such as an insulating film is present between the magnetic particles, whereby the magnetic particles are insulated from each other and eddy current loss can be reduced. Therefore, the above-described loss is low even when high-frequency power is supplied to the coil. Moreover, even if a compacting body is a comparatively complicated three-dimensional shape, it can be shape | molded easily and is excellent in manufacturability. A well-known thing can be utilized for a compacting body. Here, the compacting body which comprises the inner core part 31 consists of soft magnetic powder which provides films, such as an insulating film.

  In the example shown in FIG. 1, the length along the axial direction of the coil 2 in the inner core portion 31 (hereinafter simply referred to as the length) is longer than the length of the coil 2. In this example, one end surface of the inner core portion 31 (the surface disposed on the opening side of the case 4 in FIG.1 (B)) is substantially flush with one end surface of the coil 2, and the other end surface (FIG. The inner core portion 31 is housed in the case 4 so that the surface disposed on the bottom surface side of the case 4 in B) and the vicinity thereof protrude from the other end surface of the coil 2. Accordingly, in the reactor 1, a portion of the magnetic core 3 that is disposed inside the cylindrical coil 2 is formed of a powder compact that forms a part of the inner core portion 31, and is disposed outside the coil 2. The portion is formed of a compacted body constituting the other part of the inner core part 31 and a composite material (described later) constituting the outer core part 32.

  The protruding length of the inner core portion can be selected as appropriate. Here, only the other end surface side of the inner core portion 31 is projected from the other end surface of the coil 2, but each end surface of the inner core portion 31 can be projected from each end surface of the coil 2. . At this time, either a form with the same protrusion length or a different form can be adopted. Moreover, it can be set as the form where the length of an inner core part and the length of a coil are equal, ie, each end surface of an inner core part, and each end surface of a coil are flush. For example, only the location arrange | positioned in a coil in a magnetic core is comprised with the compacting body, and the form by which the whole location arrange | positioned out of a coil was comprised with the composite material is mentioned. Any of the above-described forms includes a composite material described later so that a closed magnetic circuit is formed when the coil 2 is excited.

《Outer core part》
Here, the entire outer core portion 32 is composed of a composite material of magnetic powder and resin, and, like the inner core portion 31, no gap material or air gap is interposed. By the resin, the outer core portion 32 and the inner core portion 31 housed in the case 4 are joined without interposing an adhesive to constitute an integral magnetic core 3.

  In this example, the outer core portion 32 is formed so as to cover both end surfaces and the outer peripheral surface of the coil 2, and the outer peripheral surface on one end surface and the other end surface side of the inner core portion 31, and as shown in FIG. The cross-sectional shape cut along the axial direction 2 is a gate shape. The shape of the outer core portion 32 is not particularly limited as long as a closed magnetic path can be formed. For example, a part of the outer periphery of the coil 2 may not be covered with the composite material constituting the outer core portion 32. In a horizontal form (embodiment 4) described later, it is easy to form a form in which a part of the outer periphery of the coil 2 is exposed from the composite material.

  As the magnetic powder in the composite material, among the soft magnetic powders described above, in particular, a powder having a composition containing Fe can be suitably used. Examples of the composition containing Fe include pure iron composed of Fe and inevitable impurities, and an iron alloy composed of Fe, an additive element, and inevitable impurities.

  Pure iron includes, for example, those composed of 99.5% by mass or more of Fe. In the form in which the magnetic powder is made of pure iron powder, it becomes a composite material having a high saturation magnetic flux density, so that it is easy to obtain a core having a high saturation magnetic flux density. When this pure iron powder is a coating powder comprising iron particles made of pure iron and an insulating coating covering the outer periphery of the iron particles, the iron particles are insulated from each other by the insulating coating interposed between the iron particles. Therefore, since eddy current loss can be reduced, it is easy to obtain a low-loss core. Examples of the insulating material constituting the insulating coating include phosphate, silicone resin, metal oxide, metal nitride, metal carbide, phosphate metal salt compound, borate metal salt compound, and silicate metal salt compound. Examples of the metal elements in the compounds such as oxides and metal salt compounds described above include Fe, Al, Ca, Mn, Zn, Mg, V, Cr, Y, Ba, Sr, and rare earth elements (excluding Y). Can be mentioned. Particles made of an iron alloy, which will be described later, are also easy to obtain a low-loss core if the above-described insulating coating is provided.

  On the other hand, the iron alloy includes an alloy containing 1.0% by mass to 20.0% by mass in total of one or more elements selected from Si, Ni, Al, Co, and Cr as additive elements. More specifically, Fe-Si alloys, Fe-Ni alloys, Fe-Al alloys, Fe-Co alloys, Fe-Cr alloys, and Fe-Si-Al alloys can be mentioned. In particular, iron-containing alloys containing Si, such as Fe-Si alloys and Fe-Si-Al alloys (Sendust), have high electrical resistivity, easy to reduce eddy current loss, low hysteresis loss, and low loss. Easy to get the core.

  The magnetic powder constituting the composite material may be the same type or different from the magnetic powder of the green compact forming the inner core portion 31 described above. In addition, when the magnetic powder constituting the composite material is subjected to appropriate surface treatment in advance, effects such as prevention of aggregation and suppression of sedimentation in the resin can be expected. For example, when the surface treatment is performed in advance with a silane coupling agent or the like, the adhesion between the magnetic powder and the resin can be improved, and sedimentation of the magnetic powder in the uncured resin can be suppressed. Alternatively, for example, if surface treatment is performed in advance with a surfactant or the like, aggregation can be prevented. These surface treatments may be performed sequentially or simultaneously. In addition, although the surface treatment agent which prevents the said sedimentation can be mixed at the time of mixing magnetic body powder and resin, the direction which performs a surface treatment before mixing tends to have a higher sedimentation prevention effect.

  The particles constituting the magnetic powder can take any shape such as a spherical shape or a non-spherical shape (for example, other shapes such as a plate shape, a needle shape, a rod shape, etc.). Here, the shape and size of the magnetic particles in the composite material substantially maintain the shape and size of the particles constituting the powder used as the raw material. Therefore, if non-spherical magnetic powder is used as the raw material, the magnetic particles in the composite material are also non-spherical. Since the composite material of the present invention can effectively increase the filling rate by using a raw material powder having a specific particle size distribution as will be described later, the ratio of the magnetic component is high. Therefore, in the production of the composite material, a powder composed of particles having an arbitrary shape can be used as a raw material, that is, the degree of freedom in the shape of a magnetic powder that can be used as a raw material is great. In particular, when the particles are nearly spherical, a gap in which finer particles than the particles can intervene can be sufficiently secured in the gaps between the particles, so that the filling rate is easily increased and the loss tends to be small. Then, as a manufacturing method of the said composite material, using the thing with which the circularity of the particle | grains which comprise raw material powder satisfy | fills 1.0-2.0 is mentioned.

The circularity is the maximum diameter / equivalent circle diameter. The equivalent circle diameter is defined as the diameter of a circle having the same area as the area S surrounded by the outline of the particles constituting the magnetic powder. That is, the equivalent circle diameter = 2 × {area S / π} in the above contour ^1/2 . Moreover, let the maximum diameter be the maximum length of the particle | grains which have the said outline. The area S can be obtained, for example, by preparing a sample obtained by solidifying a raw material powder with a resin and observing the cross section of the sample with an optical microscope or a scanning electron microscope: SEM. The obtained cross-sectional observation image may be subjected to image processing (for example, binarization processing) to extract the outline of the particle, and the area S in the outline may be calculated. As for the maximum diameter, extraction of the maximum length of the particle from the contour of the extracted particle can be mentioned. When using SEM, the measurement conditions are: the number of cross sections: 50 or more (one field per section), magnification: 50 to 1000 times, number of particles measured per field: 10 or more, total number of particles: 1000 The above is mentioned.

