High temperature superconducting (HTS) conductor on round core (CORC) cable is considered as a potential technology for power applications, because of its high current-carrying capacity, compactness, and strong mechanical properties. As the main component of CORC cable, center core is used to support the HTS conductors. However, for metal center core, eddy current induced in the core under alternating electromagnetic field is unneglectable, which will lead to extra AC loss in power applications. This paper focuses on the selection of center core of CORC cable. AC losses of CORC cable using different core materials are evaluated by both numerical and experimental methods, in which copper, stainless steel, fiberglass epoxy and nickel have been chosen as the core. Results illustrate that AC loss of CORC cable has a correspondingly increase with the conductivity of core material. Significant frequency dependence of AC loss indicates that for single layer CORC cable, proper core material should be chosen to minimize the eddy current loss. Besides, CORC cable with core of nickel shows a quite different AC performance due to its ferromagnetic characteristics. Conclusions obtained from this paper will provide essential data for future optimization on the design of CORC cables.

The high-temperature superconducting (HTS) null-flux electrodynamic suspension (EDS) system is one of the most promising solutions for high-speed transportation. In this article, a 3-D model based on the finite-element method (FEM) is established to solve the electromagnetic forces in the HTS null-flux EDS system with the commercial software COMSOL Multiphysics. The current induced in the null-flux coils and the forces on the HTS magnets were studied and compared with the results from our dynamic circuit model. The two models agree with each other with a difference of less than 6%. The FEM model can deal with 3-D geometries, allowing the analysis of complex situations, such as the eddy current in the cryostat walls. Furthermore, the model can be readily extended to solve coupled problems, including the heat and mechanical behaviors of the HTS magnets and/or the null-flux coils, which are engineering concerns in real applications.

The slit technique is an essential process for narrowing the second-generation high-temperature superconducting (2G-HTS) tapes. It is still very challenging to eliminate edge defects introduced during slitting. In this work, we developed a set of reel-to-reel laser slit (LS) equipment for narrowing 2G-HTS tapes using a femtosecond infrared laser. In comparison with the commonly used mechanical slit (MS) technique, the LS technique produced no cracks at the tape edges. Electro-mechanical behaviors of 2G-HTS tapes with MS and LS edges were compared in liquid nitrogen conditions. The results of the uniaxial tensile tests showed only a minor difference in irreversible tensile stress/strain of the two kinds of tapes. However, uniaxial tensile fatigue tests showed that the critical current (I _c) retention of the LS tapes was about 14% higher than that of the MS tapes after 10⁴ cycles (@ 77 K, σ _max = 0.8σ _y, and a stress ratio of 0.1). Moreover, U-Spring compressive tests revealed that no irreversible I _c degradation occurred on the LS tapes under compressive strain up to −0.8%, with high reproducibility. On the contrary, the irreversible compressive strains of the MS tapes were rather scattered, ranging from −0.75% to −0.2%. Enhancement of electro-mechanical behaviors is strongly linked to fewer edge defects in the LS tapes. This research demonstrates significant advantages of the LS technique over the conventional MS technique, showing its promising prospects for demanding applications.

Polymer dielectrics are insulators or energy storage materials widely used in electrical and electronic devices. Polymer dielectrics are needed with outstanding dielectric characteristics than current technologies. In this study, the self-assembly of boron nitride nanosheets (BNNSs) was applied to form an inorganic–organic nanocoating on various common polymer dielectrics. It is inexpensive and easy to fabricate this thin coating on a large scale. The coating has a wide bandgap and thus can significantly improve the breakdown strength of polymer dielectrics. The charge characteristics and trapping parameters of nano-domains on the surfaces of polymer dielectrics were measured, and the coating had shallow trap levels. This facilitated the dissipation of surface charges and thus greatly increased the flashover voltage. The coating also effectively improved the temperature stability and dielectric constant of the polymer dielectric. This nanocoating shows potential as a method to effectively improve the dielectric characteristics of polymer dielectrics and outperform existing composite polymer dielectrics, which are crucial for large-scale applications in energy storage and power and electronic devices.

Field decay rate is the key characteristic of superconducting magnets based on closed-loop coils. However, in Maglev trains or rotating machines, closed-loop magnets work in external AC fields and will exhibit an evidently accelerated field decay resulting from dynamic resistances, which are usually much larger than joint resistance. Nevertheless, there has not been a numerical model capable of systematically studying this behaviour, which is the main topic of this work. The field decay curves of a closed-loop high-temperature-superconducting (HTS) coil in various AC fields are simulated based on H -formulation. A non-uniform external field generated by armature coils is considered. Reasonable consistence is found between experimental and simulation results. In our numerical model, the impact of current relaxation, which is a historical challenge, is analysed and subsequently eliminated with acceptable precision. Our simulation results suggest that most proportion of the field decay rate is from the innermost and outermost turns. Based on this observation, a magnetic shielding pattern is designed to reduce the field decay rate efficiently. This work has provided magnet designers with an effective method to predict the field decay rate of closed-loop HTS coils in external AC fields, and explore various shielding designs.