American Superconductor Corporation (AMSC) has developed the base technology and a manufacturing line for initial volume production of low-cost second generation high temperature superconductor (2G HTS) wire for commercial and military applications. The manufacturing line is based on reel-to-reel processing of wide HTS strips using rolling assisted bi-axially textured substrate (RABiTS (TM)) for the template and Metal Organic Deposition (MOD) for the HTS layer. AMSC's wide strip process is a low cost manufacturing technology since multiple wires are produced in a single manufacturing pass by slitting the wide strip to narrower width in the last stage of the manufacturing process. Industry standard 4.4 mm wide wires are produced by laminating metallic foils, such as copper, stainless steel or any other material, to the HTS insert wire, and are chosen to tailor the electrical, thermal and mechanical properties of the wire for specific applications. The laminated, 4.4 mm wide wires are known as "344 superconductors."In this paper, we Summarize the status of AMSC's manufacturing capability, the performance of the wire presently being produced, as well as the cost and technical advantages of AMSC's manufacturing approach. In addition, future direction for research and development to improve electrical performance is presented. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

American Superconductor has successfully scaled up its low-cost, high volume second generation (2G) HTS wire process into pre-pilot scale production, with performance approaching first generation (1G) HTS wire. AMSC’s manufacturing approach is based on RABiTSTM/MOD wide strip technology, with metal organic deposition (MOD) process for the YBCO layer and the Rolling Assisted Biaxially Textured Substrate (RABiTS) process for the template. In this paper, we review the status of the 2G manufacturing scale up at AMSC and describe the properties and architecture of the 2G wire being manufactured and developed for various applications.

Second generation (2G) YBCO high temperature superconductor wire, based on the RABiTS/MOD process, is now being produced in continuous lengths at American superconductor (AMSC) using a full-scale, reel-to-reel manufacturing line. AMSC's approach for manufacturing 2G wire is designed around a low-cost, wide-strip technology, in which a 4-cm wide strip is slit into multiple narrower wires, then laminated to metallic stabilizers producing a 3-ply wire called 344 superconductors. A major advantage of this approach is the ability to tailor the electrical, mechanical and thermal properties and dimensions of the final wire for specific applications and operating conditions. This allows the final wire properties to be tuned for targeted applications, including cables and fault current limiters, by tailoring the resistivity and thickness of the stabilizer layers. The superconducting properties of the MOD-based YBCO are also being improved by the introduction of thicker YBCO layers and improved flux pinning centers. This paper describes the present status of 2G wire manufacturing at AMSC, reviews present and projected performance of the 344 superconductors, and summarizes initial application demonstrations utilizing 344 superconductors.

This paper provides an update on the development, performance and application of first and second generation high temperature superconductor (HTS) wires fabricated at American Superconductor (AMSC). First generation, multifilamentary composite wire is available commercially today in different viable product forms. This conductor carries 140× the current of copper of the same cross-section, and is robust enough to stand tough industrial requirements. Second generation HTS wires, having a coated conductor composite architecture, are under development today and achieved substantial progress recently. AMSC’s first generation wire will continue as the workhorse of the industry for the next 3–4 years while AMSC’s second generation coated conductor wire is on track to be reproducible, uniform, scalable, and low cost. This paper provides a product differentiation with a view on the application of HTS wire in the electric power sector. Basic engineering data is reviewed that shall aid the engineer in the selection of the HTS wire product.

Second-generation coated conductor composite HTS wires have been fabricated using a continuous reel-to-reel process with deformation-textured Ni–W substrates and a metal-organic deposition process for YBa2Cu3O7−x. Earlier results on 1 m long and 1 cm wide wires with 77 K critical current performance greater than 100 A cm−1 width have now been extended to 7.5 m in length and even higher performance, with one wire at 132 and another at 127 A cm−1 width. Performance as a function of wire length is remarkably uniform, with only 2–4% standard deviation when measured on a 50 cm length scale. The length-scale dependence of the deviation is compared with a statistical calculation.

Amorphous (Zr,Y)Ox films were synthesized by reactive magnetron sputtering and subsequently crystallized by oblique ion bombardment. Crystalline texture nucleated by the ion beam was replicated by solid-phase epitaxial growth throughout the formerly amorphous yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) film. The resulting YSZ films have (211) orientation normal to the substrate with in-plane directions (111), parallel, and (110), transverse, to the azimuth of the ion beam. We hypothesize that the texture mechanism involves ion-induced film compression and shear. The results, taken together with prior work, show that oblique ion texturing of amorphous films is a general phenomenon that can be used to fabricate substrates with more than one type of crystallographic orientation.

