Electro-Thermal Modelling by Novel Variational Methods: Racetrack Coil in Short-Circuit

TL;DR

This paper introduces a new variational numerical method for electro-thermal quench modeling in superconducting windings, validated against finite difference methods, with applications in magnet and power device design.

Contribution

A novel variational approach for electro-thermal modeling of superconducting coils, benchmarked against traditional finite difference methods, enhancing reliability and accuracy.

Findings

Both models agree with each other and analytical limits.

The methods effectively account for screening currents.

Suitable for designing fast-ramp superconducting magnets.

Abstract

The design of superconducting applications containing windings of superconducting wires or tapes requires electro-thermal quench modelling. In this article, we present a reliable numerical method based on a variational principle and we benchmark it to a conventional finite difference method that we implemented in C++. As benchmark problem, we consider a racetrack coil made of REBCO superconducting tape under short circuit, approximated as a DC voltage that appears at the initial time. Results show that both models agree with each other and analytical limits. Since both models take screening currents into account, they are promising for the design of magnets (especially fast-ramp magnets) and power applications, such as the stator windings of superconducting motors or generators.