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The Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) has tested a 25-m long prototype High Temperature Superconducting (HTS) cable with inherent Fault-Current Limiting (FCL) capability at its HTS cable test facility. The HTS-FCL cable and terminations were designed and fabricated by Ultera, which is a joint venture between Southwire and nkt cables. System integration and HTS wire were provided by American Superconductor Corporation who was the overall team leader of the project. The ultimate goal of the 25-m HTS-FCL cable test program was to verify the design and ensure the operational integrity for the eventual installation of a ∼200-m fully functional HTS-FCL cable in the Consolidated Edison electric grid located in downtown New York City. The 25-m HTS-FCL cable consisted of a three-phase (3-[uppercase_phi_synonym]) HTS Triax™ design with a cold dielectric between the phases. The HTS-FCL cable had an operational voltage of 13.8 kV phase-to-phase (7967 V phase-to-ground) and an operating current of 4000 Arms per phase, which is the highest operating current to date of any HTS cable. The 25-m HTS-FCL cable was subjected to a series of cryogenic and electrical tests. Test results from the 25-m HTS-FCL cable are presented and discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Titanium dioxide nanoparticles were synthesized in an aqueous solution. They were dispersed into an epoxy polymer matrix (commercially available under the trade name Araldite 5808) using a planetary mixer. Nanocomposite materials were prepared with several weight loadings of nanoparticles. In this work we investigate the effects of the particle agglomeration on the mechanical and electrical properties of the composites. The structure of the composites was probed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). For investigating the mechanical properties, a dynamical mechanical analysis (DMA) was employed. The dielectric breakdown strength and the impedance response were also measured in order to characterize the insulating properties of the nanocomposites and their potential use in high voltage applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For long cables or equipment with large capacitance it is not always possible to conduct high voltage withstand tests at 60 Hz due to limitations in charging currents of the power supply. Very low frequency (typically at a frequency of 0.1 Hz) has been used for conventional cables as a way of getting around the charging current limitation. For superconducting grid applications the same issues apply. However there is very little data at cryogenic temperatures on how materials perform at low frequency compared to 60 Hz and whether higher voltages should be applied when performing a high voltage acceptability test. Various materials including G10 (fiberglass reinforced plastic or FRP), Cryoflex™ (a tape insulation used in some high temperature superconducting cables), kapton (commonly used polyimide), polycarbonate, and polyetherimide, and in liquid nitrogen alone have been tested using a step method for frequencies of 60 Hz, 0.1 Hz, and dc. The dwell time at each step was chosen so that the aging factor would be the same in both the 60 Hz and 0.1 Hz tests. The data indicated that, while there is a small frequency dependence for liquid nitrogen, there are significant differences for the solid materials studied. Breakdown data for these materials and for model cables will be shown and discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Liquid nitrogen (LN2) is commonly used both as a coolant and electrical insulation in high temperature superconductor (HTS) equipment for power applications. Hence it is necessary to know the electrical breakdown characteristics of LN2 under a variety of practical conditions. The ac breakdown and positive and negative polarity breakdown results for lightning impulse (1.2 microsecond rise time/50 microsecond fall time) are presented for LN2 using sphere to plane electrode geometry for sphere diameters of 50.8 and 101.6 mm over a gap range of 1 to 15 mm. Voltages up to 110 kVrms were studied for ac breakdown and up to 500-kV peak for impulse. In this work both the ac and impulse breakdown voltages scale approximately with distance over the limited gaps studied which is indicative of a quasi-uniform (near-uniform) electric field between sphere and plane. These measurements were conducted in a dewar which could be pressurized from 1 to 2 bar absolute which greatly reduces the spontaneous formation of bubbles that can occur in open LN2 bath experiments and thus potentially reduce the breakdown strength. Results from the pressurized system and near atmospheric pressure similar to an open bath are compared. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High temperature superconducting (HTS) power cables generally follow either of two generic designs, cold dielectric and warm dielectric. In the cold dielectric design, lapped tape insulation and liquid nitrogen are used in combination to provide the electrical insulation between the conductor and the ground shield of an HTS cable. Lapped tape insulated model cables have been tested at high voltage, including AC breakdown, negative impulse breakdown, partial discharge, and long term aging under AC stress. Tapes tested include Cryoflex™ (a proprietary tape developed by Southwire) and PPLP® (a commercial semi synthetic tape). Two high voltage cryostats have been built for short and long term aging studies that permit testing of model cables under the combined conditions of high electric stress, cryogenic temperature and elevated pressures up to 15 bar. For the aging studies, a log-log plot of electric stress versus time-to-breakdown has yielded an estimate of cable lifetime. Since aging at cryogenic temperatures is not expected to have a thermal cause, dielectric wear in HTS cables reduces to partial discharge as the primary aging mechanism. Phase and amplitude resolved partial discharge data of model cables in liquid nitrogen will be presented. © 2004 American Institute of Physics [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]