No-Insulation REBCO Pancake Coils Research Articles

A Numerical Method for Transient Thermal Analysis of No-Insulation REBCO Pancake Coils With Several Resistive Joints

A Numerical Method for Transient Thermal Analysis of No-Insulation REBCO Pancake Coils With Several Resistive Joints

Numerical Evaluation of Electromagnetic Behavior of Multi-Stacked No-Insulation REBCO Coil System for Whole-Body MRIs and Medical Cyclotrons

We have been developing a no-insulation (NI) REBCO pancake coil technology for applications in medical cyclotrons and high-field whole-body MRI. The thermal and electromagnetic behaviors of multi-stacked NI-REBCO double pancake coils are numerically analyzed in this study when a local defect occurs in one coil using coil diameter and operating temperature parameters. Based on changes in voltage at both ends of the coil and the magnetic field at the center, we present a numerical study of the possibility of continuous operation after the occurrence of a local defect. In the numerical analysis, a new simplified model based on the PEEC model (Partial Element Equivalent Circuit model) is suggested and used for current distribution analysis, and the results are compared.

Numerical Evaluation of Transient Thermal Stability of No-Insulation REBCO Pancake Coils With a Noncontact Area Between Turns

We have been developing a no-insulation (NI) REBCO coil for applications in medical cyclotrons for cancer therapy and high-magnetic-field whole-body MRIs. NI-REBCO pancake coil is expected to realize both high current density and thermal stability, which are essentially trade-off relationships. Because electrical insulation is absent in an NI coil, the operating current can bypass toward adjacent turns to avoid the defect area when a local defect occurs. Using this feature, we investigated the possibility of continuous operation even if there is a local defect in a part of the coil windings. However, the contact condition between turns in actual coil windings is not uniform, and there is a possibility of an area that is not completely in contact. Moreover, when winding noncircular coils, e.g., coils for an accelerator, the noncontact area between turns can be large since the straight area is not tensioned. In such a case, even if a local defect occurs, it cannot bypass toward adjacent turns, compromising thermal stability. In this study, we examined the thermal stability of NI-REBCO pancake coils when a local defect occurred using the length, number, and location of noncontact areas between turns as parameters. We also examined the possibility of continuous operation and explored conditions that allow for continuous operation.

Numerical Evaluation on Mechanical Behavior of No-Insulation REBCO Pancake Coils in Small-Scale Model of Skeleton Cyclotron

We are developing a high-temperature superconducting (HTS) air-core compact cyclotron, named Skeleton Cyclotron (Ueda <italic xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">et al.</i> 2013), (Ueda <italic xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">et al.</i> 2019), that can accelerate various particles and variable energy for radioisotope (RI) production. The coil system of Skeleton Cyclotron consists of circular main coils and noncircular sector coils which are wound by REBa <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">2</sub> Cu <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">3</sub> O <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">6+δ</sub> (REBCO) tape applied no-insulation (NI) winding technique for both high current densities and thermal stabilities. The electromagnetic and thermal behaviors in NI coil differs from those in conventional insulated coils during charging, discharging, and quenching. Therefore, it is necessary to investigate the mechanical behavior and reinforcement structure of multiple NI coils in Skeleton Cyclotron. In this study, we report on the numerical evaluation of mechanical properties of NI REBCO coils in Skeleton Cyclotron at charging and quenching considering the current distributions and electromagnetic stresses unique to NI coils. In the quenching process, the radial current in a quenching pancake of the sector coil became dominant, resulting in generating the rotating force and non-symmetric deformation. YOROI-coil (Y-based oxide superconductor and reinforcing outer integrated coil) structure is effective for the additional magnetic stress.

