Study on Low-Loss and High-Energy Density Coil Structure of a Wireless Power Transmission System Using High Temperature Superconducting Coils for Railway Vehicle

We have been investigating a wireless power transmission (WPT) system using a high-temperature superconducting (HTS) coil for a railway vehicle. In the previous research, we investigated the conceptual design of the WPT system using the HTS coils for the railway vehicle. However, in order to suppress the AC loss per HTS coil below the cooling power of a cryocooler, it was necessary to install multiple HTS coils in parallel on the vehicle and ground sides. Therefore, we investigated the low-loss and high-energy density coil structure in the WPT system for the railway vehicle. In this study, we analyzed the AC loss and the coupling coefficient of various HTS coil structures using the narrow REBaCuO (RE: Rare Earth elements, REBCO) wires in parallel by finite element method (FEM) calculation, and evaluated the power transmission characteristics of the WPT system using the HTS coil structures using the narrow REBCO wires in parallel for the railway vehicle. As a result, we found that the AC loss of the HTS coil structure using the narrow REBCO wires in parallel was lower than that using the wide REBCO wire. The coupling coefficient between coils using a single pancake coil structure was higher than that using a double pancake coil structure. Also, the receiving power density of the WPT system was improved by the HTS coil structures using the narrow REBCO wires. Particularly, the receiving power density of the single pancake coil using the twisted narrow wire in parallel in the coil radial direction increased to about 1.5 times that of the single pancake coil using the wide wire.

Automated summary

This study investigates a wireless power transmission system for railway vehicles using narrow REBCO wires in high-temperature superconducting coils. The research finds that the use of narrow wires in the coil structures leads to lower AC loss, higher coupling coefficient, and improved receiving power density of the wireless power transmission system.