Siemens cable deal proves tipping point for superconductor industry

IRL Engineer Kent Hamilton makes adjustments to the Tapescope magnetic imaging system which is used for qualifying the raw HTS tape prior to Roebel punching.

IRL and partner General Cable Superconductors are the leading developers of HTS technology, an emerging field that enables the transmission of electricity without resistance or the loss of energy. This in turn will enable the manufacture of lighter, smaller and more efficient machines than can be achieved with existing copper wire technology.

It has been estimated that the international market for HTS applications will be worth more than US$2 billion by 2020.

Two long length HTS Roebel cables were recently shipped to multinational Siemens AG in Germany, where they will be tested for industrial use. This is part of a long-term project for Siemens which may require up to 2.5 kilometres of cable in four years’ time.

This will enable Siemens to wind, with a single length of cable, the rotors for a power station generator with increased power output, reduced mass, smaller volume and higher efficiency.

“Supplying this first order is an important milestone because it demonstrates that HTS technology is not just something of interest in the lab, there are customers who are willing to invest significant sums in it because they understand the potential HTS represents,” says Dr Bob Buckley, IRL group manager, HTS Conductors and Devices.

IRL research engineer Dr Rod Badcock led the team that manufactured the cable. “We’ve been developing a pilot production line here for General Cable Superconductors. For the last two years the team has been developing the automated processes and validating them for producing and then winding strands of cable together.”

This activity was the groundwork that enabled the team to manufacture the cables for Siemens AG.

“For the second cable there was a delay with the delivery of the material from our third-party supplier. It was a bit of a shock to look back and see that we had processed, manufactured and tested the cable before sending it to Siemens all within two weeks. This quick turnaround is a testament to the dedication of the team and the robustness of our process,” he says.

The team has been asked to provide samples of cables for a number of companies across a number of industries around the world.

Dr Badcock says, “We’re starting to build a critical mass in New Zealand in terms of expertise, in terms of generating income and in terms of developing the market.”

General Cable Superconductors Chief Executive Andrew Priest says the sale of the cables to Siemens represents a tipping point for the emerging HTS industry.

“Delivering on a significant order for one of the world’s fifty biggest companies in the first stage of its high profile generator project is a considerable milestone for HTS.

“The quick turnaround of the cable manufacture under such a tight time-frame is a real endorsement of all the work put in on the systems, processes and procedures.”

The next phase of development for HTS will be the continuation of intensive marketing around the globe to demonstrate the capabilities of the technology and to establish exactly what potential customers want in terms of performance and specifications.

“We need to teach leading-edge companies about Roebel cable — that’s how new it is,” says Andrew Priest.

What is high temperature superconductivity?

Superconductivity is a phenomenon where some materials conduct electricity with no resistance or energy loss during the transmission process.

While it would appear that high temperature superconducting cables are very hot, they are in fact extremely cold and are termed high temperature because they are comparatively much warmer than previously developed low temperature superconducting materials, which operated at close to absolute zero — the temperature of liquid helium (-273 Celsius).

HTS technology operates at the relatively warmer temperatures of liquid nitrogen (-196 Celsius). The colder the materials are, the greater the financial cost, and the development of HTS makes superconducting technology a viable commercial proposition.

[View TV3 news item 23 December 2009]