Analysis on the Bending Performance of a High-Current Superconducting CORC-Type Cable

There are various types of high-current high-temperature superconducting (HTS) cables by using of REBCO tape. Cable on round core (CORC) is a high current HTS cable using REBCO tape, known for its high current carrying capacity and flexibility. CORC cables are subjected to various mechanical stresses during operation, including bending stresses during cabling, winding, and cryocooling. Due to the multilayer structure of high current CORC, the study of the bending characteristics of CORC cables has become more important. In order to investigate the current carrying and bending properties of the CORC cable, the 2-D critical current simulation of a 24-layer CORC-type cable is carried out to analyze the self-field distribution and current density distribution, and the calculated critical current of the cable under self-field at 77 K is about 5734 A. Subsequently, several samples were fabricated and tested at 77 K. The influence of bending stress on the critical current of CORC-type cable was studied to determine the critical bending radius of CORC-type cable. The results show that the maximum critical current of the 24-layer CORC-type cable under self-field at 77 K is 5.9 kA, and the critical bending radius is less than 50 mm, demonstrating the high current capacity and flexibility of the large-current CORC-type cable.