  According to the above measuring method, particles having a circularity of 1 correspond to true spheres. As the circularity of the raw material powder is closer to 1, it is easier to obtain effects such as reduction of loss and suppression of excessive increase in relative permeability, improvement of filling rate and good fluidity. It is preferable to satisfy 1.5 to 1.5, particularly 1.0 to 1.3. In the case of spherical particles, even if the particles are adjacent to each other, they are only substantially in point contact and hardly in surface contact. Here, if the number of places where the magnetic particles dispersed in the resin are in contact with each other increases in the composite material, the relative permeability of the composite material becomes too large, or if the magnetic particles are made of metal, vortices between the particles are formed. Current can flow. In order to reduce the increase in relative permeability and the generation / increase of eddy current due to excessive contact between the particles, particularly when the magnetic particles are made of metal, the magnetic powder is like the above-mentioned coated powder, A magnetic powder having an insulating coating made of a nonmagnetic material is mentioned. On the other hand, if the particles having a shape close to a true sphere that satisfies the circularity described above are used as the raw material powder, even if the magnetic particles have no insulation coating, the particles can be prevented from excessively contacting each other. The relative permeability of the composite material can be kept low. Therefore, the use of the raw material powder satisfying the above-mentioned circularity is an effective configuration for making a composite material having a high saturation magnetic flux density of 0.6 T or more and a relatively low relative permeability of 20 or less. One of them.

  In order to obtain a powder having a circularity satisfying the above range, for example, a powder with a gas atomization method using an inert gas as a cooling medium or a powder with an irregular shape formed by a water atomization method (the circularity is within the above range). For example, the outer powder may be subjected to a rounding process such as polishing. When polishing, the circularity of the raw material powder can be adjusted by appropriately selecting the grain size of the abrasive grains. Even when the raw powder contains a coarse powder, the loss of the composite material may be small if the powder is nearly spherical, that is, if the circularity is close to 1.0. Since the composite material of the present invention is molded at a relatively low pressure, the circularity of each particle constituting the magnetic powder in the composite material is substantially the same as the circularity of each particle constituting the raw material powder. . The measurement of the circularity of the composite material of the present invention includes, for example, taking a cross section of the composite material and using an observation image obtained by microscopic observation of the cross section as described above.

  When the particle size distribution of the magnetic particles in the composite material is taken, the particle size distribution has a plurality of peaks. In short, both small and large particles are present to a certain degree of frequency. Fine particles can intervene in the gaps formed between these coarse particles. Therefore, this composite material is easy to increase the filling rate of the magnetic powder, and the ratio of the magnetic component is high.

The number of peaks may be two or three or more, but depending on the particle size, if two peaks are present, the filling rate can be sufficiently increased. For example, in the above particle size distribution, there are two peaks that satisfy r ₁ ≦ (1/2) × r ₂ where r _{1 is} the particle size taking the first peak and r ₂ is the particle size taking the second peak. A form is mentioned. Fine particles with a particle size r ₁ , which is a particle size less than half that of the coarse particles with a particle size r ₂ , can be sufficiently interposed in the gaps between the coarse particles, and the filling rate can be increased. The larger the particle size difference between the particle size r ₁ and the particle size r ₂ is, the more easily the gap is filled and the filling rate tends to increase, so the particle size r ₁ is r ₁ ≦ (1/3) × it is more preferable to satisfy the r _2. However, if the particle size r ₁ is too small, the raw material powder becomes a fine powder that is difficult to handle and easily deteriorates workability, and therefore r ₁ ≧ (1/10) × r ₂ is preferably satisfied.

More specific particle size, for example, in the case of pure iron powder, the particle size r _1: 50 [mu] m or more 100 [mu] m or less, the particle size r _2: 100 [mu] m or more 200μm or less, preferably the particle size r _1: 50μm~70μm, the particle size r ₂ : 100 μm to 150 μm can be mentioned (provided that r ₁ ≦ (1/2) × r ₂ ). Against particle diameter r _2, that contain enough fine particles such 50μm~100μm the (particles having a particle diameter r ₁₎ to the high frequency, the composite material has a high proportion of the magnetic component, the saturation magnetic flux density Besides being high, eddy current loss can be reduced. In particular, the saturation magnetic flux density is higher due to the pure iron powder. In addition, since the particle size of the finest particles present frequently is 50 μm or more, there are few very fine particles less than 50 μm, and the raw material powder is easy to handle. Furthermore, since the particle size r ₂ is 100 μm to 200 μm, the particle size difference between the particle size r ₁ and the particle size r ₂ is large, and it is easy to increase the filling rate as described above, and the particle size r ₂ is 200 μm. By being below, it is easy to reduce an eddy current loss. The smaller the particle size r ₁ is in the above range, the more the loss can be reduced.

On the other hand, when the magnetic particles are made of an iron alloy, it is easy to handle even when the particle size is 50 μm or less, and the particle size r ₁ can satisfy 50 μm or less. For example, a form in which the particle size r ₁ is 10 μm or more and 40 μm or less can be mentioned. This form has a smaller particle size r _{1 and} is composed of an iron alloy, so that (1) the eddy current loss is further reduced and a low-loss composite material is likely to be obtained, and (2) the filling rate is further increased. Since it is easy to increase, it has an effect that the saturation magnetic flux density is high to some extent although it is made of an iron alloy. In the case of an iron alloy, a relatively fine particle having a particle size of 50 μm or less tends to form spherical particles, and is excellent in the productivity of fine and spherical powder. When the particle diameter r ₁ is 10 μm to 40 μm, the particle diameter r ₂ is preferably 40 μm or more and 150 μm or less (provided that r ₁ <r ₂ ).

  In order to measure the particle size distribution of the magnetic powder in the composite material constituting the outer core portion 32, for example, the magnetic powder is extracted by removing the resin component, and the obtained magnetic powder is measured with a particle size analyzer. And analysis. When the composite material contains a nonmagnetic powder described later, the magnetic powder and the nonmagnetic powder may be selected using a magnet. Alternatively, it may be selected by performing component analysis using X-ray diffraction, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy: EDX, or the like. A commercially available particle size analyzer can be used. Since this method does not include a resin component, the particle size distribution of the magnetic powder can be measured with high accuracy.

In order to produce a composite material having the above particle size distribution, the raw materials are particles having particle sizes r ₁₀ and r ₂₀ that satisfy r ₁₀ <r ₂₀ (preferably r ₁₀ ≦ (1/2) × r ₂₀ ). The use of magnetic powder contained in the frequency is mentioned. When using a commercially available powder, the particle size distribution is examined, and a powder satisfying the specific particle size distribution as described above may be used. You may classify | classify using a sieve etc. so that a desired particle size may be satisfy | filled. The raw material powder can be typically produced by an atomizing method (such as a gas atomizing method or a water atomizing method). In particular, when a powder produced by the gas atomization method is used, a composite material with a small loss tends to be obtained. The coarse powder may be appropriately pulverized to obtain a desired particle size. Further, when a plurality of powders having different particle sizes as described above are prepared as the raw material powder and those satisfying the circularity described above are used, a composite material with a lower loss and a higher saturation magnetic flux density can be easily obtained.

