Development of a lightweight low-current 10 K 4 T magnet for space-flight ADRs

Future space missions will include detectors and other components cooled to cryogenic temperatures by adiabatic demagnetization refrigerators (ADRs) coupled with mechanical cryocoolers. In such systems the ADRs require lightweight, low-current superconducting magnets. At least one of an ADR’s magnets must operate at the cryocooler’s coldest stage temperature. This temperature should be as high as possible in order to improve operating efficiency and design flexibility. We previously reported the development of a lightweight (1 kg) low-current (8 A) Nb₃Sn magnet which produces a 3 T central field at 10 K. We now report our progress in developing a new 10 K magnet of similar size made with smaller diameter Nb₃Sn wire which will produce a 4 T central field with approximately 5 A.     

Manufacturing of lightweight low-current Nb3Sn ADR magnets operating at 10 K

Adiabatic demagnetization refrigerators (ADRs) using superconducting magnets are under development for cooling many NASA instruments. Due to higher efficiency of cryocoolers at 10 K, Nb₃Sn magnets operating at 10 K are favored for space ADRs. Further, magnets need to be as light as possible and have low operating currents. This paper discusses technologies for the manufacture of lightweight, low-current Nb₃Sn magnets and reports on testing of a 35 mm bore by 60 mm long magnet. This magnet weighed less than 1 kg and successfully produced 3 T at 11.5 K with an operating current of 8 A.     

Low temperature physical properties of a high Mn austenitic steel JK2LB

High manganese austenitic stainless steel JK2LB is developed by the Japan Atomic Energy Agency for applications as a conduit material for superconducting cable-in-conduit conductors for the magnets of international thermonuclear experimental reactor (ITER). The low temperature physical property data of this material are very important to ITER magnet design. Therefore in this paper, our measurements of the physical properties including room temperature Young’s modulus and thermal expansion, magnetization, thermal conductivity, specific heat and resistivity at temperatures from room temperature down to 2 K are reported. We found that JK2LB is antiferromagnetic at low temperatures with a Néel temperature of 240 K. This is consistent with a prediction based on the chemical composition of the austenite stainless steel. The antiferromagnetic phase transition is also evident in the resistivity vs. T curve. Nevertheless, no anomalies are observable in its specific heat and thermal conductivity from 2 K to 300 K. The thermal expansion of this steel between 10 K and 300 K is about 0.22%. Its Young’s modulus, specific heat and thermal conductivity are comparable to that of 316LN stainless steel.     

Quench protection tests of a cryocooler cooled 6 T NbTi superconducting magnet by an active power method

When a quench occurs in a superconducting magnet, excessive joule heating may damage the magnet. We have presented the quench protection system based on an active power method. Our previous quench protection tests have been carried out for small superconducting magnets whose self inductances are less than several hundred mH to verify principles of our proposed system. In this paper, we present experimental results of quench protection tests of a cryocooler cooled 6 T NbTi superconducting magnet (self inductance 15.5 H), which is a commercial size magnet made by Tamakawa Co., Ltd. We confirmed that our proposed system could inhibit the maximum temperature of the superconducting magnet (initial temperature 4.3 K) after the quench to less than about 44 K at operation magnetic field 5.5 T. Experimental results suggest that our proposed system is useful for practical used superconducting magnets.     

Design and performance of a fast thermal response miniature Chromium Potassium Alum (CPA) salt pill for use in a millikelvin cryocooler

The design and performance of a fast thermal response miniature (24 mm outer diameter by 30 mm long) Chromium Potassium Alum (CPA) salt pill is described. The need for a fast thermal response has been driven by the development of a continuously operating millikelvin cryocooler (mKCC) which uses 2 T superconducting magnets that can be ramped to full field in 30 s. The consequence of magnetising and demagnetising the CPA pill in such a short time is that thermal boundary resistance and eddy current heating have a significant impact on the performance of the pill, which was investigated in detail using modelling. The complete design of a prototype CPA pill is described in this paper, including the methods used to minimise thermal boundary resistance and eddy current heating as well as the manufacturing and assembly processes. The performance of the prototype CPA pill operated from a 3.6 K bath is presented, demonstrating that a complete CPA cycle (magnetising, cooling to bath and demagnetising) can be accomplished in under 2.5 min, with magnetisation and demagnetisation taking just 30 s each. The cold finger base temperature of the prototype varies with demagnetisation speed as a consequence of eddy current heating; for a 30 s demagnetisation, a base temperature of 161 mK is obtained, whilst for a 5 min demagnetisation, a base temperature of 149 mK was measured (both from a 3.6 K and 2 T starting position). The measured hold times of the CPA pill at 200 mK, 300 mK, and 1 K are given, proving that the hold time far exceeds the recycle time and demonstrating the potential for continuous operation when two ADRs are used in a tandem configuration. The ease and speed at which the CPA pill temperature can be changed and controlled when stepping between operating temperatures in the range of 200 mK to 4 K using a servo control program is also shown, once again highlighting the excellent thermal response of the pill. All of the test results are in good agreement with the modelling used to design the CPA pill, giving good confidence in our ability to understand and estimate the effects of eddy current heating and thermal boundary resistance. To conclude, the design for the CPA pill to be used in the mKCC (which is heavily based on the design of the prototype) is presented.     

