Abstract

This paper deals with the finite element solution of the eddy current problem in bounded domains. The starting point is an overview of the most used finite element techniques to approximate eddy current problems. The focus of the article is on the analysis of weak formulations based on the magnetic or the electric field, approximated by means of edge elements. The most outstanding characteristic is the treatment of boundary conditions feasible from the point of view of applications. Theoretical results concerning the continuous weak formulations and error estimates for the discrete problems are reported. Applications of the proposed techniques to electrodes of metallurgical electric furnaces are discussed and numerical results are given. © 2005 by CIMNE, Barcelona (Spain).