  When a magnetic powder having a small particle size difference is used as the raw material, the particle size distribution of the magnetic powder in the composite material may have only one peak.

  When the total content of the magnetic powder is 30% by volume or more and 70% by volume or less with respect to the entire composite material, a composite material having a sufficiently high magnetic component ratio and a high saturation magnetic flux density can be obtained. In addition, when the total content of the magnetic powder is 70% by volume or less, the mixture of the raw magnetic powder and the uncured resin has excellent fluidity in the production of the composite material. The mold can be filled well and the composite material is excellent in manufacturability. In particular, 40 volume% or more and 65 volume% or less is easy to utilize. Raw material powder is prepared so that it may become desired content. The content of the magnetic powder in the composite material is obtained by removing the resin component to obtain the volume of the magnetic component, or by processing the micrograph of the cross section as described above, and calculating the volume ratio from the area ratio of the magnetic component in the cross section. It is calculated by converting.

  A thermosetting resin such as an epoxy resin, a phenol resin, a silicone resin, or a urethane resin can be suitably used as the binder resin in the composite material. When a thermosetting resin is used, the mixture filled in the molding die is heated to thermoset the resin. Alternatively, a room temperature curable resin or a low temperature curable resin can be used as the binder resin. In this case, the resin filled is cured by leaving the mixture filled in the molding die at a room temperature to a relatively low temperature. Alternatively, a thermoplastic resin such as a polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) resin, a polyimide resin, or a fluororesin can be used as the binder resin.

  Since the composite material generally includes a relatively large amount of resin, which is a non-magnetic material, the outer core portion 32 made of the composite material contains the same magnetic powder as the green compact forming the inner core portion 31. Even in this case, the saturation magnetic flux density is lower than that of the green compact, and the relative magnetic permeability tends to be low. The magnetic characteristics of the composite material can be easily changed by adjusting the material of the magnetic powder, the thickness of the above-described insulating coating, the amount of resin, and the like.

  The composite material can be typically formed by injection molding or cast molding. In injection molding, magnetic powder and resin in a fluid state (liquid resin; generally viscous) are mixed, and this mixture (slurry mixture) is applied with a predetermined pressure to form a predetermined shape. After pouring into a molding die and molding, the resin is cured. In cast molding, after obtaining a mixture similar to that of injection molding, the mixture is injected into a molding die without applying pressure to be molded and cured. In the first embodiment, the case 4 can be used as a molding die. In this case, a composite material having a desired shape (here, the outer core portion 32) can be easily molded. A plurality of molded bodies having a desired shape can be produced and combined to form a magnetic core having a desired shape.

Here, the outer core portion 32 is made of a composite material of a coating powder having an insulating coating on the surface of magnetic particles made of the same material and an epoxy resin. And the particle size distribution of the magnetic powder in this composite material is both particle size r ₁ : 54 μm (50 μm ≦ r ₁ ≦ 100 μm) and particle size r ₂ : 121 μm (100 μm ≦ r ₂ ≦ 200 μm) in the histogram. Has a peak.

<Magnetic properties>
The magnetic core 3 has partially different magnetic characteristics. In this example, the inner core portion 31 has a higher saturation magnetic flux density than the outer core portion 32, and the outer core portion 32 has a lower relative magnetic permeability than the inner core portion 31.

  Here, the saturation magnetic flux density of the inner core portion 31 is 1.6 T or more, and the relative magnetic permeability is 100 to 500. Further, the saturation magnetic flux density of the inner core portion 31 is 1.2 times higher than that of the outer core portion 32. Here, when obtaining a constant magnetic flux, the higher the absolute value of the saturation magnetic flux density of at least the portion of the inner core portion 31 covered by the coil 2, the more the saturation magnetic flux density of the portion is relative to that of the outer core portion 32. The larger the size, the smaller the cross-sectional area of at least the portion. Therefore, the reactor 1 having the high saturation magnetic flux density of the inner core portion 31 can be reduced in size (the volume can be reduced). The saturation magnetic flux density of at least a portion of the inner core portion 31 covered by the coil 2 is preferably 1.8 T or more, more preferably 2 T or more, and more than 1.5 times the saturation magnetic flux density of the outer core portion 32, more preferably 1.8 times or more. Is not provided. It should be noted that the saturation magnetic flux density of the inner core portion 31 can be further increased by using a laminated body of electromagnetic steel plates typified by a silicon steel plate instead of the constituent material of the inner core portion 31 instead of the green compact.

  Here, the saturation magnetic flux density of the outer core portion 32 is 0.6 T or more. The saturation magnetic flux density of the outer core portion 32 is preferably as high as possible, preferably 0.8 T or more, and more preferably 1 T or more. However, here, it is less than the saturation magnetic flux density of the inner core portion 31.

  The relative magnetic permeability of the outer core portion 32 is preferably more than 1 and 20 or less. Here, the relative magnetic permeability of the outer core portion 32 is 5 to 20, preferably 5 to 18, and more preferably 5 to 15. Since the relative permeability of the outer core portion 32 is lower than that of the inner core portion 31, magnetic flux easily passes through the inner core portion 31.

  The relative magnetic permeability of the entire magnetic core 3 composed of the inner core portion 31 and the outer core portion 32 having the magnetic characteristics is 10 to 100. Since the magnetic core 3 has a relatively low relative magnetic permeability as a whole, the magnetic core 3 can be integrated with a gapless structure without using a gap material such as an alumina plate or an air gap. Of course, a gap can be appropriately interposed in a part of the magnetic core 3.

[Case]
Here, the case 4 is a rectangular parallelepiped box composed of a rectangular bottom surface and four side walls erected from the bottom surface, and the surface facing the bottom surface is open. This case 4 is used as a container for storing a combination of the coil 2 and the magnetic core 3, and protects the coil 2 and the magnetic core 3 from the environment and mechanical protection. Is used for the heat dissipation path when is fixed. Therefore, the constituent material of the case 4 is preferably a material having excellent thermal conductivity, preferably a material having higher thermal conductivity than a magnetic powder such as iron, for example, a metal such as aluminum, aluminum alloy, magnesium, or magnesium alloy. it can. Since these aluminum, magnesium, and alloys thereof are lightweight, they are also suitable as materials for automobile parts that are desired to be reduced in weight. Further, since these aluminum, magnesium, and alloys thereof are nonmagnetic materials and conductive materials, magnetic flux leakage to the outside of the case 4 can be effectively prevented. Here, the case 4 is made of an aluminum alloy.

  In the example shown in FIG. 1, the case 4 is integrally formed with an attachment portion 41 for fixing the reactor 1 to an installation target. The attachment portion 41 has a bolt hole, and the reactor 1 can be easily fixed to the installation target with the bolt. In addition, when the case 4 includes a positioning portion that positions the coil 2 and the inner core portion 31 at predetermined positions, the coil 2 and the inner core portion 31 can be disposed at appropriate positions of the case 4. Here, the case 4 includes a positioning portion (not shown) so that the coil 2 is disposed at the center of the case 4 as shown in FIG. Further, when a cover made of a conductive material such as aluminum is provided as in the case 4, leakage magnetic flux can be prevented, and the outer core portion 32 can be protected from the environment and mechanically protected. This lid is provided with a notch or a through hole so that the end of the winding 2w constituting the coil 2 can be pulled out. Alternatively, the lid may be formed by filling a resin.