Design of the PIXIE adiabatic demagnetization refrigerators

The Primordial Inflation Explorer (PIXIE) is a proposed mission to densely map the polarization of the cosmic microwave background. It will operate in a scanning mode from a sun-synchronous orbit, using low temperature detectors (at 0.1 K) and located inside a telescope that is cooled to approximately 2.73 K – to match the background temperature. A mechanical cryocooler operating at 4.5 K establishes a low base temperature from which two adiabatic demagnetization refrigerator (ADR) assemblies will cool the telescope and detectors. To achieve continuous scanning capability, the ADRs must operate continuously. Complicating the design are two factors: (1) the need to systematically vary the temperature of various telescope components in order to separate the small polarization signal variations from those that may arise from temperature drifts and changing gradients within the telescope, and (2) the orbital and monthly variations in lunar irradiance into the telescope barrels. These factors require the telescope ADR to reject quasi-continuous heat loads of 2–3 mW, while maintaining a peak heat reject rate of less than 12 mW. The detector heat load at 0.1 K is comparatively small at 1–2 μW. This paper will describe the 3-stage and 2-stage continuous ADRs that will be used to meet the cooling power and temperature stability requirements of the PIXIE detectors and telescope.     

Development and parametric study of the convection-type stationary adiabatic demagnetization refrigerator (ADR) for hydrogen re-condensation

The adiabatic demagnetization refrigerator (ADR) system in this paper is composed of a conduction-cooled current cycling high-temperature superconducting (HTS) magnet system, a magnetic bed assembly, its heat exchange parts and an auxiliary precooling stage (a commercial GM cryocooler and a liquid nitrogen vessel). The whole magnetic refrigeration system including the conduction-cooled HTS magnet is cooled by the precooling stage to absorb the rejection heat of the ADR cycle. The packed bed type magnetic bed consists of tiny irregular powders of Dy_0.9Gd_0.1Ni₂ enclosed in a thin walled stainless steel container (22.2 mm in O.D., 0.3 mm in thickness and 40.0 mm in height). The precooled heat transfer fluid (helium) travels through the magnetic material when heat rejection is required; otherwise the helium stagnates within its pores (pseudo-adiabatic process). Flow of the heat transfer fluid substitutes for the function of a traditional heat switch, creating, essentially, a forced-convection type heat switch. The magnetic bed assembly is periodically magnetized and demagnetized at the center of the conduction-cooled HTS magnet which can stably generate both strong and alternating magnetic field from 0 T to 3.0 T (0–130 A) with an average ramp rate of 0.24 T s⁻¹. The cooling capacities of the ADR system at 20 K which is the normal boiling point (NBP) of hydrogen, are 11.1 J cycle⁻¹, 6.3 J cycle⁻¹ and 1.9 J cycle⁻¹ when the temperature spans are 1 K, 2 K and 3 K, respectively. We describe the detailed construction of the ADR system and discuss the test results with the operational parameters (the entrained helium pressure, the mass flow rate of helium and the operating temperature span) in the 20 K region.     