Stability Evaluation of No-Insulation REBCO Pancake Coils – Comparison of Different NI Winding Techniques –

Stability Evaluation of No-Insulation REBCO Pancake Coils – Comparison of Different NI Winding Techniques –

Turn-to-Turn Contact Resistance Measurement of No-Insulation REBCO Pancake Coil: External Field Dependence

The characteristics of no-insulation high-temperature superconducting (HTS) manet is dominated by the magnitude of the turn-to-turn contact resistance. A few techniques have been proposed to increase the turn-to-turn contact resistance. The relation between the turn-to-turn contact resistance and the magnet stability has also been investigated in simulations. Although the turn-to-turn contact resistance measurement was only the sudden-discharging method before, we proposed a low-frequency-AC current (LFAC) method. Using our proposed method, it is possible to measure the turn-to-turn contact resistance under various conditions. In a previous paper, we measured it when charging DC current to a single pancake coil. In this paper, the turn-to-turn contact resistance was measured by the LFAC method when an external field of 1-3 T was applied to a single pancake coil. The coil strain was also measured, and the relation of the turn-to-turn contact resistance and the coil strain was also discussed.

Evaluation on Applicability of No-Insulation REBCO Pancake Coil to Superconducting Magnetic Energy Storage

Superconducting magnetic energy storage (SMES) can provide high efficiency, longevity, and instantaneous response with high power. However, its energy storage density is extremely low. To address this drawback, the use of a no-insulation (NI) REBCO coil has been considered. NI coils are expected to achieve high current density as well as high thermal stability, and the energy storage density can be improved by applying these coils to SMES. However, Joule loss occurs owing to the current flow in the radial direction through the contact electrical resistance between turns during charging and discharging. Because the amount of loss depends on the contact electrical resistance, it is necessary to adjust the resistance to an appropriate value to make the storage efficiency a practical value. In this study, we conduct experiments to investigate the behavior of small-scale NI-REBCO coils with different contact electrical resistances considering the charge/discharge current pattern for actual SMES operation. In addition, numerical simulations are performed using the partial element equivalent circuit (PEEC) model under the same conditions as those used in the experiment, and the reproducibility of the experimental results is confirmed. Finally, using the PEEC model, numerical simulations are performed assuming an m-class coil. The relationship between the storage efficiency and the contact electrical resistance, which is an important indicator for applying NI coil technology to SMES, is clarified by the results.

Investigation on Mechanical Damage of No-Insulation REBCO Pancake Coil by Multi-Physics Quench Simulation

A no-insulation (NI) winding technique greatly improves the thermal stability of REBa <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">2</sub> Cu <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">3</sub> O <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">x</sub> (RE = Rare Earth; REBCO) pancake coils. Since it has recently been pointed out that strong electromagnetic forces due to induced currents cause mechanical damage to NI REBCO coils during quench propagation under high magnetic field. The mechanical stability must be investigated and discussed further. We have developed a multi-physics quench simulation for NI REBCO pancake coils by combining a 2D stress/strain finite element analysis (FEA) with an electromagnetic field analysis of partial element equivalent circuit (PEEC) method and a 2D thermal FEA. The simulation results showed the consistency with the experimental results.

Unbalanced radial current flow simulation of no-insulation REBCO pancake coils during normal state transition

The no-insulation (NI) winding technique greatly enhances the thermal stability of REBCO (REBa2Cu3O x , RE = Rare Earth) pancake coils by avoiding burn-out and thermal runaway. The complicated electrical behaviors in NI REBCO pancake coils produce convoluted mechanical behaviors, so that some journal papers reported that high-field NI REBCO pancake coils were mechanically damaged during quench. To apply NI REBCO magnets for practical commercial use, it is important to understand the electromagnetic and mechanical behaviors of NI REBCO pancake coils in detail with both experiments and simulations. To clarify the electrical behaviors, a few simulation methods for NI REBCO pancake coils have been proposed; such as a simple RL parallel equivalent circuit. In these previous models, the radial current paths along the top and bottom of the pancake coils are represented as one current circuit path. However, since the radial current path of the bottom of one pancake coil is actually very close to that of the top of the next lowest coil, inductive behavior between these two paths appears. The simulation results show a probability that different amounts of radial current on the top and bottom of one pancake coil are carried during quench.

