Feasibility study for reduction of the screening current induced field in a 2G high temperature superconducting coil

In recent years, remarkable progresses have been made in the R&D efforts for high temperature superconducting (HTS) high-field magnets. The screening-current-induced magnetic field and mechanical stress/strain in rare-earth barium-copper-oxide (REBCO) coils are raising growing concerns. This paper presents experimental and theoretical analyses on the effects of screening-current-induced mechanical strains in a REBCO insert setup without transport currents. Strain measurements on two REBCO coils, with and without over-banding structures, were carried out in an low temperature superconducting (LTS) background field magnet. Electromagnetic-mechanical models were developed, coupling the tilting angles of the superconducting tapes and the strain dependency of the critical current. The discrete-coupled model with turn-to-turn contacts, the discrete-sequential model and the block model were implemented and compared against the measured hoop strains. Combining experimental data with simulation models, it is shown that moderate over-banding structures are effective in providing reinforcements for the superconductors. A new method of edge-bonding was proposed and tested, which could reduce hoop strains in low applied fields but failed in higher fields. This work could be useful for the design and analysis of future high-field REBCO magnets.

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Screening-current-induced mechanical strains in REBCO insert coils

Yan

Song

Xin

et al. 2021

“…The increase of the operating temperature during the current sweeps results in a decrease in the critical current density and an increase in the loading factor, thus, reducing the SCF and expediting the relaxation process. Various versions of this procedure were demonstrated numerically by Yanagisawa et al [16] and experimentally by Hwang et al [55]. It should be noted that the increase of the operating temperature would still lead to a decrease in the current margin.…”

Section: Excitation Historymentioning

confidence: 99%

Screening current induced magnetic field and stress in ultra-high-field magnets using REBCO coated conductors

Yan

2021

Rare-earth-based barium copper oxide (REBCO) coated conductors are promising candidates for the development of ultra-high-field (UHF) magnets, due to its high in-field performance, engineering current density, tensile strength and commercial availability. However, technological challenges pertaining to the large screening currents still remain. The major issues caused by the screening currents in REBCO conductors in UHF applications involve two aspects: the screening current induced magnetic field (SCF), and the screening current induced stress (SCS). In the past decades, extensive research has been devoted to the SCF, offering a variety of possible remedies. With latest advances in the construction and testing of UHF magnets, new observations of the SCF involving REBCO coils were reported. The SCS was identified in recent years and has raised growing concerns. The excessive and highly concentrated Lorentz force, rooted in the high magnetic field and the screening currents, poses threats to the mechanical strength of REBCO coated conductors. The aim of this paper is to review recent research efforts in understanding and tackling the screening current related technological issues. For the SCF, we focus on the latest observations in high-field experiments and its various mitigation methods. For the SCS, we present recent studies including experimental characterizations, numerical modelling and possible countermeasures. It is still an open question to precisely predict the SCS in large-scale HTS magnets. How to minimize the influence of SCF and SCS is one of the key technical challenges for the design of future UHF magnets.

“…Several analytical equations have been developed to describe the screening current density and local SCIF for the single conductor and the infinite strip-array systems [11,12]. In addition, many publications aimed at investigating the screening current and SCIF characteristics of magnet applications numerically and experimentally, usually including the spatial distribution in the direction perpendicular and parallel to the wide surface of REBCO CC and the temporal properties of screening current as well as the SCIF [13][14][15][16][17]. The Q-IS is a superconducting conductor with great potential.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Screening current induced field characteristics of HTS quasi-isotropic and simply stacked strands in alternating magnetic field

Liu

Wang

Zhang

et al. 2021

The screening current induced field (SCIF) in the flat REBCO coated conductors (REBCO CCs) so called 2G HTS tapes cause undesirable effects in multiple applications. Their existence reduces the spatial uniformity and temporal stability of magnetic fields for applications of superconducting magnets. In this paper, we numerically and experimentally investigate the characterization of the screening current and SCIF of quasi-isotropic strand (Q-IS) and simply stacked strand (SSS) under external alternating magnetic field with various amplitudes, orientations, and excitation rates. The two-dimensional finite element method (2D FEM) based on T-A formulation is adopted for simulation, the Q-IS and SSS samples are fabricated for experiments. The field angle is in the range of 0° to 90° at intervals of 15°, the excitation rate varies from 20 mT/s to 800 mT/s. We display the distribution of screening current in both strands under various field amplitudes and orientations. Then the dependence of SCIF on the amplitude and orientation of external field is studied, respectively. The spatial distribution of SCIF of both strands with different amplitudes and angles of the external field are also discussed. Besides, we analyze the properties of SCIF under various excitation rates. As a result, the SCIF of Q-IS is much smaller and has quasi-isotropic distribution comparing with SSS, which represents that Q-IS has relative smaller screening effect. The spatial point with the largest SCIF of Q-IS locates at the corner of the strand and is independent of the external field, but the corresponding point in SSS varies with the angle and amplitude. The Q-IS is also less susceptible to the change of rate. Therefore, Q-IS has more advantages when the screening effect is considered in superconducting applications.