Low temperature physical properties of Co-35Ni-20Cr-10Mo alloy MP35N®

Multiphase Co-35Ni-20Cr-10Mo alloy MP35N® is a high strength alloy with excellent corrosion resistance. Its applications span chemical, medical, and food processing industries. Thanks to its high modulus and high strength, it found applications in reinforcement of ultra-high field pulsed magnets. Recently, it has also been considered for reinforcement in superconducting wires used in ultra-high field superconducting magnets. For these applications, accurate measurement of its physical properties at cryogenic temperatures is very important. In this paper, physical properties including electrical resistivity, specific heat, thermal conductivity, and magnetization of as-received and aged samples are measured from 2 to 300 K. The electrical resistivity of the aged sample is slightly higher than the as-received sample, both showing a weak linear temperature dependence in the entire range of 2–300 K. The measured specific heat C_p of 430 J/kg-K at 295 K agrees with a theoretical prediction, but is significantly smaller than the values in the literature. The thermal conductivity between 2 and 300 K is in good agreement with the literature which is only available above 77 K. Magnetic property of MP35N® changes significantly with aging. The as-received sample exhibits Curie paramagnetism with a Curie constant C = 0.175 K. While the aged sample contains small amounts of a ferromagnetic phase even at room temperature. The measured MP35N® properties will be useful for the engineering design of pulsed magnets and superconducting magnets using MP35N® as reinforcement.     

AC loss in YBCO coated conductors at high dB/dt measured using a spinning magnet calorimeter (stator testbed environment)

A new facility for the measurement of AC loss in superconductors at high dB/dt has been developed. The test device has a spinning rotor consisting of permanent magnets arranged in a Halbach array; the sample, positioned outside of this, is exposed to a time varying AC field with a peak radial field of 0.566 T. At a rotor speed of 3600 RPM the frequency of the AC field is 240 Hz, the radial dB/dt is 543 T/s and the tangential dB/dt is 249 T/s. Loss is measured using nitrogen boiloff from a double wall calorimeter feeding a gas flow meter. The system is calibrated using power from a known resistor. YBCO tape losses were measured in the new device and compared to the results from a solenoidal magnet AC loss system measurement of the same samples (in this latter case measurements were limited to a field of amplitude 0.1 T and a dB/dt of 100 T/s). Solenoidal magnet system AC loss measurements taken on a YBCO sample agreed with the Brandt loss expression associated with a 0–0.1 T I_c of 128 A. Subsequently, losses for two more YBCO tapes nominally identical to the first were individually measured in this spinning magnet calorimeter (SMC) machine with a B_max of 0.566 T and dB/dt of up to 272 T/s. The losses, compared to a simplified version of the Brandt expression, were consistent with the average I_c expected for the tape in the 0–0.5 T range at 77 K. The eddy current contribution was consistent with a 77 K residual resistance ratio, RR, of 4.0. The SMC results for these samples agreed to within 5%. Good agreement was also obtained between the results of the SMC AC loss measurement and the solenoidal magnet AC loss measurement on the same samples.     

Numerical study of the thermal behavior of an Nb3Sn high field magnet in He II

The high field magnet (HFM) project, within the European project EuCARD, aims at constructing an Nb₃Sn high field accelerator magnet, the Fresca 2 magnet. This magnet is to serve as a test bed for future high field magnets and to upgrade the vertical CERN cable test facility. Fresca 2 is a block coil type magnet designed to produce 13 T at 1.9 K. To calculate the temperature margin and the evolution of the temperature due to a quench event within the magnet, we developed a 3D model implemented in ANSYS-CFX® software. This model is an extension of the 2D simplified “two-fluid model” proposed by Kitamura et al. with conjugate heat transfer and Kapitza resistance. This model is derived from the original two-fluid model and consisted of a conventional continuity equation, a modified momentum equation for the total fluid and an energy equation including the Gorter-Mellink internal convection term modeling the turbulence regime. The paper presents the model, the numerical schemes, the assumptions taken for the calculations and the results of the simulation obtained for the temperature evolution due to AC losses and due to quench heating within the magnet structure.     

Analysis of thermal stability of conduction-cooled LTS magnet

The temperature stability of the conduction-cooled or cryogen-free magnet is governed by the heat balance between the heat generation rate and the cooling rate by the cryocooler through the thermal links. The dynamic thermal profile of a conduction-cooled NbTi magnet during charging and discharging process has been analyzed in terms of theoretically evaluated dynamic heat loss profile. The NbTi coil was energized up to 90 A with 2 A/min, 4 A/min, and 6 A/min sweep rates and the corresponding hysteretic AC loss and resistive heat loss have been estimated with all three sweep rates. The equilibrium temperatures of the magnet are 3.23 K and 3.82 K at zero and 90 A current respectively. At the beginning of the charging process, the AC loss has dominant role in the thermal profile of magnet but resistive heat loss takes over the dominant role towards the end of charging process. The thermal profile of the magnet during continuous charging has been compared with discharging of the magnet and step-wise charging.     

