Southwire Providing Superconductor Cable For Consolidated Edison Project In NYC

Carrollton, GA - Southwire Company announced recently it will assist in the development, testing and production of a new high temperature superconductor (HTS) cable capable of suppressing power surges, helping to make power grids more resilient.

Southwire and joint venture partner nkt cables will work with American Superconductor Corporation to develop the new cable as part of a U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) initiative to protect the nation's power systems with "Secure Super Grids." The cable will allow Consolidated Edison (ConEd), one of the nation's largest energy companies, to build a more reliable and secure power system in New York City.

Through the new design, Southwire will participate in the integration of fault-current-limiting capabilities with the proven ability of its HTS Triax superconducting cable to provide more power to more people. This cable will be powered by AMSC's HTS wire known as 344 superconductors and incorporate design characteristics of Southwire's patented HTS Triax design.

"Superconducting cables have the potential to increase efficiencies in the delivery of electricity in much the same way that an expressway handles more traffic than a small city street," said Stuart Thorn, president and CEO of Southwire. "We are proud that ConEd and AMSC have chosen our unique HTS Triax design as the basis for this new cable, and we are excited to have a role in creating more secure and efficient power delivery systems for our nation."

Southwire's HTS Triax cable places the three necessary phase conductors concentrically around a common, central core. This more compact design cuts the amount of HTS wire used in half. In addition, the design reduces the cold surface area, leading to lower critical cooling requirements. Both of these elements drive down the cost of superconducting cables.

By incorporating this design into the new cable, Southwire is building upon more than 10 years of collaborative research and development with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). With funding from DOE's Superconductivity Partnership with Industry Program, researchers from Southwire and Oak Ridge National Laboratory have made significant technical achievements, including the design and testing of cable splices and terminations. The team successfully developed, installed and operated two HTS systems – one that powered three plants at Southwire's headquarters in Carrollton, Ga., and another that provides electricity to the power grid of a substation in suburban Columbus, Ohio.

"Together, we have taken superconducting cables from theory to reality," said David Lindsay, Southwire's HTS business manager. "We are excited to work with DHS and ConEd to build on that success through AMSC's Secure Super Grid technology."

"We are thrilled that New York City will be home to the world's first Secure Super Grid system," said Greg Yurek, founder and chief executive officer of AMSC. "Given our recent work together on the highly successful Columbus, Ohio, HTS cable project, Southwire Company was the logical choice for this program. We believe our proprietary surge-suppressing technology can be easily incorporated into Southwire's HTS Triax cable design and look forward to moving quickly on the Department of Homeland Security's Secure Super Grid project."

As Southwire manufactures the first surge-suppressing cable, it also continues parallel work with the Department of Energy and Oak Ridge National Laboratory to improve its HTS cable design, pushing for longer cable lengths, higher capacities, greater voltages and practical applications.

"As the nation's power system grows even more congested, the ability of superconductors to continuously deliver more power to more people becomes crucial to ensuring a continuous flow of electricity," Thorn said. "In addition, power systems will require greater levels of protection against electrical surges. To meet these challenges, partners like Southwire, AMSC, ConEd and the Department of Homeland Security are using the latest technological advances to provide solutions. That is the true spirit of collaboration."

SOURCE: Southwire Company