The Environmental and Energy Study Institute sponsored a Congressional briefing on Superconductivity featuring industry leaders and the U.S. Department of Energy to talk about the latest developments in electric power applications of high-temperature superconductivity (HTS), and how public-private partnerships are helping to move these new technologies toward the commercial marketplace. High-temperature superconductivity technologies are critical to solving transmission bottlenecks, system gridlock, and power reliability. As Congress debates energy policy and solutions to the nation’s energy challenges, this briefing outlines HTS power applications, their costs and benefits, and the potential for HTS in solving existing energy sector problems. In fact, Congressman Eliot Engel (D-NY) is introducing an amendment on superconducting power cables to H.R. 4, the House energy bill. Congressman Zach Wamp (R-TN), co-chair of the House Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Caucus, will provide opening remarks.

Superconductivity is the ability of certain materials to conduct electrical current with no resistance and extremely low losses. Advocates of superconductivity claim that once implemented in our nation’s electricity infrastructure, HTS power applications will generate and transmit electricity in a clean and highly reliable manner, with the potential to create an electric superhighway without bottlenecks or system gridlock. Proponents believe this power technology will conserve energy dramatically, help protect the environment and save tremendous amounts of money due to reduced energy losses. Over seven percent of energy generated is lost in transmission due to heat losses and inefficiency, and superconductivity could reduce this loss by 50 percent. Industry sources project that once available in the market, the cost of superconducting power applications will drop dramatically and realize cost savings within 2-4 years.

HTS power applications include cables, transformers, motors, generators, and other power technologies. HTS power cables can carry three to five times more power than conventional cables while using the same amount of space. In addition, HTS cables can be used underground in areas where more power is needed but space for additional lines is not available. HTS power transformers are more efficient, smaller, lighter, and do not require cooling oil, which eliminates fire and environmental hazards and allows them to operate almost anywhere. When compared to conventional motors, HTS motors are smaller, lighter and 50 percent more efficient, as well as being lower in life cycle costs. According to Rockwell Automation, HTS motors could save more than $300 million annually from efficiency savings and environmental emissions could be reduced significantly (42,000 tons of SO2, 25,000 tons of NOx, and 8,000,000 tons of CO2).

The Superconductivity Partnership Initiative (SPI) is a cost-shared, collaborative effort of private industry and the federal government. A number of pilot projects, led by teams of industry and national laboratory representatives, have been field-tested at various locations in the United States, and these projects have demonstrated the enormous potential of high-temperature superconductivity. The expert panel, who will discuss their HTS projects and involvement with SPI, includes:

• Robert Dixon, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Office of Power Technologies, U.S. Department of Energy
 
• David Lindsay, Development Engineer, Southwire Company. The Southwire Company became the world’s first company to provide electricity utilizing high-temperature superconductivity for an industrial use. They installed three 100-foot HTS power cables in February 2000, which provide power to two of Southwire’s plants and its machinery division. Headquartered in Carollton, Georgia and with annual sales of $1.7 billion, Southwire Company is one of the world's leading wire and cable manufacturers.
 
• Jon E. Jipping, Principal Engineer, Power Delivery Planning, Detroit Edison. Detroit Edison will ribbon-cut a project this fall, in which three HTS power cables will be installed at their Frisbie Substation, one of the oldest locations on the Detroit Edison system. The HTS cables weigh about 1,000 pounds and will replace nine conventional copper cables, which weigh about 20,000 pounds. Detroit Edison is the nation's seventh-largest electric utility, and serves more than 2 million customers in Southeastern Michigan.
 
• Shirish Mehta, Vice President of Technology and Development, Waukesha Electric Systems. Waukesha Electric Systems is constructing an HTS power transformer, which will be installed on the Wisconsin Electric Power utility grid next year. Waukesha Electric Systems is a leading producer of medium and large-size power transformers, and is based in Waukesha, Wisconsin, with power-transformer-manufacturing plants in Waukesha, Wisconsin; Goldsboro, North Carolina; and Milpitas, California.
 
• David Driscoll, Research Manager of the Superconducting Motor Lab, Rockwell Automation. Rockwell Automation has demonstrated a 200 horsepower (hp) HTS motor and a 1,000 hp HTS motor and is working to develop a 5,000 hp HTS motor. Rockwell Automation, a $4.3 billion company headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, employs approximately 25,000 people at more than 450 locations in more than 80 countries, and is a world-leading provider of industrial automation power, control and information solutions. The Superconducting Motor Lab for Rockwell Automation is in Euclid, Ohio.
 
• John Howe, Vice President, Electric Industry Affairs, American Superconductor. American Superconductor recently demonstrated a 5,000 horsepower HTS motor and is a partner with Detroit Edison’s HTS cable project. American Superconductor, founded in 1987 and headquartered in Westborough, Massachusetts, is a leader in developing technologies and manufacturing products utilizing superconductor wire and solid-state power electronic switches for electric power applications, such as power cables, motors and generators.