Characteristic of the Guidance Force in the High-T c Superconducting Levitation System with Pre-Load Process

Abstract

The stable levitation above permanent magnet is an important characteristic of the bulk high-Tc superconductor (HTS). When an external force pushes the bulk HTS up, down or sideways, or tries to tilt it, a restoring force can return it to its initial position. The HTS Maglev relied on this characteristic can overcome the external force from wind or pass the curve lines successfully. The change of guidance force (GF) during many times lateral movement is studied. Experiments show that GF increases during the lateral movement, no matter what kind of PMG or HTS is used, and the change of the GF slows down after 5 times lateral movement. The pre-load method can reduce the levitation force decay during lateral movement. So the influence of GF by the pre-load method is needed to be studied. It is found that the pre-load method can increase GF and reduce the change of the GF during lateral movement. The Halbach permanent magnetic guideway (PMG) can offer much more GF but the change is larger just as the levitation force decays. The GF of cylindrical bulk HTS increases more than of the rectangular bulk HTS in the pre-load case. The characteristics of the GF during the lateral movement are explained. These results are important for further HTS Maglev vehicle system designs.