Status and Perspectives in High-Temperature Superconductivity for Nuclear Fusion

Institutskolloquium

  • Datum: 23.06.2017
  • Uhrzeit: 10:30
  • Vortragende(r): Prof. Dr. Mathias Noe
  • Ort: Garching und Greifswald
  • Raum: HGW S1 (Übertragung Hörsaal D2)
  • Gastgeber: IPP

Superconducting magnets for nuclear fusion have so far been realized with the low-temperature superconductors NbTi and Nb3Sn, which are usually cooled by helium to a temperature around 4.2 K. High-temperature superconductors permit cooling with liquid nitrogen at higher temperatures up to 77 K and have a comparatively low thermal conductivity. Commercially, they are available as 1st and 2nd generation tape conductors. The properties and the cost-performance ratio in particular of 2nd generation tape conductors based on ReBCO continue to improve very dynamically.

Up to now, current leads for fusion magnets were successfully engineered for currents up to 68 kA using 1st generation tape conductors, which allowed to reduce the losses in the current leads significantly. Concepts for conductors to be used in fusion magnets based on 2nd generation tape conductors have been devised very successfully for serveral years. Various concepts are under development, and so far, conductors for currents up to 100 kA could be designed. In addition, concepts for compact fusion experiments have been proposed which favor the use of high-temperature superconductors.

The presentation will give an overview on the development status of high-temperature superconductors and on the present status of application in current leads. Based on the advantages of high-temperature superconductors in nuclear fusion, the various conductor concepts for fusion magnets will be introduced and the status of the development will be summarized. Potential next steps will be presented like, e. g., construction and test of a larger test coil.

On the whole, the use of high-temperature superconductors in fusion has a lot of benefits, and already now, conductor concepts for high-temperature superconductors do satisfy the basic demands for fusion magnets. The further development steps toward the first larger test coils will unveil at which time high-temperature superconductors will become the benchmark for fusion magnets.

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