Amorphous (Zr,Y)O-x films were synthesized by reactive magnetron sputtering and subsequently crystallized by oblique ion bombardment. Crystalline texture nucleated by the ion beam was replicated by solid-phase epitaxial growth throughout the formerly amorphous yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) film. The resulting YSZ films have (211) orientation normal to the substrate with in-plane directions (111), parallel, and (110), transverse, to the azimuth of the ion beam. We hypothesize that the texture mechanism involves ion-induced film compression and shear. The results, taken together with prior work, show that oblique ion texturing of amorphous films is a general phenomenon that can be used to fabricate substrates with more than one type of crystallographic orientation. (C) 2003 American Institute of Physics.

Commercialization of YBa/sub 2/Cu/sub 3/O/sub 7-x/ (YBCO) superconducting coated conductor composite (CCC) technology requires a cost-effective continuous manufacturing process. High critical current YBCO CCC wires with excellent uniformity over length have been fabricated using an all-continuous process. The conductor architecture consists of a metal organic derived YBCO layer, coated on a deformation-textured NiW alloy substrate buffered with Y/sub 2/O/sub 3//YSZ/CeO/sub 2/. Critical current at 77 K, self-field, of up to 118 A was achieved in 1 cm-wide tapes over 1.25 meter lengths, with a standard deviation of 3% measured on a 5 cm scale. The high uniformity and performance supports the feasibility of commercial long-length CCC wire based on deformation textured metal substrates and solution-based deposition of YBCO.

Commercialization of YBa/sub 2/Cu/sub 3/O/sub 7-x/ (YBCO) superconducting coated conductor composite (CCC) technology requires a cost-effective continuous manufacturing process. High critical current YBCO CCC wires with excellent uniformity over length have been fabricated using an all-continuous process. The conductor architecture consists of a metal organic derived YBCO layer, coated on a deform...

Amorphous (Zr,Y)Ox films were synthesized by reactive magnetron sputtering and subsequently crystallized by oblique ion bombardment. Crystalline texture nucleated by the ion beam was replicated by solid-phase epitaxial growth throughout the formerly amorphous yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) film. The resulting YSZ films have (211) orientation normal to the substrate with in-plane directions (111), parallel, and (110), transverse, to the azimuth of the ion beam. We hypothesize that the texture mechanism involves ion-induced film compression and shear. The results, taken together with prior work, show that oblique ion texturing of amorphous films is a general phenomenon that can be used to fabricate substrates with more than one type of crystallographic orientation.

Amorphous (Zr,Y)O{sub x} films were synthesized by reactive magnetron sputtering and subsequently crystallized by oblique ion bombardment. Crystalline texture nucleated by the ion beam was replicated by solid-phase epitaxial growth throughout the formerly amorphous yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) film. The resulting YSZ films have (211) orientation normal to the substrate with in-plane directions (111), parallel, and (110), transverse, to the azimuth of the ion beam. We hypothesize that the texture mechanism involves ion-induced film compression and shear. The results, taken together with prior work, show that oblique ion texturing of amorphous films is a general phenomenon that can be used to fabricate substrates with more than one type of crystallographic orientation.

American Superconductor has manufactured the BSCCO-2223 tapes for the Detroit Edison Power Cable Project. Pirelli Cables and Systems, along with Detroit Edison, Lotepro, EPRI, and Los Alamos National Lab, are developing, manufacturing, and installing the world's first HTS cable system in an electric utility network. Partially funded by the DOE-SPI program, the project goal is to fabricate, install, and test a 3-phase, 120-meter long, 100 MVA HTS cable system rated at 2400 A and 24 kV in Detroit Edison's Frisbie Station. Significant advances in HTS tape technology have been made in the past year, with average engineering critical current performance above 115 A at 77 K. We discuss the distribution of critical current as well as mechanical and environmental tests of more than 25 km of BSCCO tape manufactured for the Detroit Edison project. The environmental tests have been designed to simulate the behavior of HTS tapes under the actual operating conditions for an underground power cable.