Sumitomo Electric Industries, Limited

Ken-ichi Sato

Satoshi Takano

Masayuki Nagata

Takeshi Hikata

Kazuya Ohmatsu

Hidehito Mukai

Nobuhiro Shibuta

Hajime Hitotsuyanagi

Yoshikado Hosoda

Maumi Kawashima

Tuneo Nakahara

Kenji Miyazaki

Kengo Ohkura

Masaya Konishi

Minoru Yokota

A method and an apparatus are provided by which a high temperature superconductor can be cooled to a lower temperature easily and conveniently at a low cost. In the cooling method and apparatus according to the present invention, a high temperature superconductor constituting a cable ( ) is cooled by liquid refrigerant ( ). The refrigerant ( ) is cooled by a refrigerator ( ) to or below the freezing point which is given by the refrigerant having a stationary state in the cooling system. The cooled refrigerant is forced to flow and circulated by a pump ( ), and such a physical action maintains the refrigerant in a fluid state at a temperature equal to or lower than the freezing point. A viscometer ( ) may be used to measure the viscosity of the refrigerant to modulate the flow rate of the refrigerant according to the measured viscosity. According to the present invention, liquid nitrogen is maintained in a fluid state at approximately 45 K, for example.

Method and apparatus for cooling superconductor

An oxide superconducting element wire ( ) comprises a base material ( ), an intermediate layer ( ), and an oxide superconducting thin film ( ). The base material ( ) being long and flexible has a cross-section in a circular or a regular polygonal form perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the same. The periphery of the base material ( ) is covered with an intermediate layer ( ) and the periphery of the same is covered with an oxide superconducting thin film ( ). The oxide superconducting thin film ( ) has a portion in which a crystal orientation is three-axes aligned continuing in the longitudinal direction of the element wire ( ).

Oxide superconducting conductor with intermediate layer having aligned crystal orientation

A method of producing a Bi&mdash;Pb&mdash;Sr&mdash;Ca&mdash;Cu oxide superconductor by thermally treating raw material comprises steps of performing first plastic deformation on the raw material, performing first heat treatment on the material being subjected to the first plastic deformation, performing second plastic deformation on the material being subjected to the first heat treatment, and performing second heat treatment on the material being subjected to the second plastic deformation.

Method of producing oxide superconductor

A method of producing a Bi-Pb-Sr-Ca-Cu oxide superconductor by thermally treating raw material comprises steps of performing first plastic deformation on the raw material, performing first heat treatment on the material being subjected to the first plastic deformation, performing second plastic deformation on the material being subjected to the first heat treatment, and performing second heat treatment on the material being subjected to the second plastic deformation.

A ceramic oxide superconductive composite material comprising a ceramic oxide superconductor and a non-superconductive material comprising at least one element which does not react with any of the elements of the ceramic oxide superconductor has improved superconductive properties such as a higher critical temperature and a larger critical current density.

Ceramic oxide superconductive composite material

A heat-resistance galvanized iron alloy wire is disclosed. The wire is comprised of an iron alloy wire core which may be an Fe-Ni type alloy. The core is coated on its periphery with a Zn-Al alloy. The alloy is comprised of 0.2 to 14 wt % Al with the balance being Zn. The Zn-Al alloy may contain small amounts of typical impurities or compounds included in order to prevent the oxidation of the Zn or Al. The resulting wire has excellent heat-resistant properties.

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Osaka, Japan

Ken-ichi Sato