[Other configurations]
In order to increase the insulation between the coil 2 and the magnetic core 3, the outer periphery of the coil 2 is covered with an insulating resin, and the outer periphery of the coil 2 is covered with an insulating material such as insulating paper, insulating sheet, or insulating tape. It can be. Examples of the insulating resin include epoxy resin, urethane resin, polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) resin, polybutylene terephthalate (PBT) resin, acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS) resin, and unsaturated polyester. In addition, in order to enhance the insulation between the inner core portion 31 and the coil 2, the outer periphery of the inner core portion 31 can be provided with an insulating bobbin. This bobbin has a form including a cylindrical portion disposed on the outer periphery of the inner core portion 31 and annular flange portions provided at both ends of the cylindrical portion. In particular, the bobbin can be easily arranged on the inner core portion 31 when a plurality of divided pieces are combined into a single body. Examples of the constituent material of the bobbin include PPS resin, liquid crystal polymer (LCP), and polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) resin. In addition, the outer periphery of the inner core portion 31 may be covered with an insulating tube such as a heat-shrinkable tube. Further, when the coil 2 is in contact with the case 4, the above insulating material may be interposed in order to improve the insulation between the coil 2 and the case 4. Insulating properties can be improved by covering the contact portion with the magnetic core 3 at the lead-out location of the winding 2w with the above-described insulating resin, insulating material, or other heat-shrinkable tube.

  Alternatively, the case can be omitted. By omitting the case, the reactor can be reduced in size and weight. When the outer peripheral surface of the magnetic core 3 is made of a composite material that constitutes the outer core portion 32, the magnetic core 3 may be exposed because it contains a resin component. If the form is covered with resin, the magnetic core 3 can be protected from the environment and mechanically protected. It is preferable that the insulating resin contains a filler made of ceramics having high thermal conductivity, etc. because of excellent heat dissipation. The mounting portion described above may be integrally formed with the resin coating portion.

[Usage]
The reactor 1 having the above-described configuration is used in applications where the energization conditions are, for example, maximum current (DC): about 100 A to 1000 A, average voltage: about 100 V to 1000 V, and operating frequency: about 5 kHz to 100 kHz, typically electric It can be suitably used as a component part of an in-vehicle power converter such as an automobile or a hybrid automobile.

[Reactor manufacturing method]
The reactor 1 can be manufactured as follows, for example. First, the coil 2 and the inner core portion 31 made of a compacted body are prepared, and the inner core portion 31 is inserted into the coil 2 as shown in FIG. Is made. Then, the assembly is stored in the case 4.

A mixture of magnetic powder and uncured resin constituting the outer core portion 32 (FIG. 1) is prepared. As the magnetic powder of the raw material, here, a fine powder whose mode value is a particle size r ₁₀ : 50 μm to 100 μm and a coarse powder whose mode value is a particle size r ₂ : 100 μm to 200 μm are used ( r ₁₀ <r ₂₀ ), and after sufficiently mixing so that fine particles and coarse particles are uniformly dispersed, the mixed mixture is poured into the case 4 that is also used for a molding die. At this time, by setting the total content of the magnetic powder in the mixture to 70% by volume or less, the mixture has excellent fluidity, and the presence of the coil 2 and the inner core portion 31 results in a complex shaped space. The case 4 can be sufficiently filled. After filling, the outer core portion 32 made of a composite material can be formed by curing the resin of the mixture. Further, here, as shown in FIG. 1 (B), the outer core portion 32 is formed so as to be in contact with one end surface of the inner core portion 31 and the outer peripheral surface on the other end surface side of the inner core portion 31, The magnetic core 3 that forms a closed magnetic path when the coil 2 is excited can be formed. Therefore, the reactor 1 (FIG. 1) is obtained simultaneously with the formation of the outer core portion 32.

[effect]
The magnetic powder in the composite material constituting a part of the magnetic core 3 (here, the outer core portion 32) has a particle size distribution in which a plurality of peaks exist, that is, a fine powder and a coarse powder. It is composed of coarse mixed powder. By containing fine particles frequently in the magnetic powder, this composite material can reduce eddy current loss. In addition, in order to make fine coarse particles exist frequently in the magnetic powder, the fine powder and coarse powder are used as raw materials, so that the magnetic powder can be used without using a very fine powder that is difficult to handle. The filling rate can be increased.

The reactor 1 has the following effects by including the outer core portion 32 made of a composite material of a magnetic powder having a specific particle size distribution and a resin.
(1) The eddy current loss can be reduced and the loss is low.
(2) Since the ratio of the magnetic component of the outer core portion 32 is high, the saturation magnetic flux density is high. In particular, in the reactor 1, since the inner core portion 31 is formed of a green compact and the inner core portion 31 also has a high saturation magnetic flux density, the saturation magnetic flux density of the magnetic core 3 as a whole (the saturation magnetic flux density of the magnetic core 3). The average of the magnetic core) is higher than that of the configuration in which the entire magnetic core is made of the composite material.
(3) It is easy to handle magnetic powder during production and has excellent manufacturability.
(4) Even if the magnetic powder is not excessively large, the outer core portion 32 has a high proportion of the magnetic component, so that the mixture of the magnetic powder and the resin is excellent in fluidity during manufacture. From this point, it is excellent in manufacturability.
(5) Since the mixture is excellent in fluidity, even the outer core portion 32 having a complicated shape can be formed with high accuracy.

  Further, in the reactor 1, by configuring the outer core portion 32 with a composite material, (1) magnetic characteristics can be easily changed. (2) Since the resin component is included, the coil 2 and the inner core portion 31 are covered. It is possible to protect from these environments and mechanical protection, (3) Resin component can be used as a bonding material with the inner core part 31, (4) Reactor 1 is formed simultaneously with the formation of the outer core part 32 And has the effect of being excellent in manufacturability.

  In addition, the reactor 1 has the same magnetic flux as that of a core made of a single material (a core having a uniform saturation magnetic flux density throughout the core) because the saturation magnetic flux density of the inner core portion 31 is higher than that of the outer core portion 32. Can be reduced, the cross-sectional area of the inner core portion 31 (particularly the portion covered by the coil 2) (the area of the portion through which the magnetic flux passes) can be reduced. By reducing the size of the inner core portion 31, the coil 2 can also be made smaller. Moreover, the reactor 1 can arrange | position the coil 2 and the inner core part 31 close by having set it as the gapless structure. For these reasons, the reactor 1 is small. By reducing the size of the coil 2, the reactor 1 can be reduced in weight. Further, since the reactor 1 has a gapless structure, a gap material joining step is unnecessary, and this is also excellent in manufacturability.

[Test Example 1]
A composite material containing magnetic powder and resin was prepared, and the magnetic properties of the obtained composite material were examined.

  As the raw magnetic powder, sample No.1-1,1-100,1-200 is pure iron powder (Fe: 99.5% by mass or more), sample No.1-11,1-110,1-210 is Fe-Si alloy powder (Si: 6.5% by mass, remaining Fe and inevitable impurities) was prepared. Moreover, as for resin used as a binder, the epoxy resin was used for all the samples.

