Cryogenics for an HTS degaussing system demonstrator

This paper describes the design, construction and test results of a high temperature superconducting (HTS) degaussing demonstrator system. Such a system compensates the local disturbance in the earth's magnetic field caused by the ferromagnetic hulls of ships, to prevent detection by active or passive magnetic field sensors. This is done by placing coils around the ship, creating a magnetic field opposing the effect of the earth's magnetic field. Degaussing systems for large naval vessels typically need currents of up to 1 or 2 kAturns, which gives rise to sizeable ohmic losses in conventional copper coils. These losses can be reduced if high temperature superconductors are used, since they have no electrical resistance when cooled down to temperatures below 90 K. For the demonstrator, 3 coils able to generate fields in 2 directions were realized both with HTS and copper to get a representative degaussing performance. A dedicatedly designed cooling system maintains the superconductors at a temperature of 77-85K using (subcooled) liquid nitrogen. Due to the relatively small laboratory scale that this first 1:5m long demonstrator system which was produced, the copper degaussing system is still more efficient than the HTS system because of the cooling power needed. A large fraction of this cooling power is needed to cool away parasitic heat loads, that hardly increases if the size of the system increases. Thereafter the performance of both systems was compared to evaluate on what scale HTS degaussing systems become more efficient than copper degaussing systems

The Effect of Ta and Ti Additions on the Strain Sensitivity of Bulk Niobium-Tin

The effect of tantalum and titanium additions on the composition, the superconducting properties, and their sensitivity to strain of bulk Nb3Sn is investigated. Using heat capacity analysis and Scanning Electron Microscopy with Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (SEM-EDX), it is found that the binary Nb3Sn bulk and Nb3Sn bulk with added titanium and tantalum consist of stoichiometric Nb3Sn and niobium(-oxide). Furthermore, it is found that the niobium-to-tin ratio decreases in the presence of tantalum and increases in the presence of titanium, which suggests that tantalum is replacing niobium and titanium is replacing tin in the A15 crystal structure. Using a 10% resistivity criterion, it is observed that the critical magnetic field of unstrained binary bulk is 26.7 T, while the presence of tantalum and titanium raises the critical magnetic field to 29.3 and 30.1 T, respectively. The curves of normalized critical magnetic field as function of strain of all three samples nearly overlap, a strong indication that the variation in strain sensitivity observed in wires is not caused by the titanium and tantalum additions. Understanding the effect of additions on the composition, superconducting properties, and strain sensitivity of Nb3Sn is important for optimizing Nb3Sn conductor technolog

Inter-filament resistance, effective transverse resistivity and coupling loss in superconducting multifilamentary NbTi and Nb3Sn strands

The effective transverse resistivity of a range of multi-filamentary Nb3Sn and NbTi strands is measured with a direct four-probe method and the data are compared to the transverse resistivity values obtained from AC coupling loss experiments. Correspondence between both is satisfactory provided that all contributions to the current path are properly taken into account.\ud \ud Quantitative knowledge of the inter-filament resistance and of the effective transverse strand resistivity leads to a better insight into the physical mechanisms that govern not only AC coupling losses, but also a variety of current distribution and redistribution processes, e.g. the current entry length in short-sample measurements or critical current degradation with bending strain.\ud \ud The wires are state-of-the-art commercial superconductors that are presently applied in ITER, JT-60SA and LHC magnets. The influence of filament-to-matrix contact resistance, of the (possibly inhomogeneous) matrix resistivity and of the cross-sectional strand layout on the AC coupling losses in these wires is discussed\u

Current transfer length in multi-filamentary superconducting NbTi and Nb3Sn strands; experiments and models

The current transfer length of multi-filamentary superconducting NbTi and Nb3Sn strands was measured and analyzed. The aim is to understand and quantify the current distribution process between matrix and superconducting filaments occurring at current injection joints or shunting localized interruptions like originated by transverse cracks or high strain, temperature, or magnetic field in filaments. The current transfer length was investigated on two different multi-filamentary Nb3Sn wires and one NbTi wire. Opposite to earlier clarifications, it was found that the current transfer length cannot be simply represented by a single parameter but depends on the ratio of transport current and critical current and the distance from the current injection point or local interruption of the superconducting path in the filamentary zone. With the aid of our numerical 3D multi-filamentary strand model, simulations were performed showing excellent agreement with the experimental data. For broader use, analytical formulae are proposed to determine the current transfer length for multi-filamentary superconductors with complex cross-sectional layout. The increasing current transfer length with the higher injected current and/or along with the distance away from the current injection point is explained by a progressive current penetration, which is caused by the high resistive matrix layers and complex layout. For the experimental results obtained here, the analytical and numerical simulation results show good agreement against the experimentally measured data from the potential-tips along the strand length