Elevated temperature low cycle fatigue of grey cast iron used for automotive brake discs

This paper evaluates the fatigue life properties of low carbon grey cast iron (EN-GJL-250), which is widely used for automotive brake discs. Although several authors have examined mechanical and fatigue properties at room temperatures, there has been a lack of such data regarding brake discs operating temperatures. The tension, compression and low cycle fatigue properties were examined at room temperature (RT) and at brake discs’ working temperatures: 500 °C, 600 °C and 700 °C. The microstructure of the material was documented and analysed. Tensile stress–strain curves, cyclic hardening/softening curves, stress–strain hysteresis loops, and fatigue life curves were obtained for all the above-mentioned temperatures. It was concluded, that Young’s modulus is comparable with both tension and compression, but yield its strength and ultimate strength are approximately twice as great in compression than in tension. All the mechanical properties remained quite stable until 500 °C, where at 700 °C all deteriorated drastically. During fatigue testing, the samples endured at 500 °C on average at around 50% of cycles at room temperature. Similar to other materials’ properties, the cycles to failure have dropped significantly at 700 °C.     

Performance validation tests on 80 K bubble type of shields for SST-1

The 80 K thermal shields of Steady State Superconducting Tokamak (SST-1) minimize the steady state heat loads on the superconducting magnet system at 4.5 K from ambient. Uniform temperature, vacuum and cryo compatibility is desired for the 80 K shields. In order to meet these requirements, the bubble/embossed type of design concept is adopted. This design ensures lower pressure drop and better temperature uniformity within ±5 K. Special attention has been given for preventing direct radiation on the magnet system. As part of performance validation tests, a group of 80 K thermal shields have undergone rigorous testing protocols and procedures. The temperature distribution, helium leak tightness and insulation resistance tests have been carried out for SST-1 thermal shields before final assembly of the machine. The test design, procedures and results of the 80 K thermal shields will be discussed in this paper.     

Study on a 10 W/90 K in-line pulse tube cryocooler

A Stirling-type in-line pulse tube cryocooler (PTC) has been designed, built and tested at Shanghai Institute of Technical Physics (SITP), Chinese Academy of Sciences. This PTC prototype can obtain a low-noise cooling capacity of more than 10 W at around 90 K cold head temperature and is used for cooling a space-borne infrared photo detector. In order to achieve a highly efficient PTC, a simplified numerical simulation model has been established for design and optimization. The simulation results of the regenerator, pulse tube and inertance tube are analyzed in detail. Besides, some key parameters of the PTC are listed in the paper. The PTC’s performances are tested at different operating frequencies from 42 Hz to 55 Hz and its reject temperature dependence is observed in the range of 290 K to 320 K. Furthermore, the map of the PTC’s performance characteristics is presented.     

Superferric quadrupoles for FAIR Super FRS energy buncher

The quadrupole magnets for FAIR Super FRS energy buncher have large usable aperture, high magnetic pole-tip field and high gradient field quality. The iron-dominated magnets with superconducting coils have to be used in this application. The NbTi coil, laminated iron, and support structure of about 22 tons is immersed in liquid helium. The 4.5 K helium chamber is completely covered with a thermal shield cooled by helium at 50–80 K on its outer and inner surface. The helium chamber and thermal shield is enclosed in a vacuum shell.The paper presents design details of the long quadrupole. Coupled thermal, magnetic and structural analysis was carried out to design the magnet iron, magnet coil, helium vessel and support links and ensure the required gradient field quality is achieved. The paper also presents the design of support links and outer vacuum chamber.     

Effect of magnetic fields on the abnormal electroresistance behavior in epitaxial thin films of La0.8Ca0.2MnO3

We report an unusual electroresistance (ER) behavior induced by a current and its response to magnetic fields in La_0.8Ca_0.2MnO₃ epitaxial thin films. These thin films were fabricated on SrTiO₃ (1 0 0) substrate using pulsed laser deposition (PLD) technique. It is found that the electric resistivity in these films is significantly enhanced by applying a dc current over a threshold value. Simultaneously, an abnormal electroresistance behavior appears in the temperature range from 10 to 300 K. The enhanced resistance turns out to be very sensitive to a weak current. Even a very small dc current can remarkably depress the high resistance, showing an unusual colossal ER effect. The ER reaches ∼1175% at temperatures lower than ∼50 K, and ∼705% at 300 K for a current changing from 0.72 to 10.5 μA. The influence of magnetic fields on the transport was also studied. The I–V curves can be strongly influenced by a low magnetic field even at room temperature. The deduced magnetoresistance (MR) reaches 120% at 300 K upon applying a magnetic field of 0.25 T. An interesting phenomenon is that the observed MR is current dependent.     