Turn-to-Turn Contact Resistance Measurement of No-Insulation REBCO Pancake Coil at DC Current Operation

No-insulation (NI) (RE)Ba $_2$ Cu $_3$ O $_y$ (REBCO) magnets are very promising for practical applications to generate high magnetic field. The NI winding technique provides high thermal stability so that quench protection is unnecessary. However, the turn-to-turn contact resistance (sometimes called characteristic resistance) is an important factor to characterize the thermal stability and charging delay of NI REBCO pancake magnets. Although the conventional sudden-discharging method is widely used to measure the turn-to-turn contact resistance, it is not applicable to various conditions; e.g., the change of DC operating current and temperature. Therefore, we have previously proposed a turn-to-turn contact resistance measurement method using a low-frequency AC (LFAC) current. In this paper, we measured the contact resistance for different DC operating currents or change of DC current to confirm the validity of LFAC method. In addition, by heating a test coil, the contact resistances were also measured during the change of DC operating current. Since the electromagnetic stress is small enough not to change the contact condition, the change in contact resistance is negligible. The measured contact resistance was unchanged, so we could conclude that the LFAC method is effective in measurement of the contact resistance when DC operating current was applied.

Influence of Coil Size and Operating Temperature on the Transient Stability of a Multi-Stacked No-Insulation REBCO Pancake Coil System

The no-insulation (NI) coil is a technology expected to realize both high current density and high thermal stability which are essentially trade-off relationship in REBCO coil application. This technique has been studied mainly for application to small-diameter inner coils of NMR magnets exceeding 30 T. In this case, the coil is cooled using 4.2-K liquid He. We are developing an NI-REBCO coil system for high-magnetic-field whole-body MRI, and for a medical cyclotron to be used for cancer therapy. The NI-REBCO coil which we aim for development has a diameter of ~1 m, a generated magnetic field is ~10 T, and a conduction cooling around 30 K is assumed. Because the size, operating temperature, and magnetic field differ from those of NMR coil, it is possible that the electromagnetic, thermal, and mechanical behaviors will be quite different. In this paper, we report on these behaviors when a local deterioration occurs in NI-REBCO double-pancake coils using numerical analysis considering coil size, operating temperature, and magnetic field as parameters. For the numerical simulation, we conducted a coupled analysis of current distribution analysis based on PEEC (Partial Element Equivalent Circuit) model and thermal analysis by the 2-dimensional finite element method.

Torque Simulation on NI REBCO Pancake Coils during Quench

This paper presents the unbalanced torque generated in No-Insulation (NI) REBa2Cu3Ox (REBCO, RE = Rare Earth) pancake coils after a normal-state transition. The NI REBCO pancake coil has a high thermal stability, and it is desired to apply to ultra-high field magnets. When an NI REBCO pancake coil locally transitions into a resistive state, the operating current bypasses a normal-state-transitioned turn to adjacent turns in the coil-radial direction, and the amount of heat generation can be reduced. That is an inherent feature of NI REBCO pancake coils. However, when a radial current flows in a magnetic field, a Lorentz force is generated toward the coil-circumferential direction, i.e. torque. In case that the coil radius and the external magnetic field are very large, the extremely large torque is generated, and it could damage the magnet itself and/or the joints to terminals with a mechanical factor. Therefore, it is necessary to investigate the behavior of the torque generated in the NI REBCO pancake coil after the quench.In this paper, we present the numerical simulation results of the behaviors of the torque generated in the NI REBCO double pancake coil after quench. Their current, thermal, and mechanical behaviors are simulated by a partial element equivalent circuit (PEEC) method and 2-D thermal finite element method (FEM). The behaviors are different depending on the coil size. In addition, the behavior is presented when the operating current is suddenly shut down after quench.

Experiments on the Effects of Local Normal Transitions in Multi-Stacked No-Insulation REBCO Pancake Coils

No-insulation (NI) coils are an important technique for high-field magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). One of the technical issues with NI coils is their thermal and electromagnetic behavior when a local normal transition occurs. Given that multiple stacked coils are used in MRI, the interaction between coils must also be investigated, because a local normal transition may affect the other NI coils through magnetic coupling. In fact, when a local normal transition occurs, there is a possibility that large electromagnetic forces are applied to the other coils, or quench may be induced in some of them. Even though overcurrent tests of stacked NI coils have been conducted, the results are not helpful in actual MRI operation. In this study, we investigate the effects of the occurrence of a local normal transition in multi-stacked NI coil systems under conditions similar to those of actual operation, with a constant transport current below the coil's I c . The occurrence of a local normal transition is simulated by applying current to a heater inserted in manufactured small NI double pancake coils. To evaluate the interaction between NI coils, the voltage and changes in the generated magnetic field are measured at each coil. We also show the current distribution in the coils, as obtained by the partial element equivalent circuit method. The obtained results allow us to evaluate the interaction of the NI coils and evaluate coil protection methods.

