Abstract
1. State of the art In the framework of the European effort to expand the Renewable Energy capacity and to push towards a new meshed-grid approach to the grid infrastructure (“Supergrid”), the introduction of superconducting (SC) cables is considered a credible alternative to overhead power transmission. DC superconducting transmission lines have been implemented on small-scale pilot projects in China, Japan, Russia, Europe and South Korea. Besides reducing the environmental impact, they have resulted in reduced cable losses compared to the HVDC and HVAC copper cables, where losses can achieve up to 10% of the transmitted power. Hydrogen (H2), from the other side, is expected to become a game changer in the energy transition, especially for decarbonization of hard-to-abate end-use sectors (as a substitute for natural gas, NG) and for storage of renewable electricity. The Airbus company, for instance, has recently announced that the first airplane prototype fuelled by H2 only is expected by 2026. At policy level, the European Union aims at increasing the H2 share in the energy mix from the current 2% up to 14% in 2050. The possibility to couple the transmission of chemical energy in the form of liquid H2 (LH2) or liquid fuel (such as LNG) to the transmission of electrical energy in a “SC Energy Pipeline” (SCEP), or “Supercable” or “Hybrid energy transfer pipe” is not new in the field of electrical engineering and applied superconductivity. The MgB2 material seems the most suited for the LH2 cooling, given that its critical temperature is 38 K, while the H2 liquid-gas saturation temperature at ambient pressure is 20 K. Therefore, a SC cable based on MgB2 can be conveniently cooled by a flow of LH2. Several possible MgB2 cable configurations have been proposed in the literature. 1) Two SC layers separated by a high voltage insulatio. In each layer, 6 MgB2 tapes are divided by flattened copper strands. 2) In a completely different configuration tested at CERN (Geneva, Switzerland) in a helium gas flow, round strands are twisted around a copper core and wound in a rope-type cable. This cable was used to manufacture and test the 100-m-long SC links with currents up to 18 kA. 3) A similar cable architecture was also studied in the framework of the European BestPaths project, a project led by Nexans in conjunction with other industrial partners, including Columbus Superconductors, and CERN. A 30-m-long demonstration cable was tested with its termination and cooling system under high voltage and in realistic scenarios. Italy is the fourth largest energy-consumer in Europe, with a strong dependence on oil and NG (importing more than 90% of them), with also a considerable contribution of renewable energy. In the perspective of the decarbonization of the economy, with an eye on the increase of energy security, also in view of the recent events related to the possible unavailability of Russian oil and gas providers, energy system models have become crucial to assess the effectiveness of possible energy policies in pursuing the declared environmental objectives. Typically bottom-up Energy System Optimization Models (ESOM)) are used to conveniently examine the development of the energy systems based on the extensive techno-economic description of a wide variety of technologies spanning from the upstream and power sector to the end-use sectors. Note that many of the technologies in the iron and steel, non-ferrous materials and non-metallic minerals use both electricity and NG as input commodities and, as such, are the ideal candidates to benefit from the introduction of a SCEP in the industrial system, also in the perspective of reducing the national dependence form NG import. Typically, the engineering aspect of designing, developing or optimizing new technologies, such as the SCEP, when the Technology Readiness Level is still 2-3, does not come together with an assessment of its pos
Project details
Unibo Team Leader: Marco Breschi
Unibo involved Department/s:
Dipartimento di Ingegneria dell'Energia Elettrica e dell'Informazione "Guglielmo Marconi"
Coordinator:
Politecnico di TORINO(Italy)
Total Unibo Contribution: Euro (EUR) 80.341,00
Project Duration in months: 24
Start Date:
28/09/2023
End Date:
28/02/2026
