Patrick D. Noyes

High Field Magnets With HTS Conductors

Development of high-field magnets using high temperature superconductors (HTS) is a core activity at the NHMFL. Magnet technology based on both YBCO-coated tape conductors and Bi-2212 round wires is being pursued. Two specific projects are underway. The first is a user magnet with a 17 T YBCO coil set which, inside an LTS outsert, will generate a combined field of 32 T. The second is a 7 T Bi2212 demonstration coil set to be operated in a large bore resistive magnet to generate a combined magnetic field of 25 T. Owing to the substantial technological differences of the two conductor types, each project faces different conductor and magnet technology challenges. Two small coils have been tested in a 38-mm cold bore cryostat inserted in a 31 T resistive magnet: a Bi2212 round-wire layer-wound insert coil that generated 1.1 T for a total of 32.1 T and a YBCO double-pancake insert that generated 2.8 T for a total central field of 33.8 T. Four larger layer-wound coils have been manufactured and tested in a 20 T, 186-mm cold bore resistive magnet: a sizeable Bi-2212 coil and three thin large-diameter YBCO coils. The test results are discussed. The current densities and stress levels that these coils tolerate underpin our conviction that >30 T all-superconducting magnets are viable.

35.4 T field generated using a layer-wound superconducting coil made of (RE)Ba2Cu3O7−x (RE = rare earth) coated conductor

To explore the limits of layer wound (RE)Ba2Cu3O7-x (REBCO, RE = Rare Earth) coils in a high magnetic field environment > 30 T, a series of small insert coils have been built and characterized in background fields. One of the coils repeatedly reached 35.4 T using a single ~100 m length of REBCO tape wet wound with epoxy and nested in a 31 T background magnet. The coil was quenched safely several times without degradation. Contributing to the success of this coil was the introduction of a thin polyester film that surrounded the conductor. This approach introduces a weak circumferential plane in the coil pack that prevents conductor delamination that has caused degradation of several epoxy impregnated coils previously made by this and other groups.

Design of a Superconducting 32 T Magnet With REBCO High Field Coils

The design and fabrication of a 32 T, 32 mm cold bore superconducting magnet with high field REBCO inner coils is underway at the NHMFL. In support of the design, conductor characterization measurements have been made including critical current as a function of field, field orientation, temperature, and strain on conductors and joints. Various conductor and turn insulation systems were examined. The selected coil fabrication method for the 32 T magnet is pancake wind, dry wind coils with sol-gel insulation on a stainless steel co-wind. Quench protection of the REBCO coils by distributed heaters is under development. Small REBCO coils have been made and tested in a 20 T background field to demonstrate performance of the technology. The design of the 32 T magnet is described, including coil configuration and conductor lengths, fraction of critical current, selection of conductor copper content for protection, and stress in the windings.

Progress in the Development of a Superconducting 32 T Magnet With REBCO High Field Coils

The design and development of a 32 T, 32 mm cold bore superconducting magnet with high field REBCO inner coils are underway at the NHMFL. The two nested REBCO coils that form the high field section are dry wound, with uninsulated conductor and insulated stainless steel cowind reinforcement. Active quench protection uses distributed protection heaters. As part of the development activity, prototype coils of the two REBCO coils with full scale radial dimensions and final design features, but with reduced axial length are being constructed. The first of these prototype coils was tested in a 15 T resistive background field magnet. The coil has inner and outer winding diameters of 40 mm and 140 mm, respectively, and consists of six double pancakes with a total conductor length of roughly 900 m. The construction of this prototype coil is described, including the protection heaters. Coil test results are reported including coil critical current, coil ramping characteristics, thermal stability, joint, and terminal resistance with field cycling. The corresponding operating stress in the windings is calculated. Importantly, the performance characteristics of the protection heaters will be measured including activation time.

Progress in the Development and Construction of a 32-T Superconducting Magnet

The 32-T superconducting magnet is envisioned as a 15-T low-temperature superconductor (LTS) magnet combined with a separately powered REBCO high-temperature superconductor (HTS) insert configured as two coil stacks generating 17 T. Progress was made in all aspects of this project and is reported in this work. The design concept, which has been quite stable, is presented, as well as key elements from recent developments such as increased voltage standoff requirements. In both factory testing and installation at the NHMFL, the 15-T/250-mm-bore outer magnet built by Oxford Instruments met all specifications, including a ramp time of 1 h to full field. The test protocol included a deliberately induced full-field quench, releasing 7 MJ. After the helium level recovered, the magnet was ramped again in 1 h to full field, demonstrating full recovery. Helium boiloffs during normal operation and quench were observed, as well as the current and field decay during quench. The latter information serves as one of many inputs for the numerical quench code developed specifically to model quench in coupled LTS-HTS coils. Results from the 32-T quench analysis and implications for quench protection are summarized. All HTS conductor lengths were subjected to an extensive quality assurance (QA) protocol, and SuperPower has now delivered all required conductor lengths within specifications. A summary of the QA data and its implications are presented. The prototype coils, which are very similar in design to the 32-T REBCO coils but of reduced height, have now been impregnated with paraffin to address winding motion observed in previous testing. The prototype test protocol includes a study of the effectiveness of the quench heaters in the HTS coils in both a constant background field as provided by the actual 15-T LTS outer magnet for 32 T and, uniquely, in case the outer magnet is deliberately quenched.