Turn-to-Turn Contact Resistance Measurement of No-Insulation REBCO Pancake Coils

The turn-to-turn contact resistance (characteristic resistance) is a very important factor to a no-insulation (NI) (RE)Ba <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">2</sub> Cu <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">3</sub> O <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">y</sub> (REBCO) pancake coil. It characterizes the stability and charging delay of NI REBCO pancake coils. However, the ordinary sudden-discharging method cannot measure the turn-to-turn contact resistance under different conditions, such as an operating current, a temperature, and an external magnetic field. Although the turn-to-turn contact condition is strongly affected by the pressure inside of the NI REBCO coils, the feature of the contact resistance must be clarified to estimate the stability of NI REBCO coils. In this paper, we have proposed a new method to measure the turn-to-turn contact resistance applying ac current. The theory and the measurement results are also shown. The measured turn-to-turn contact resistance is reasonable, compared with that measured by the ordinary sudden-discharging method. In near future, we will measure the turn-to-turn contact resistance under different conditions by means of the proposed method.

Evaluation of Electromagnetic Behavior of No-Insulation REBCO Pancake Coil With Multiple Defects

We previously developed a high-magnetic-field REBCO coil for use in medical devices such as medical accelerators and high-magnetic-field MRI. The use of high-temperature superconducting (HTS) coils in such applications necessitates their miniaturization while providing high magnetic fields. However, when the current density is improved by reducing the copper-stabilization-layer thickness in the conventional insulated HTS coil, the thermal stability is lowered, which leads to a tradeoff between high current density and high thermal stability. Therefore, we examine no-insulation (NI) coils that allow compatibility between high current density and thermal stability. Recent research has indicated that NI coils with multiple defects can afford a stable and high critical current (Ic) and operate without serious problems, which makes it possible to produce coils wound with commercial REBCO tapes containing several defects along the tape, which in turn makes fabrication economically viable. However, there are many unknown aspects of the current, magnetic field, and heat behaviors of NI coils with defects, particularly when large currents flow through them. Here, in order to examine the behavior of a multiple-defect NI coil subjected to a large current at the temperature of ~30 K via application of the conduction cooling method, we use a combination of the partial element equivalent circuit method and the finite-element method to investigate the detailed current and thermal behaviors. Our results indicate that defective NI coils can afford a critical current Ic value of ~80% of that of defect-free NI coils, which makes our findings valuable in terms of contributing to further developments in HTS coil applications.

A parallel co-wound no-insulation REBCO pancake coil for improving charging delays

High-Tc superconducting coils wound by REBCO coated conductors with no turn-to-turn insulation have been widely used for high-field DC magnets, due to the fact that they have a higher engineering current density and can be self-protective during a quench. One long-lasting problem of no-insulation (NI) coils is the charging delay due to low characteristic resistance. In this paper, the authors propose the structure of a parallel co-wound NI pancake coil. Unlike a traditional NI pancake coil which is wound by a single tape, in the new design multiple NI tapes are co-wound. From a circuit point of view, the tapes are connected in parallel. It is discovered that the charging delay of the NI coil can be substantially reduced by the parallel co-wound method. The mechanism is that the inductance of a coil is proportional to the square of the number turns which is inversely proportional to the number of co-wound layers, whereas the characteristic resistance is nearly irrelevant to the number of layers, therefore the coil’s time constant can be considerably reduced. The new design could also further increase the engineering current density of a magnet due to the independent current transporting of co-wound layers, which will be investigated in future work.