Mechanical and transport properties of low-temperature negative thermal expansion material Mn3CuN co-doped with Ge and Si

Anti-perovskite manganese nitrides Mn₃CuN co-doped with Ge and Si show good negative thermal expansion properties at cryogenic temperatures and thus have great potential for cryogenic applications. In this work, Mn₃(Cu_0.6Si_xGe_0.4?x)N (x = 0.05, 0.1, 0.15) were prepared by reactive sintering under pressure. Their structures, densities, electrical resistivities, thermal conductivities and mechanical properties were studied at room and cryogenic temperatures. The results show that the values of electrical resistivities and thermal conductivities of Mn₃(Cu_0.6Si_xGe_0.4?x)N (x = 0.05, 0.1, 0.15) are in the range of 2.5–4.3 × 10^?6 Ω m and 1.9–3.6 W(m K)^?1, respectively. Compression tests indicate the compressive strength and Young’s modulus are about 700 MPa and 110 GPa, respectively.     

Tribological performance of TiAl matrix self-lubricating composites containing Ag,Ti3SiC2 and BaF2/CaF2 tested from room temperature to 600 °C

Dry sliding tribological behaviors of TiAl matrix self-lubricating composites (TMSC) containing varying amounts of Ag, Ti₃SiC₂ and BaF₂/CaF₂ eutectic (BaF₂–38 wt.%CaF₂) (ATBC) with weight ratio of 1:1:1 against Si₃N₄ from room temperature (RT) to 600 °C at the condition of 10 N–0.234 m/s were experimentally studied. The results implied that the ATBC could improve friction-reducing and anti-wear ability of TMSC over an extreme range of operating temperatures, which was attributed to the synergetic effect of Ag, Ti₃SiC₂ and BaF₂/CaF₂ lubricants. In addition, TMSC containing 9 wt.% ATBC exhibited the best tribological properties over the wide temperature range from RT to 600 °C.     

Epitaxial La2 / 3Sr1 / 3MnO3 thin films with unconventional magnetic and electric properties near the Curie temperature

We used Pulsed Laser Deposition (PLD) in oxidizing environment to epitaxially grow optimally doped manganite La_2 / 3Sr_1 / 3MnO₃ (LSMO) thin films over a (001) oriented SrTiO₃ substrate. Synthesized samples show good room temperature magnetic properties accompanied by a peculiar extension of the metallic conduction regime to temperatures higher than the Curie point.In this paper we present a study of the dependence of transport and magnetic properties of LSMO thin films on the oxygen pressure during PLD growth. We show how interaction of the growing films with O₂ molecules is fundamental for a correct synthesis and in which way it is possible to adjust PLD experimental parameters in order to tune LSMO thin film properties.The persistence of the metallic conduction regime above the Curie temperature indicates some minor changes of the electronic structure near the Fermi level, which is responsible for the half-metallic behavior of LSMO at low temperature. This feature is rather intriguing from the technological point of view, as it could pave the way to the increase of operating temperature of devices based on LSMO.     

Forced flow He vapor cooled critical current testing facility for measurements of superconductors in a wide temperature and magnetic field range

As superconducting materials find their way into applications, there is increasing need to verify their performance at operating conditions. Testing of critical current with respect to temperature and magnetic field is of particular importance. However, testing facilities covering a range of temperatures and magnetic fields can be costly, especially when considering the cooling power required in the cryogenic system in the temperature range below 65 K (inaccessible for LN₂). Critical currents in excess of 500 A are common for commercial samples, making the testing of such samples difficult in setups cooled via a cryocooler, moreover it often does not represent the actual cooling conditions that the sample will experience in service. This work reports the design and operation of a low-cost critical current testing facility, capable of testing samples in a temperature range of 10–65 K, with magnetic field up to 1.6 T and measuring critical currents up to 900 A with variable cooling power.