Transverse-pressure susceptibility of high-Jc RRP and PIT types of Nb3Sn Rutherford cables for accelerator magnets

In the frame of the High-Luminosity Large Hadron Collider construction and Future Circular Collider development program, the magnetic field in the accelerator dipole magnets is being enhanced to 11 T, and 15 T to 16 T level, respectively. Advanced Nb3Sn superconductors with a non-copper critical current density exceeding 2500 A mm−2 at 4.2 K and 12 T, are being developed using the Restacked-Rod-Process (RRP) and Powder-In-Tube (PIT) wire technologies. However, since Nb3Sn is extremely brittle, it is a significant challenge to construct the high-field dipole magnets with such very strain-susceptible superconductor. The high-level of stress acting on the wide face of the Rutherford cables in the coils of 120 MPa to 200 MPa generated by the Lorenz' force, causes initially a reversible reduction and eventually at some stress level followed by permanent degradation of the critical current when strain goes to high. This study sets out to examine the critical current and upper critical field performance of state-of-the-art RRP and PIT Nb3Sn Rutherford cables in terms of transverse pressure. The variation of the critical current and upper critical field due to the thermal- and mechanical load-cycling was investigated as well. For reference, the critical current of witness wires characterized on standard ITER type barrels were also measured. The results indicate that the RRP type of Nb3Sn Rutherford cables, when fully impregnated with epoxy resin, are able to withstand a transverse stress of 170 MPa to 250 MPa without noticeable irreversible critical current reduction. For the transverse pressure limit for present PIT type of Nb3Sn Rutherford cables somewhat lower values are found at the level of 50 MPa to 120 MPa. Therefore, given the present cables, the high-field dipole magnet construction can be realized using the RRP Nb3Sn Rutherford cables, while for PIT type cables more cable development is requested to enhance the onset of irreversible degradation. The reversible critical current reduction in RRP type of cables of 10% at 150 MPa to 250 MPa needs to be taken into account when predicting magnet performance. Finally, extreme care needs to be taken into account for Nb3Sn coil fabrication, since the experimental results show significant critical current reduction due to stress concentrations already at 0.2° misalignment angles between the pressure applying surface and the surface of the impregnated cable

Direct measurements of inter-filament resistance in various multi-filamentary superconducting NbTi and Nb3Sn strands

For a proper characterization of multi-filamentary NbTi and Nb3Sn strands and a better understanding of their performance in short sample tests, as well as for increased understanding of inter-strand current redistribution in cabled conductors, a quantitative knowledge of the inter-filament transverse resistance is essential. In particular, in the case of strain or crack distributions among and along filaments in strain-sensitive superconductors such as Nb3Sn cable-in-conduit conductors, a much better understanding of the voltage–current transition is required as a basis for the analysis of full-size cables.\ud \ud Two particular four-probe voltage–current methods are developed to measure the transverse inter-filament resistance distribution directly, both in well-established and in state-of-the-art superconductors that are presently applied in the ITER, JT-60SA and LHC magnets. To extract values of the filament-to-matrix contact resistance from these direct experiments, some further assumptions are needed. These assumptions are based on FEM simulations and on measurement of the longitudinal strand resistance.\ud \ud An overview is given of a wide range of measurements on various NbTi and Nb3Sn strands, performed at temperatures below 10 K and at various applied magnetic fields. We present the results of the experiments and simulations and demonstrate how the extracted characteristic parameters provide a better insight into the current flow patterns within the strands\u

Modeling of current distribution in Nb3Sn multifilamentary strands subjected to bending