A simple protection evaluation method for no-insulation REBCO pancake coils during local normal-state transition

No-insulation (NI) and metal-insulation (MI) winding techniques are promising for enhancing the thermal stability of REBCO pancake coils, toward the practical use of nuclear magnetic resonance and magnetic resonance imaging systems. The NI and MI REBCO pancake coils showed high thermal stability in many over-current tests. However, a disadvantage is a charging delay due to low turn-to-turn contact resistance. Therefore, many researchers have tried to increase turn-to-turn contact resistance to overcome the charging delay problem. Meanwhile, a partial element equivalent circuit (PEEC) model can accurately simulate the over-current and charging/discharging tests of NI REBCO pancake coils in detail. Using the PEEC model coupling with thermal finite element analysis (FEA), the thermal stability was evaluated during a local normal-state transition. From the simulation results, it was found that a best range of turn-to-turn contact resistance existed to keep a high thermal stability during a local normal-state transition. However, the PEEC and thermal FEA method requires a substantial amount of time with complicated simulation approach. In this paper, we propose a simple mathematical formulation to obtain an appropriate range of turn-to-turn contact resistance during a local normal-state transition, supposing a worst cooling condition. The simple computation is easy to use and timesaving to roughly estimate the operation reliability of NI REBCO pancake coils.

Thermal and Electromagnetic Simulation of Multistacked No-Insulation REBCO Pancake Coils on Normal-State Transition by PEEC Method

This paper presents the thermal and electromagnetic behaviors of multistacked no-insulation (NI) REBa 2Cu3O7− x (REBCO, RE = rare earth) pancake coils. The NI winding technique gives a high enough thermal stability not to damage REBCO coils even though a normal-state transition occurs. The high thermal stability has been verified through overcurrent tests. Moreover, the numerical simulation of multistacked NI REBCO pancake coils has been performed to investigate the electromagnetic behaviors in detail. The simulation results also confirmed the high thermal stability of NI REBCO pancake coils. However, it does not mean that an NI REBCO magnet never quenches. In experiments, it was observed that a quench in one of the pancake coils propagated to the other pancake coils sequentially. The above sequential quench from pancake to pancake has not been confirmed in the numerical simulation since the thermal behavior is not considered. For the more reliable verification, we have developed a numerical simulation to investigate the thermal and electromagnetic behaviors by the partial element equivalent circuit method and the two-dimensional thermal finite-element method. In this paper, the six-stacked NI REBCO pancake coil is simulated with several operating temperatures, and the sequential quench is reproduced. The velocity of the sequential quench is also shown.

Simulation on Electrical Field Generation by Hall Effect in No-Insulation REBCO Pancake Coils

The no-insulation (NI) winding technique is one of the most promising high-temperature superconducting (HTS) coil protection methods to realize the practical use of HTS magnets. Many NI REBa $_{2}$ Cu $_{3}$ O $_{7-x}$ (REBCO, RE = Rare Earth) magnets have been developed to generate ultrahigh magnetic fields for NMR or MRI magnets. When NI REBCO magnets are operated in a high magnetic field, uncommon phenomena can be observed, because the NI REBCO magnets have multicomplicated current paths. An unexpected voltage rise was experimentally observed during charging NI coils or after quench. The cause of such a voltage rise cannot be explained by means of a partial element equivalent circuit method, which was proposed to clarify such complicated current behavior. We think one of causes is an electric field generation by Hall effect. In this paper, therefore, we will investigate the electrical field behavior of NI REBCO coils by Hall effect. An unforeseen voltage would appear between terminals.

Detection Method for a Local Normal-State Transition in a No-Insulation REBCO Pancake Coil

In this paper, we have proposed a detection method for detecting and locating a local normal-state transition in a meter-class no-insulation (NI) coil that is deployed in next-generation high-field magnetic resonance imaging scanners (MRIs), using a copper pickup coil. There are two schemes for detecting and locating the normal zone: one is a ring pickup coil assembled on the midplane of a central bore and the other consists of several sector pickup coils deployed on the coil winding, namely “scanning pickup coil.” To verify the effectiveness of these detection methods, we performed a numerical simulation coupling consisting of a partial element equivalent circuit, a thermal analysis, and a magnetic field analysis. Based on the results of analyses, we reproduced the distributions of the temporal variations of the magnetic flux in the central bore and on the coil winding of the meter-class NI coil, and discussed the effectiveness of these pickup coil schemes for detecting and locating a local normal-state transition in a meter-class NI coil used in next-generation high-field MRIs.