(Sample No.1-1,1-100,1-200)
A fine powder and a coarse powder made of pure iron are prepared separately (here, both are coated powders having an insulating coating made of phosphate), and a commercially available apparatus using a laser diffraction / scattering method (manufactured by Nikkiso Co., Ltd.) The particle size distribution of each powder was examined using a Microtrac particle size distribution measuring device MT3300). In the histogram of the obtained particle size distribution, the fine powder has a mode value of 54 μm and a high frequency particle size: 48 μm to 57 μm, and the coarse powder has a mode value of 121 μm and a high frequency particle size: 114 μm. ~ 125 μm. Since the thickness of the insulating coating is about 0.1 μm or less and is very thin, it does not substantially affect the particle size of the coating powder. Therefore, the particle size of the coating powder is treated as the particle size of the magnetic powder. The amount of each powder with respect to the entire composite material is the amount (volume%) shown in Table 1, and so that a composite material having a size that can sufficiently produce a sample described later is obtained. Powder, coarse powder, and resin (content in composite material: 50% by volume) were prepared. In addition, when the degree of circularity (maximum diameter / equivalent circle diameter) was examined using a microscope observation image of the cross section of each powder (measured particle number: 1000 or more), fine powder: 1.9, coarse powder : 1.7.

(Sample Nos. 1-11, 1-110, 1-210)
Prepare fine powder and coarse powder each made of Fe-Si alloy (here, both powders without an insulating coating), and in the same manner as in sample No. 1-1, the particle size distribution of each powder and The circularity was examined. Fine powder has a mode value of 30 μm, high frequency particle size: 26 μm to 34 μm, circularity: 1.4, and coarse powder has a mode value of 73 μm, high frequency particle size: 62 μm to 88 μm, circular Degree: 1.1. Fine powder so that the content of each powder with respect to the entire composite material is the amount (volume%) shown in Table 2, and so that a composite material having the same size as Sample No. 1-1 can be obtained. Powder, coarse powder, and resin (content in composite material: 50% by volume) were prepared.

  The prepared magnetic powder and resin were mixed to prepare a mixture. After the mixture was filled in a molding die having a predetermined shape, the resin was cured to obtain a composite material. Here, as a sample for measuring magnetic properties, an outer diameter: φ34 mm, an inner diameter: φ20 mm, a thickness: 5 mm, a ring-shaped sample, and as a sample for measuring heat dissipation, a diameter: φ50 mm, a thickness: 5 mm, a disk-shaped sample Produced.

About each obtained composite material, saturation magnetic flux density, relative magnetic permeability, and iron loss were measured. The saturation magnetic flux density is the magnetic flux density when a magnetic field of 10000 (Oe) (= 795.8 kA / m) is applied to the ring-shaped composite material by an electromagnet and sufficiently magnetically saturated. The relative permeability was measured as follows. Each ring-shaped composite material is wound with a primary winding of 300 turns and a secondary winding of 20 turns, and the BH initial magnetization curve is measured in the range of H = 0 (Oe) to 100 (Oe). The maximum value of B / H of the initial magnetization curve was determined, and this maximum value was defined as the relative permeability μ. The magnetization curve here is a so-called DC magnetization curve. The iron loss was measured as follows using a ring-shaped composite material. Using a BH curve tracer, measure the hysteresis loss Wh (W / m ³ ) and eddy current loss We (W / m ³ ) at an excitation magnetic flux density Bm: 1 kG (= 0.1 T) and a measurement frequency: 10 kHz. The iron loss (W / m ³ ) was calculated from Wh + eddy current loss We. In addition, the thermal conductivity of each obtained disc-shaped composite material was measured by a temperature gradient method. These results are shown in Tables 1 and 2.

  From the obtained composite materials of Sample Nos. 1-1 and 1-11, the resin component is removed to extract the magnetic powder, and the particle size analysis of the obtained magnetic powder is performed by the laser diffraction / scattering method as described above. In the histogram, sample No. 1-1 had peaks at 54 μm and 121 μm, and sample No. 1-11 had peaks at 30 μm and 73 μm. That is, the particle size distribution of the magnetic powder in the composite material has a plurality of peaks, and the particle size distribution of the powder used as the raw material is substantially maintained.

  As shown in Tables 1 and 2, the composite material of Sample Nos. 1-1 and 1-11 having a plurality of peaks in the particle size distribution of the magnetic powder is Sample No. 1-100 using only fine powders. 1 and 110, and sample Nos. 1-200 and 1-210 using only coarse powder, it can be seen that both high saturation magnetic flux density and low loss are achieved. The reason why the composite materials of Sample Nos. 1-1 and 1-11 have a low loss may be that fine powder is frequently present. In particular, Sample No. 1-1 having a plurality of peaks in the particle size distribution of the magnetic powder is more than Sample No. 1-100 and 1-200, and Sample No. 1-11 is Sample No. 1-110, 1- The saturation magnetic flux density is higher than 210, and the value is higher than the maximum value when only one of fine powder and coarse powder is used. That is, the saturation magnetic flux density of sample No. 1-1 is larger than the value expected from the interpolation (interpolation) of sample Nos. 1-100 and 1-200, and the saturation magnetic flux density of sample No. 1-11 is It is larger than the value expected from the interpolation (interpolation) of Sample Nos. 1-110 and 1-210. The reason for such a result is not clear, but it is thought that the demagnetizing factor was changed by mixing both fine powder and coarse powder. In addition, with respect to the thermal conductivity, Sample No. 1-1 is more than the value expected from the interpolation of No. 1-100 and 1-200. It is higher than expected from the interpolation of 1-210. This is probably because fine particles are interposed between coarse particles and the magnetic particles form a continuous heat conduction path.

  In addition, when comparing the composite materials of No. 1-1 and 1-11, when pure iron is used, the saturation magnetic flux density is high, and when an iron alloy is used, it has low loss even without an insulation coating. I understand that there is. In addition, the smaller the particle size, the smaller the loss tends to be, the lower the tendency for the loss to be when a raw material powder having a circularity close to 1.0 is used, and the use of a raw material powder with a circularity near 1.0 makes the relative permeability low. It can be seen that it tends to be relatively small.

(Embodiment 2)
In Embodiment 1 above, a part of the magnetic core is made of a composite material of magnetic powder and resin, but at least a part of the magnetic core is made up of magnetic powder, non-magnetic powder and resin. It can be made into the form comprised with the composite material. As a function of the non-magnetic powder, it is possible to suppress sedimentation of the magnetic powder during the production of the composite material.

The non-magnetic powder preferably has a specific gravity smaller than that of the magnetic powder in order to sufficiently obtain the above-described sedimentation suppressing effect. Examples of such materials include ceramics such as SiO ₂ , Al ₂ O ₃ , Fe ₂ O ₃ , BN, AlN, ZnO, and TiO ₂ , inorganic materials such as silicon (Si), and organic materials such as silicone resin. In particular, SiO ₂ (silica) can impart thixotropy to the resin and can easily suppress sedimentation of the magnetic powder. If a non-magnetic powder made of a material with high thermal conductivity such as SiO ₂ , Al ₂ O ₃ , BN, or AlN is included, the heat dissipation of the composite material can be improved. It can be set as the core for reactors and reactors which are excellent. When the powder which consists of silicone resins is contained, it can suppress that a crack generate | occur | produces in a composite material. Therefore, by using this composite material, a high-strength reactor core or reactor can be obtained. Either a form containing non-magnetic powder made of one kind of material or a form containing non-magnetic powder made of a plurality of different materials may be used.

