World's First Surge-Suppressing HTS Cable System to Improve Power Grid Security
Georgia cable specialst takes part in a DHS-funded effort to bolster the resilience of the U.S. power grid
A key element of any country’s critical infrastructure is its power grid, and defending the power grid is a major preoccupation of homeland security. We wrote earlier in the week about DHS’s partial funding of a development effort aiming to protect the U.S. electircal system by deploying Secure Super Grids. We want to note that Carrollton, Georgia-based Southwire Company will assist in the development, testing, and production of this new high temperature superconductor (HTS) cable which is capable of suppressing power surges and helping make power grids more resilient.
Southwire and joint venture partner nkt Cables of Cologne, Germany will work with American Superconductor Corporation (NASDAQ: AMSC) to develop the new cable. The cable will allow Consolidated Edison (ConEd) to build a more reliable and secure power system in New York City.
Through the new design, Southwire will help integrate fault-current-limiting capabilities with its HTS Triax superconducting cable. This cable will be powered by AMSC’s HTS wire known as 344 superconductors and incorporate design characteristics of Southwire’s patented HTS Triax design.
“Superconducting cables have the potential to increase efficiencies in the delivery of electricity in much the same way that an expressway handles more traffic than a small city street,” says Stuart Thorn, president and CEO of Southwire. “We are proud that ConEd and AMSC have chosen our unique HTS Triax design as the basis for this new cable, and we are excited to have a role in creating more secure and efficient power delivery systems for our nation.”
Here is the key: Southwire’s HTS Triax cable places the three necessary phase conductors concentrically around a common, central core. This more compact design cuts the amount of HTS wire used in half. In addition, the design reduces the cold surface area, leading to lower critical cooling requirements. Both of these elements drive down the cost of superconducting cables.
Replacing the tens of thousands of miles of power cables in the United States with more secure and efficient cables is a vast task, and companies positioning themselves to take part in the effort will benefit.