Protection Heater Development for REBCO Coils

Normal zone propagation rates are widely reported to be low in coils containing REBCO coated conductor, creating difficulties for quench protection of high field REBCO insert solenoids. A method of active quench protection using densely distributed heaters in high field REBCO coils has been proposed. When heaters are used to quench a sufficiently large fraction of the coil windings, the hot-spot temperature can be limited to acceptable values. The feasibility of protection of REBCO coils by distributed heaters depends on the amount of power to quench the required fraction of the coil volume, and the ability of the heaters to quench REBCO coils quickly. The high critical temperature of REBCO compared to low-temperature superconductor implies that the windings must be elevated significantly higher in temperature to initiate a normal zone. A number of measurements have been made of the performance of protection heaters on REBCO high field test coils. The results provide information on the response of coils to active protection heaters. Typically, there is a delay between the activation of the heater and the onset of quench in a coil. Measurements give the relation between the heater power and the quench delay time.

Electromagnetic Cycling and Strain Effects on

A parametric study has been conducted to quantify the effect in performance of cable-in-conduit conductors (CICCs) to changes in cable and conduit design. Measurements of current sharing temperature and critical current as a function of electromagnetic cycling and longitudinal strain were systematically performed on CICCs with common Nb3Sn internal tin strand. The designs varied in void fraction (0.30 or 0.36), long or short cable twist pitch, cable core patterns (6 around 1 or triplet), and conduit material property (stainless steel 316 or Haynes 242). Measurements were performed at the NHMFL in a test facility for conductor characterization with capability to 12 T, 20 kA, and 250 kN axial tensile load now modified to deliver temperature controlled supercritical helium to the CICC samples.

{\rm Nb}_{3}{\rm Sn}

The NHMFL Series Connected Hybrid (SCH) magnet will provide an energy-efficient 36 T to the DC user facility by employing a 20 kA superconducting outsert coil in series with a resistive insert. The magnet outsert consists of three concentric layer-wound sub-coils using three different grades of Nb3Sn Cable-in-Conduit Conductors (CICC). The electrical joints in the superconducting outsert require low DC resistance to minimize the refrigeration requirement at the operational 4.5 K temperatures and low AC losses to ensure good stability against ramping operation required by the users. There are four internal splice joints in the outsert, which are Nb3Sn to Nb3Sn joints with the same design configuration. There are another two terminal joints between the Nb3Sn outsert and the two NbTi buslines, which connect the outsert terminals to the two current leads. The two Nb3Sn to NbTi terminal joints are of identical configurations. All of the joints will be praying-hands configuration with an operation current of 20 kA. The R&D for the joins has been carried out at the NHMFL. The joints design and test results are discussed in this article.

Cable-in-Conduit Conductors With Variations in Cabling Design and Conduit Material Properties

Here, we report the development of the CICC joint design for the 36-T Series-Connected Hybrid Magnet. A novel solder-less single-box praying-hands joint has been designed to meet the mission of the SCH. A prototype sample joint, Florida Solder-less Joint A (FSJ-A), was manufactured and tested. The low DC resistance confirmed the feasibility of the concept design. In addition, a simple model describing the current transient behavior of the pray-hand joint is presented. A comparison with the experimental data is also included.

Joint Design and Test for the SCH

The 32 T all superconducting magnet currently being developed at the NHMFL will contain two REBCO insert coils located within an outsert of several LTS coils. The REBCO coils will experience high stress levels, radial expansion, and axial compression as the coils are energized. Therefore, great consideration has been given to the method by which current enters and exits the coils. Terminals and terminal constraints have been designed to achieve low resistance and high strength, while allowing for necessary movement of the coil and reliable attachment practices. These designs have been fabricated and tested, both as stand-alone tests and on prototype coils, to demonstrate the desired performance characteristics. The general design features are discussed, fabrication procedures are described, and the results of testing at high stress are presented.