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Whatisthe statusofthe Project?

The rst phase of the project was energized on July 20, 2006. It operated awlessly as an integral part of

National Grids 35-kilovolt network in Albany, serving the equivalent of 25,000 homes. It was taken ofine after

nine months to begin phase II of the project: replacing a 30-meter section with 2G cable, which will be the

worlds rst use of 2G in any utility device. Phase II of the project was energized on January 8, 2008.

Project Fact Sheet

AlbanyHT

SPowerC

able

SuperconductivityPartnerships with Industry

Ofce o Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability

www.oe.energy.gov

Ofce o Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability, OE-1

U.S. Department o Energy 1000 Independence Avenue, SW Washington, DC 20585

Plugging America Into the Future of Power

This project involves the development anddemonstration o a high-temperature superconducting(HTS) cable in the power grid in Albany, New York,including rst-o-a-kind applications o a cablesplice and a section o cable abricated using second-generation (2G) superconducting wire.

Whatareits Primary aPPlications?

HTS power cables are used or power transmission anddistribution. The Albany cable will be a distributioncable, conducting electricity within a local grid.

Whatarethe Benefitsto utilities?

HTS is an advanced technology that can bothstrengthen and improve the electrical system.Superconducting cables oer higher capacity andgreater eciency than conventional cables in thedelivery o electric power. HTS AC cables can carrythree to ve times more power than conventional cablesand can meet increasing power demands in urban areasvia retrot applications, eliminating the need to acquirenew rights-o-way and to dig new cable pathways.Because electrical resistance is minimal, power can bedelivered at lower voltages, eliminating the need orsome transormers along the delivery path. In addition,HTS cables are cooled with liquid nitrogena materialcompatible with the atmospherein contrast to thehazardous, fammable, and potentially polluting oilused to cool some conventional cables.

Whatisthe market Potential?

The growing economy depends on the reliable andecient delivery o electricity. As energy demandsand environmental concerns increase, undergroundHTS cable will provide the necessary alternative tomeet power supply needs. Power transmission viaunderground HTS cables can substitute or overheadpower lines when environmental and other concerns

prohibit overhead installation. The development o

a commercially viable HTS power cable will enableU.S. industry to capture a large portion o the growingnational power cable market. In addition, internationalmarkets are estimated to be 10 times larger than theU.S. market, and those markets are growing morerapidly than the U.S. market.

The second phase o this project will result in the rstin-grid demonstration o a power cable that uses 2G(coated conductor) superconducting wire. The newwires are expected to have both perormance and costadvantages over earlier HTS wires and are expected tohasten HTS technologys entry into the cable market.

Whatarethe Project accomPlishments

to Date?

The project team has chosen to use three-core HTScable technology, meaning that the cable will havethree separate copper cores in a single cryogenic pipe(called acryostat). Each core is surrounded by layerso HTS wire and electrical insulation, and the wholeassembly is then surrounded by liquid nitrogen coolantand thermal insulation. The design also uses a colddielectric scheme, in which the cryogenic fuid and

thermal insulation surround the electrical insulation in

Albany HTS Cable Project cable termination

Phone: 202-586-141

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Revision Date: 02/13/08 supeRconDuctivity pRogRamfoR electRic systems

the cable. The cable is designed to carry800 amps at 34.5 kilovolts.

The 350-meter cable was installedunderground in Albany, New York, betweentwo National Grid substations near theHudson River and under Interstate 90. Theproject demonstrates the rst-ever splice inan HTS cable. In the second phase o theproject, a 30-meter section was replaced witha section o cable made with 2G HTS wiremanuactured by SuperPower. In parallel, amanuacturer o cryogenic systems (Linde)has developed a rerigeration system that willmeet the stringent reliability and eciencystandards required by the utility industry.

The project was awarded in July 2003. Thedetailed design was completed and reviewedby DOE in November 2004. The teamcompleted manuacturing o all componentso the cable cryogenic system in 2005, and

the installation o components was completedby the spring o 2006. The HTS cable wasconnected to the National Grid network

and beganoperating as parto the grid on July20, 2006. It was takenofine ater nine monthsto begin phase II o the project:

replacing a 30-meter section with 2Gcable, which is the worlds rst use o2G in any utility device. The Albanycable was successully re-energized onJanuary 8, 2008.

hoW DoesitWork?

Conventional conductors o copper oraluminum are replaced by HTS wire, enablingthe cable to carry greater amounts o currentwith ewer losses due to resistance. The cablerequires a cooling system to rerigerate theHTS conductors to a temperature at which

resistance is minimized, about 321 F. In thecooling system, liquid nitrogen is circulatedwithin a thermal envelope (cryostat) to coolthe superconducting tapes (wires) throughwhich electricity fows. The superconductingtapes, which are wrapped around the coreo the cable, make up the phase conductor,replacing the copper or aluminum inconventional cables.

To date, HTS cable demonstrationprojects have relied on rst-generationsuperconductors, which consist o a powder-

like bismuth-based superconductor packedinto silver tubes and extruded to orm wires.Silver has been the only metal ound tohave the electrical, chemical, and structuralproperties required to create high-quality HTSwire. However, its high cost has kept HTScables rom being an economical solution orrelieving electrical bottlenecks.

This project will incorporate a new kind owire in which a Yttrium-based superconductoris chemically coated on a non-silver metalsubstrate. This process has already beenscaled up to 800-meter piece lengths

employing high-throughputabrication methods that havebeen scaled up to manuacturingin the pilot plant atSuperPower.

Lindes Cryogenic Refrigeration System (CRS)

Goal:To demonstrate the technical and

commercial viability of high-tem-

perature superconducting (HTS)

cables by operating a 350-meter

superconducting cable, including

a 30-meter section made from 2G

HTS wire, between two National

Grid substations.

Team:

SuperPower (Project Lead

and 2G HTS Wire)

Linde (Cryogenic System)

Sumitomo Electric

(Cable Production)

New York State Energy Research

and Development Authority

(Additional Funding)National Grid (Host Utility)

Period ofPerformance:7/2003 3/2008

CumulativeProject Funding:Private: $13.7 Million (50%)

DOE: $13.7 Million (50%)

Total: $27.4 Mill ion

InformationContact:Chuck Weber, SuperPower

(518) 346-1414

cweber@superpower-inc.com

alignmentWith aDministration

Priorities:

National Energy Policy:expand the Departments researchand development on transmissionreliability and superconductivity.

National Transmission Grid Study:

accelerate development anddemonstration o its technologies,including high-temperaturesuperconductivity

Energy Information Agency:O [advanced power delivery]technologies, superconductivityholds the most promise or yieldingsignicant eciency gains.