Analysis of Levitation Characteristics of a Radial-Type High-Temperature Superconducting Bearing Based on Numerical Simulation

A two-dimensional (2D) axisymmetric finite-element model was proposed to simulate the levitation characteristics of a radial-type high-temperature superconducting (HTS) bearing. The E-J power law together with an H-formulation was used to consider the superconducting state. The numerical model was successfully implemented using a FORTRAN program. A comparison of the experimental results with the simulation was given to validate the model. It shows that they have good agreement. The electromagnetic behavior inside the HTS bulks was also analyzed. The model presented in this paper can be used to optimize the design of a radial-type HTS bearing.