At the National Institute for Fusion Science, we have been developing high-temperature superconducting coils for magnetic confinement fusion that use liquid hydrogen refrigerant with the aim of commercializing carbon-free and sustainable power-generation technology.
Associate Professor Masayoshi Ohya in Kwansei Gakuin University is conducting research on high-temperature superconducting generators utilizing the cold energy of liquid hydrogen for hydrogen power generation. The energization test for a high-temperature superconducting wire under liquid hydrogen immersion is limited, and therefore, its cryogenic stability has not fully been explored.
A research team comprising Professor Naoki Hirano and Associate Professor Naoko Nakamura of the National Institute for Fusion Science, and Associate Professor Masayoshi Ohya of Kwansei Gakuin University, have established an apparatus in the National Institute for Fusion Science that can pass a current of over 1,000 kA through high-temperature superconducting wire in liquid hydrogen. They have also successfully conducted energization tests of high-temperature superconducting wire in their own liquefied hydrogen.
Going forward, compiling the data from repeated experiments, research on high-temperature superconducting coils for magnetic confinement fusion and liquid-hydrogen-cooled superconducting generators is expected to advance significantly as more is revealed about the characteristics of high-temperature superconducting wire in liquid hydrogen.