  Examples of the shape of the particles constituting the nonmagnetic powder include a spherical shape and a non-spherical shape (for example, a plate shape, a needle shape, a rod shape, etc.). In particular, when it is spherical, it has an advantage that it can be easily filled in a gap formed between magnetic particles and has excellent fluidity. Further, the non-magnetic particles may be solid or hollow, and in the case of a hollow, the weight of the composite material can be reduced. Commercially available powder can be used as the non-magnetic powder. Either a form including a non-magnetic powder having a single shape or a form including non-magnetic powder having a plurality of different shapes may be used.

And, when taking the particle size distribution of the mixed powder that combines the non-magnetic powder and the magnetic powder present in the composite material, the maximum particle size r _n max that takes a peak in the non-magnetic powder is the magnetic powder A form smaller than the minimum particle size r _m min that takes a peak in FIG. In this form, magnetic particles having a larger particle diameter than non-magnetic particles are frequently present. Therefore, fine non-magnetic particles can exist in the gaps formed between the magnetic particles, and the filling rate of the magnetic powder is difficult to decrease or does not substantially decrease with the inclusion of the non-magnetic powder. The larger the particle size difference between magnetic particles and non-magnetic particles, the easier it is to obtain the above effect, so that at least one of r _n max ≦ (1/3) × r _m min and r _n max ≦ 20 μm is satisfied. Is preferred. The smaller the non-magnetic powder, the more efficiently the gap is filled and the uniform spread around the magnetic particles. Further, the presence of fine non-magnetic particles between the magnetic particles makes it possible to keep the relative permeability of the composite material low. Therefore, r _n max ≦ (1/5) × r _m min and r _n max ≦ 10 μm are more preferable. For example, a nonmagnetic powder having a particle size of about 1 μm to 10 μm or a fine nonmagnetic powder having a particle size of less than 1 μm can be used. As a specific form, in the particle size distribution of the mixed powder, the first peak particle size r ₁ , the second peak particle size r ₂ , the non-magnetic powder peak particle size r _n is r _A composite material satisfying ₂ = 2r ₁ and r _n = (1/3) × r ₁ can be given. Forms containing non-magnetic powder consisting of one kind of particle size (i.e. forms having a single non-magnetic powder peak), forms containing non-magnetic powder consisting of different kinds of particle sizes (i.e. And any form in which a plurality of peaks of non-magnetic powder exist. In the latter case, both the magnetic powder and the non-magnetic powder have a plurality of peaks.

  When the content of the non-magnetic powder is 0.2% by mass or more based on the entire composite material, the non-magnetic powder is sufficiently spread around the magnetic powder, and the sedimentation of the magnetic powder can be effectively suppressed. When the non-magnetic powder is made of a material having excellent thermal conductivity, if it is contained in an amount of 0.2% by mass or more, the non-magnetic powder is sufficiently present. Since the magnetic powder is uniformly present, the composite material can have uniform heat dissipation. As the amount of non-magnetic powder increases, the above effect can be obtained. Therefore, the total content is preferably 0.3% by mass or more, and more preferably 0.5% by mass or more based on the entire composite material. However, if the amount of nonmagnetic powder is too large, the ratio of the magnetic component is reduced, so the total content of nonmagnetic powder is preferably 20% by mass or less, more preferably 15% by mass or less, and particularly preferably 10% by mass or less.

  The composite material containing non-magnetic particles can effectively prevent the magnetic powder from precipitating in the uncured resin during production, and the magnetic particles can easily be uniformly dispersed in the resin. By suppressing the sedimentation of the magnetic powder, the mixture of the magnetic powder, the non-magnetic powder and the resin is excellent in fluidity and can be sufficiently filled in the molding die (case 4 in the first embodiment). Therefore, even a complex shaped composite material can be manufactured with high accuracy. Further, by curing the resin in a state where the magnetic powder is uniformly dispersed, a composite material in which the magnetic powder and the non-magnetic powder are uniformly dispersed can be obtained. Therefore, in this composite material, it is difficult to generate a portion where the magnetic powder is unevenly distributed and the loss is increased, and as a result, the loss of the entire composite material can be reduced. In addition, the composite material has uniform magnetic characteristics and the above-described thermal characteristics throughout, and has high reliability.

[Test Example 2]
A composite material containing magnetic powder, resin, and non-magnetic powder was produced, and the magnetic properties of the obtained composite material were examined.

  In this test, as the raw material magnetic powder, the same Fe-Si alloy powder as sample No. 1-11 of Test Example 1 (moderate value of fine powder: 30 μm, mode value of coarse powder: 73 μm) The same resin as in Test Example 1 was prepared, and nonmagnetic powder: silica filler (particle size: 5 nm to 50 nm, mode: 12 nm ≦ 20 μm) was prepared. The nonmagnetic powder was prepared so that the content with respect to the entire composite material was 0.3% by mass (≧ 0.2% by mass).

  The prepared magnetic powder, resin and nonmagnetic powder were mixed to prepare a mixture, and a composite material was obtained from this mixture in the same manner as in Test Example 1 (Sample No. 2-11). With respect to the obtained composite material, saturation magnetic flux density, iron loss, thermal conductivity, and relative permeability were measured in the same manner as in Test Example 1. The results are shown in Table 3. Further, for the composite material of the obtained sample No. 2-11, the resin component was removed in the same manner as in Test Example 1, and the particle size distribution of the powder in the composite material was examined. 12 nm, 30 μm, 73 μm The minimum particle diameter that takes the peak is non-magnetic powder.

  An elongated columnar sample (length: 60 mm) is prepared from the above mixture, and a test piece including one end surface of the sample (the surface that was in contact with the bottom surface of the molding die) and the one end surface are arranged to face each other. Each test piece including the other end surface (upper surface) was cut out, the density of each test piece was determined, and the difference (maximum density difference) was examined. The results are also shown in Table 3. The density difference (%) is {(density of the test piece on the bottom surface side−density of the test piece on the top surface side) / density of the test piece on the bottom surface side} × 100. The density is calculated by density ρ ≒ (density of water x mass in air) / (mass in air-mass in water) using the Archimedes principle and approximating from water density >> air density. It was.

  As shown in Table 3, it can be seen that a composite material having a small density difference can be obtained by containing a non-magnetic powder even when the shape is elongated. The reason for this is considered that the presence of the non-magnetic powder suppressed the sedimentation of the magnetic powder during the production of the composite material. It can also be seen that Sample No. 2-11 containing non-magnetic powder has a lower loss and a lower relative magnetic permeability. The reason for this is considered to be that the magnetic powder and the non-magnetic powder are uniformly present in the composite material, and there are substantially no portions where the magnetic powder is locally present.

(Embodiment 3)
In Embodiment 1 described above, only a part of the magnetic core is made of the composite material of the present invention, but the form of all the magnetic cores made of the composite material of the present invention, that is, the inside and outside of the coil 2 is the present invention. It can be made into the form covered with the composite material. In this form of reactor, for example, the coil 2 is disposed at an appropriate position of the case 4 described in the first embodiment, and after filling the case 4 with a mixture containing magnetic powder and resin, the resin is cured. Can be manufactured, and is excellent in productivity. The obtained reactor has uniform saturation magnetic flux density and relative magnetic permeability because the entire magnetic core is composed of the composite material of the present invention. In addition, when the magnetic core has a relatively low magnetic permeability, the magnetic core can have a gapless structure. In this case, the size and weight can be reduced as described above.

