Construction and testing of a 1000 hp high-temperature superconducting motor

An air-core, synchronous motor with a high temperature superconducting field winding has been successfully constructed and tested. The motor features a salient-pole superconducting field winding that operates at a nominal temperature of 30 K. A closed-loop (reverse Brayton cycle) cryogenic refrigeration system is used for initial cooldown and normal operation. Designed for 1,000 hp, this motor was demonstrated at 1,600 hp during operation at its rated speed of 1,800 RPM. This work summarizes the design objectives and requirements, technical challenges, data acquisition techniques and testing results.