The Potential for High Temperature Superconducting AC and DC Motors

ABSTRACT

The prospect of using superconductivity (SC) to power electrical machines has been a tantalizing but elusive goal ever since its discovery by Onnes in 1911. However, recent developments which have raised the critical temperature above liquid nitrogen (77K) has removed the major obstacle to practical application of SC to rotating machinery, namely the liquid helium refrigerant system. This paper addresses the potential for utilizing high temperature superconductivity (HTSC) in rotating (as opposed to linear) electrical motors and discusses several approaches to their implementation. Although SC at liquid nitrogen temperature is assumed, the implications of SC at room temperature is not considered in this paper.