In Nb3Sn cable-in-conduit conductors (CICCs), strands follow complex trajectories that result in a periodic bending strain acting on the strands upon electromagnetic loading and thermal contraction. Such a periodic bending strain leads to degradation of the overall transport performance of a CICC. Aiming for a better understanding and quantitative correlation between strand degradation and CICC test results, a detailed strand model is essential in combination with accurate intra-strand resistance data, the spatial filament strain distribution, and the associated filament crack distribution. Our novel numerical strand model is a 3D network of resistors including superconducting filaments, normal matrix elements, and an outer stabilizing shell or inner core. Along the strand length, matrix elements have Ohmic resistance, there is a filament-to-matrix contact resistance (Rfm) between filaments and matrix elements, while superconducting filaments have a power-law voltage–current (VI) characteristic with critical current (Ic) and an n-value described by the ITER Nb3Sn strain scaling law based on measured strand data. The model simulates the VI characteristic in a periodic bending experiment and provides the associated spatial potential distribution. The VI characteristics representing the low- and high-resistivity limits (LRL and HRL) are identified for periodic and uniform axial bending. The voltage level for the current transfer regime depends on the strand internal resistivities, i.e. the filament-to-matrix contact and the matrix resistivity, the twist pitch and the bending wavelength.\ud \ud The simulation results show good agreement against Ic degradation, as experimentally measured by the TARSIS facility, versus the assessed peak bending strain. In addition we discuss different methods for determining the applied peak bending strain. The model provides a basis to find a practical relationship between a strand's VI characteristic and the periodic bending strain, as well as a mapping of well-characterized strand performance to that of a full-size CICC\u

Suitability of Bundle Approximation in AC Loss Analysis of NbTi Wires: Simulations and Experiment

Multifilamentary NbTi wires for ac applications are manufactured by embedding filament bundles into a metal matrix. In this stage of the manufacturing process, it is possible to affect the layout of the cross section and to choose whether to use few large or many small bundles in order to achieve a certain amount of filaments. All in all, up to 100 000 filaments are attainable for wire having the diameter of 1 mm. In this paper, ac loss measurements in external magnetic field on differently stacked NbTi samples are described. The measurements were performed in a LHe-cooled cryostat. The amplitude of the external field was varied between 250 mT and 3 T at frequencies of 0.02 and 0.12 Hz. We discuss possibilities to simulate the losses with finite element method. In particular, we concentrate on the filament bundle approximation and the possibilities to exploit it in the research and development process of new NbTi wires. In this approach, the filament bundles are considered as a homogenous mixture of matrix and superconducting filaments. According to the results, the bundle approximation greatly overestimates the losses. Furthermore, it should not be used for comparing, e.g., two wire structures where one has bundles of different size than the other. However, when considering how to situate the bundles on the cross section to achieve minimal ac loss, the bundle approximation can be a useful too

Measurement and Analysis of Normal Zone Propagation in a ReBCO Coated at Temperatures Below 50 K (Proc. 25th ICEC & ICMC2014 conference)

Measurements of the quasi-adiabatic normal zone propagation velocity and quench energies of a Superpower SCS4050 copper stabilised ReBCO superconducting tape are presented over a temperature range of 23 − 47 K; in parallel applied magnetic fields of 6, 10 and 14 T; and over a current range from 50% to 100% of Ic. The data are compared to results of analytic predictions and to one-dimensional numerical simulations. The availability of long lengths of ReBCO coated conductor makes the material interesting for many HTS applications operating well below the boiling point of liquid nitrogen, such as magnets and motors. One of the main issues in the design of such devices is quench detection and protection. At higher temperatures, the quench velocities in these materials are known to be about two orders of magnitude lower compared to low temperature superconductors, resulting in significantly smaller normal zones and the risk of higher peak temperatures. To investigate whether the same also holds for lower temperatures more extended data sets are needed, both as input and as validation for numerical design tools

Superconductivity in Nb-Sn thin films of stoichiometric and off-stoichiometric compositions

Binary Nb-Sn thin film samples were fabricated and characterized in terms of their composition, morphology, and superconducting properties. Nb-Sn was magnetron-sputtered onto heated R-plane sapphire substrates at 700°C, 800°C, and 900°C, using a custom-built heater assembly. Samples were cut into strips, where each strip has a unique composition. For a subset of the samples, Nb-Sn was selectively etched away at an etching rate of 6 ± 1 nm/s using an aqueous solution of 3 vol.% hydrofluoric and 19 vol.% nitric acid. The sample composition was investigated with a scanning electron microscope with an X-ray energy dispersive spectroscopy detector. Surface and cross-section morphologies were investigated using scanning electron microscopy and scanning transmission electron microscopy, revealing a dense columnar poly-crystalline grain structure. X-ray diffraction measurements indicate a highly textured film that is (100) oriented out-of-plane and random in-plane. The critical temperature Tc (ranging from 9.8 to 17.9 K), critical magnetic field μ0Hc2 (ranging from 12.5 to 31.3 T), residual resistivity ratio (RRR), and normal state resistivity ρ0 were measured and found to be broadly consistent with literature data on bulk Nb3Sn