Power cable tests using superconducting cable.(Electronics)

Trials using power cables made with high-temperature superconducting materials, developed by Sumitomo Electric Industries Ltd, are due to begin in the USA early next year. They are part of a research project by the US Department of Energy to find ways of reducing power loss during transmission.

The cable, which uses a bismuth-based, high-temperature superconducting material discovered by Japanese researchers in the 1980s, is expected to reduce power loss, compared with conventional cable, and requires lower installation costs.

The scheduled trials will use the cable for a 350 m section of line connecting two power substations near Albany, New York.

The cable will be placed inside a tube cooled with liquid nitrogen. A long cable will be attached by a joint to a shorter one to see if power can be transmitted without any problems. If the trials produce positive results by 2007, it is possible that the cable will remain in place to be used over a longer period.

Existing power cables lose electricity due to electrical resistance. An average of 5% of power is lost during the transmission process in Japan, researchers estimate. Whereas about 800 kW ...