Applications for Superconductors

Created By:Ben McFadden

Heather HoffJerrod Meier

Ryan VandenBosch

Overview

TransportationMedicalElectronicsPower GenerationCommunications

Transportation Maglevs

Maglev has promisez Speeds in excess of 300mph possiblez Magnetic cushion reduces mechanical

wear from frictionz Less noise pollutionz Smoothest ride of any vehiclez 30% more efficient than conventional trainsz Safety collision is impossible!

Maglev How it works

Superconducting magnets on board Current induced in coils on trackAttraction/repulsion between coils and magnetUsed for magnetic levitation and lateral guidanceCarefully-timed interactions propel the train forward

Electronics - SQUIDsSuperconducting quantum interference devicesDetect magnetic flux (down to 2 pT)Uses:z Non-destructive corrosion testingz Magnetoencephalography (MEG)z Oscilloscopesz Oscillators, DA converters, Amplifiers

Electronics Particle Accelerators

Use magnets for three applicationsz Beam transport to bend and focus beamz Accelerate the particlesz Identify and analyze particle interactions

Advantages of using superconductorsz Higher fields with smaller sizez Extreme magnetic accuracy

Power Generation

Electric Generatorsz Above 99% efficient z Half size of conventional generators

Distributed Superconducting Magnetic Energy Storage System (D-SMES) z Reserve of over 3 million watts z To stabilize line voltages during grid

disturbances

Communications

Petaflop Computersz 1000 times faster than modern computersz 1000-trillion operations per second

Superconducting Cablesz 340 million Watts of power transmittedz Limited to DC current flowz Cost effective only for large power supplies

Experimentation

Determination of Resistance as a function of Temperaturez No conclusive data acquired due to varying

experimental parametersz Dr. Kingsbury (chem) confirmed difficulty of

data acquisitionDetermination of critical currentz No data due to equipment limitations