  Alternatively, as the inner core portion described in the first embodiment, a columnar molded body separately manufactured from the composite material of the present invention may be used. In this case, prepare the raw magnetic powder so that the particle size distribution of the magnetic powder used for the inner core portion and the particle size distribution of the magnetic powder used for the outer core portion are different, and the degree of filling of the magnetic powder is adjusted. By changing the magnetic core, the magnetic properties of the magnetic core may be partially different, for example, as in the first embodiment, the saturation magnetic flux density of the inner core portion may be higher than that of the outer core portion.

  Alternatively, conversely to the configuration of the first embodiment, a columnar molded body made of the composite material described above may be used as an inner core portion, and the outer core portion may be configured from a powder molded body. The outer core portion includes, for example, a cylindrical portion disposed on the outer periphery of the coil and a plate-shaped portion disposed on each end surface of the coil. In this form, the magnetic permeability of the inner core part containing the resin component is lower than that of the outer core part, and the saturation magnetic flux density of the outer core part made of the compacted body can be made higher than that of the inner core part. With this configuration, leakage magnetic flux from the outer core portion to the outside can be reduced, and loss due to the leakage magnetic flux can be reduced.

(Embodiment 4)
In the first embodiment, the vertical type is used. However, a mode in which the coil 2 is housed so that the axial direction of the coil is parallel to the bottom surface of the case 4 (hereinafter referred to as a horizontal type) can be used. In the horizontal type, heat dissipation is improved by shortening the distance from the outer peripheral surface of the coil to the bottom surface of the case.

(Embodiment 5)
In the first embodiment, one coil is provided, but a pair of coils formed by spirally winding one continuous winding 2w like the reactor 15 shown in FIG. The coil 2 having the elements 2a and 2b and the annular magnetic core 3 (FIG. 3 (B)) in which the coil elements 2a and 2b are arranged can be provided.

  The coil 2 is typically in a form in which both coil elements 2a and 2b are arranged side by side so that the axial directions of the coil elements 2a and 2b are parallel to each other and are connected by a connecting portion 2r formed by folding a part of the winding 2w. Is. In addition, each coil element 2a, 2b is formed separately by two different windings, and one end portions of the windings constituting each coil element 2a, 2b are joined and integrated by welding, crimping, soldering, etc. The form which was made is mentioned. The coil elements 2a and 2b have the same number of turns and the same winding direction, and are formed in a hollow cylindrical shape.

  The magnetic core 3 includes a pair of columnar inner core portions 31 and 31 disposed inside the coil elements 2a and 2b, and a pair of columnar outer core portions disposed outside the coil 2 and exposed from the coil 2. 32, 32. As shown in FIG.3 (B), the magnetic core 3 is connected to one end surfaces of both inner core portions 31, 31 spaced apart from each other through one outer core portion 32, and both inner core portions 31, The other end surfaces of 31 are connected to each other via the other outer core portion 32 and are formed in an annular shape.

  In addition, the reactor 15 includes an insulator 5 for enhancing insulation between the coil 2 and the magnetic core 3. The insulator 5 is in contact with a cylindrical portion (not shown) arranged on the outer periphery of the columnar inner core portion 31 and an end surface of the coil 2 (a surface where the turn appears to be annular), and the inner core portions 31, 31 And a pair of frame plate portions 52 having two through holes (not shown). As a constituent material of the insulator 5, insulating materials such as PPS resin, PTFE resin, and LCP can be used.

  As a more specific form of the reactor 15 including the coil 2, for example, the inner core portions 31 and 31 that are inserted into the coil elements 2a and 2b, respectively, and are formed of a green compact, and the above-described present invention Examples thereof include an internal green compact form (ie, a form in which a part of the magnetic core is composed of the composite material of the present invention) including the outer core portions 32 and 32 composed of columnar shaped bodies made of a composite material. As another form of the internal compaction, a form in which the assembly of the coil elements 2a, 2b and the compacted compact is covered with the above-described composite material of the present invention as in the first embodiment can be mentioned. Alternatively, it is inserted into each of the coil elements 2a and 2b, and the inner core portions 31 and 31 are made of the above-described columnar molded body made of the composite material of the present invention, and the outer core portion 32 is made of a powder molded body. , 32 (that is, a form in which a part of the magnetic core is made of the composite material of the present invention). Alternatively, the magnetic core disposed inside and outside of the coil elements 2a and 2b is made of the above-described composite material of the present invention (that is, the form in which all the magnetic cores are made of the composite material of the present invention. Called). In any of these three forms, each inner core portion 31 is composed of only a magnetic material such as a composite material or a green compact, and a core piece 31m made of the above-described magnetic material as shown in FIG. And a gap formed by alternately laminating gap members 31g made of a material having a lower magnetic permeability than the core pieces 31m (typically, nonmagnetic materials). Each of the outer core portions 32 may be configured by a core piece 31m made of the magnetic material described above.

  The above-mentioned inner powder form is higher in saturation magnetic flux density of the inner core parts 31 and 31 made of a powder molded body inserted into the coil elements 2a and 2b than the outer core part 32 made of a composite material containing resin. Easy to do. Since the saturation magnetic flux density of the inner core portion 31 is high, the cross section of the inner core portion 31 can be reduced as described above. By reducing the size of the inner core portion 31, it is possible to achieve (1) size reduction of the reactor, (2) weight reduction of the reactor by shortening the winding 2w, and the like. The above-mentioned external powder form can easily increase the saturation magnetic flux density of the outer core portion 32 disposed outside the coil elements 2a and 2b, as compared with the inner core portion 31, so that leakage magnetic flux from the outer core portion to the outside can be reduced. Therefore, the external powder form can reduce the loss associated with the leakage magnetic flux and can fully utilize the magnetic flux formed by the coil 2. The above-mentioned all composite material form makes it easy to produce a magnetic core not only when the magnetic core 3 is made of a uniform material, but also when the magnetic core is composed of a plurality of core pieces. And excellent productivity. In particular, when the case is a molding die as in the first embodiment, the magnetic core 3 can be easily formed even if it has a complicated shape. Moreover, if the material and content of the magnetic powder are adjusted to make a composite material having a relatively low magnetic permeability, the total composite material form can have a gapless structure, and no leakage magnetic flux can be generated in the gap portion. An increase in the size of the reactor due to the gap can be suppressed. Alternatively, by changing the material and content of the magnetic powder in each core piece, the magnetic properties of the magnetic core can be partially different from each other in the form of all composites, such as the inner powder form and the outer powder form. it can. Further, when the inside and outside of the coil is covered with the composite material, the coil can be protected by the resin component of the composite material.

(Embodiment 6)
The reactors of the first to fifth embodiments can be used for, for example, a component part of a converter mounted on a vehicle or the like, or a component part of a power conversion device including the converter.

  For example, a vehicle 1200 such as a hybrid vehicle or an electric vehicle is used for traveling by being driven by a main battery 1210, a power converter 1100 connected to the main battery 1210, and power supplied from the main battery 1210 as shown in FIG. Motor (load) 1220. The motor 1220 is typically a three-phase AC motor, which drives the wheel 1250 when traveling and functions as a generator during regeneration. In the case of a hybrid vehicle, the vehicle 1200 includes an engine in addition to the motor 1220. In FIG. 4, an inlet is shown as a charging point of the vehicle 1200, but a form including a plug may be adopted.

