Abstract Scope |
Rare-earth barium copper oxide (REBCO) based coated conductors are of interest for high power density motors for electric aircraft propulsion. In this work, the AC loss characteristics of REBCO conductors and various kinds of REBCO cables are discussed in terms of Electric Propulsion motor suitability. AC loss measurements were performed in several different experimental devices, in frequencies up to 200 Hz and ramp rates of 250 T/s, and Field amplitudes ranged from 100 mT to 500 mT. Single tape conductors were compared to CORC and STAR configurations as well as Roebel cables. Surface treatments were used to control interstrand contact resistances to trade off current sharing and loss, including Ni plating and CNT-composite/polymer coating. Finally, the effect of conductor magnetic permeability was considered, using both experiment and modelling, and was show to have a very strong effect on losses, with reductions up to a factor of 10 X possible. |