Professor Cardwell recently discussed the bulk microstructure of YBCO, and explained the effect of second-phase inclusions on the flux-pinning capability of the material. Methods had now been developed to incorporate nano-scale inclusions into the bulk structure, and a 10-200nm nano-phase based on RE2Ba4CuMOy had been shown to form effective artificial flux-pinning sites. Although these materials required further refinement in microstructural homogeneity, they appeared extremely promising for improved critical-current-density bulk superconductors.
• Bulk , large grain (RE)BCO HTS have significant potential for high field applications.
• A new nano-phase (10-200 nm) has been developed based on RE2Ba4CuMOy that forms effective flux pinning sites in bulk HTS.
• The 2411 phase does not coarsen at high temperatures or contaminate the RE-123 phase.
Applications of Bulk Superconductors
1. Magnetic bearing
– Low loss
– Flywheel energy storage
2. Motors and generators
– Higher efficiency, lower loss, smaller machines
3. NMR imagers
– DC field source, pre-polarisation
4. Other applications
Some Fields
Earth’s field 0.0001 T
Solenoid 0.1 T
Permanent magnet (iron) 1.5 T
(SmCo) 0.8 T
LTS MTI magnets 5 T
Record Trapped Fields
Temperature Trapped Flux Lab.
(K) (T)
77 2.2# ISTEC
77 3.2 Houston (2 samples)
65 5.3 Houston (2 samples)
47 11.2* Dresden
29 17.0# ISTEC
# Epoxy encapsulated * Steel banded
Explosive flux compression 2,500 T
43 Page presentation pdf
Material Options for Bulk HTS Magnets
Only one class of material suitable for applications at 77 K;
Large, grain boundary-free (RE)BCO
Processed in the form of large single grains by a variety of melt processing techniques
Brian Wang is a Futurist Thought Leader and a popular Science blogger with 1 million readers per month. His blog Nextbigfuture.com is ranked #1 Science News Blog. It covers many disruptive technology and trends including Space, Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, Medicine, Anti-aging Biotechnology, and Nanotechnology.
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