  The power conversion device 1100 includes a converter 1110 connected to the main battery 1210 and an inverter 1120 connected to the converter 1110 and performing mutual conversion between direct current and alternating current. Converter 1110 shown in this example boosts the DC voltage (input voltage) of main battery 1210 of about 200 V to 300 V to about 400 V to 700 V and feeds power to inverter 1120 when vehicle 1200 is traveling. In addition, converter 1110 steps down DC voltage (input voltage) output from motor 1220 via inverter 1120 to DC voltage suitable for main battery 1210 during regeneration, and causes main battery 1210 to be charged. The inverter 1120 converts the direct current boosted by the converter 1110 into a predetermined alternating current when the vehicle 1200 is running and supplies power to the motor 1220. During regeneration, the alternating current output from the motor 1220 is converted into direct current and output to the converter 1110. doing.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the converter 1110 includes a plurality of switching elements 1111, a drive circuit 1112 that controls the operation of the switching elements 1111, and a reactor L, and converts input voltage by ON / OFF repetition (switching operation). (In this case, step-up / down). For the switching element 1111, a power device such as FET or IGBT is used. The reactor L has the function of smoothing the change when the current is going to increase or decrease by the switching operation by utilizing the property of the coil that tends to prevent the change of the current to flow through the circuit. As this reactor L, the reactor of the said Embodiment 1-5 is provided. By providing the reactor 1 with high magnetic flux density and low loss, the power conversion device 1100 and the converter 1110 have low loss.

  Vehicle 1200 is connected to converter 1110, power supply converter 1150 connected to main battery 1210, sub-battery 1230 as a power source for auxiliary devices 1240, and main battery 1210. Auxiliary power converter 1160 for converting high voltage to low voltage is provided. The converter 1110 typically performs DC-DC conversion, while the power supply device converter 1150 and the auxiliary power supply converter 1160 perform AC-DC conversion. Some converters 1150 for power feeding devices perform DC-DC conversion. The reactors of the power supply device converter 1150 and the auxiliary power supply converter 1160 have the same configuration as the reactors of the first to fifth embodiments, and the reactors whose sizes and shapes are appropriately changed can be used. In addition, the reactors of the first to fifth embodiments can be used for a converter that performs input power conversion and that only performs step-up or a step-down operation.

  Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be modified as appropriate without departing from the gist of the present invention. For example, the composite material of the present invention can be used for a motor core.

  The composite material of the present invention can be used as a constituent material of a magnetic core used for a magnetic component having a coil such as a reactor or a motor. The reactor of the present invention can be used for components of power conversion devices such as bidirectional DC-DC converters and air conditioner converters mounted on vehicles such as hybrid vehicles, plug-in hybrid vehicles, electric vehicles, and fuel cell vehicles. The reactor core according to the present invention can be used as a component part of the reactor.

1,15 reactor
2 Coil 2w Winding 2a, 2b Coil element 2r Connection
3 Magnetic core 31 Inner core part 31m Core piece 31g Gap material
32 Outer core
4 Case 41 Mounting part
5 Insulator 52 Frame plate
1100 Power converter 1110 Converter 1111 Switching element
1112 Drive circuit L Reactor 1120 Inverter
1150 Power supply converter 1160 Auxiliary power converter
1200 Vehicle 1210 Main battery 1220 Motor 1230 Sub battery
1240 Auxiliary 1250 Wheel

Claims (15)

A composite material containing a magnetic powder and a resin encapsulating the powder in a dispersed state,
The magnetic powder is an iron alloy powder containing Si,
The composite material contains a non-magnetic powder composed of at least one material,
When taking a particle size distribution of the magnetic powder, there are multiple peaks,
When the particle size distribution of the mixed powder of the magnetic substance powder and the non-magnetic substance powder is taken, the maximum particle diameter that takes a peak in the non-magnetic substance powder is the smallest particle that takes a peak in the magnetic substance powder. rather smaller than the diameter,
Wherein the plurality of peaks, has only two peaks of the first peak and second peak, r ₁ and the particle size to take the first peak, the particle size to take the second peak when the r _2,
r ₁ ≦ (1/2) r ₂ is satisfied,
The particle size r ₁ satisfies 10 μm or more and 40 μm or less,
The composite material satisfying the particle size r ₂ of 40 μm or more and 150 μm or less .   A composite material containing a magnetic powder and a resin encapsulating the powder in a dispersed state,
  The magnetic powder is pure iron powder,
  The composite material contains a non-magnetic powder composed of at least one material,
  When taking a particle size distribution of the magnetic powder, there are multiple peaks,
  When the particle size distribution of the mixed powder of the magnetic substance powder and the non-magnetic substance powder is taken, the maximum particle diameter that takes a peak in the non-magnetic substance powder is the smallest particle that takes a peak in the magnetic substance powder. Smaller than the diameter,
  The plurality of peaks have only two peaks, a first peak and a second peak, and the particle diameter taking the first peak is r ₁ , R ₂ And when
  r ₁ ≤ (1/2) r ₂ The filling,
  The particle size r ₁ Satisfies 50 μm or more and 70 μm or less,
  The particle size r ₂ Is a composite material satisfying 100 μm to 150 μm. 3. The composite material according to claim 1, wherein a particle diameter having a peak in the nonmagnetic powder is 20 μm or less. The powdered magnetic material, the magnetic particles, the composite material according to any one of claims 1 to 3 comprising a coating powder comprising an insulating coating covering the outer periphery of the magnetic particles. The total content of the magnetic powder to the entire composite material, the composite material according to any one of claims 1 to 4 or less 70 vol% to 30 vol%. The saturation magnetic flux density of the composite material, a composite material as claimed in any one of claims 5 at least 0.6 T. The relative permeability of the composite material, the composite material according to any one of claims 1 to 6 which is 5 to 20. The composite material according to prior SL total content of the nonmagnetic powder to the entire composite material, any one of claims 1 to 7 is not less than 0.2 mass%. 9. The composite material according to any one of claims 1 to 8 , wherein a circularity of particles constituting the magnetic powder is 1.0 or more and 2.0 or less. 10. A reactor core made of the composite material according to any one of claims 1 to 9 . A reactor comprising a coil and a magnetic core on which the coil is disposed,
10. A reactor in which at least a part of the magnetic core is made of the composite material according to any one of claims 1 to 9 . A reactor comprising a coil and a magnetic core on which the coil is disposed,
Of the magnetic core, at least a part of the portion disposed inside the cylindrical coil formed by winding the winding is made of a powder compact, and at least the portion disposed outside the coil. A reactor, which is partly composed of the composite material according to any one of claims 1 to 9 . A reactor comprising a coil and a magnetic core on which the coil is disposed,
10. At least a part of a portion of the magnetic core disposed inside a cylindrical coil formed by winding a winding is made of the composite material according to any one of claims 1 to 9. A reactor in which at least a part of the portion arranged outside the coil is formed of a compacted body. A converter comprising a switching element, a drive circuit that controls the operation of the switching element, and a reactor that smoothes the switching operation, and converts the input voltage by the operation of the switching element,
14. The converter according to claim 11 , wherein the reactor is a reactor according to any one of claims 11 to 13 . A converter for converting an input voltage, and an inverter connected to the converter for converting between direct current and alternating current, and for driving a load with electric power converted by the inverter,
15. The power converter device according to claim 14 , wherein the converter is a converter according to claim 14 .

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