Researchers from the University of Glasgow are lending their expertise to a new European project which is setting out to advance the role of superconducting cable in the continent’s transition to clean energy.
Principal investigator Dr Mohammad Yazdani-Asrami and co-investigator Dr Wenjuan Song, of the James Watt School of Engineering, will lead the University’s contribution to the Life Cycle Centre for Power CABLE diagnosis project (CABLEGNOSIS).
CABLEGNOSIS, which is supported by €6m (£5m) in new funding from the European Commission’s HORIZON Research and Innovation Action, brings together 17 partners from 5 countries to help Europe achieve its net-zero targets by 2050 in power and energy sector.
Picture courtesy of ASG Superconductors – 1GW superconducting cable for the transport of energy without dispersion and with reduced ecological footprint, IRIS project – INFN
The European Union’s goals for the clean energy transition aim for at least a 55% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. To meet these objectives, electricity grids need to adapt to a context of 50% of electricity production from renewable energy sources of all scales by 2030.
The huge rise in the share of solar photovoltaic and wind technologies in total generation is fundamentally reshaping the European power system, which will need to be supported by new cable connections for high-voltage direct current and heating, ventilating and air conditioning systems.
These will have a crucial role for the electricity grid to host massive capacity of renewables, link islands or offshore wind parks to mainland or to connect countries over long distances.
The CABLEGNOSIS project aims to deliver innovative cable technologies that will play a key role in supporting the EU’s clean energy transition, by addressing the 2050 targets.
CABLEGNOSIS will focus on the development of advanced insulation and conductor design technologies, high-performance and environmentally friendly cable insulation materials, and aging studies of conventional and superconducting cables. Additionally, the project will explore recyclability technologies for power cable materials and introduce Al-based tools for pre-fault condition monitoring, aging analysis, and remote diagnostics.
The University of Glasgow will support the project’s aims by developing predictive maintenance models for superconducting cables, which require cooling to extremely low temperatures of around minus 250 degrees Celsius in order to transmit electricity with virtually no resistance.
The researchers will develop AI-based models to study how the cables, made from an advanced superconducting material called magnesium diboride (MgB2), will age during long-term exposure to hydrogen gas.
Their models will be tested and validated in specially-designed laboratory tests, where they will be aged in a hydrogen cryostat – a piece of equipment which mimics the low temperatures they will be exposed to in the real world.
Their results will help guide the future process of estimating the health of superconducting cables, allowing power providers to predict when maintenance might be needed and minimise maintenance cost as well as downtime across the grid.
Dr Yazdani-Asrami said: “The James Watt School of Engineering is uniquely well-placed to contribute to this aspect of the development of AI-based models for superconducting cables in CABLEGNOSIS, which is one of the world’s biggest projects in superconducting cable research.
“Understanding how these cables age is crucial for their practical implementation, but we don’t know for sure yet how MgB2 and high temperature superconductors will be affected by long-term exposure to hydrogen at low temperatures. However, we do know that if a superconducting cable’s performance degrades significantly after life cycles, it could mean replacing infrastructure years earlier than planned, leading to increased costs and potential disruption to power supplies.
“Our research will help energy providers better predict when maintenance is needed, making these systems more reliable and cost-effective. The models we develop will shed new light on the aging mechanism in the superconducting cable. Ultimately, this will accelerate the development of life estimation tools which will create substantial impact in the future design and operation of superconducting cables in a wide range of energy applications.”
Dr Song said: “This research will be an important part of the work across the CABLEGNOSIS consortium, but it has implications beyond just power transmission. The techniques and models we’re developing could help inform how similar technology might be used in other sectors, from the development of electric aircraft to fusion energy reactors, both of which will rely on superconducting cables and technology too. Getting this correct now is essential to boost the transition to net-zero energy target across the Scotland, the UK and Europe.”
The project is the latest development in the University of Glasgow’s broad base of net-zero research, which includes multidisciplinary projects at the Glasgow Centre for Sustainable Solutions and the Glasgow Centre for Sustainable Energy.
The University, which has pledged to reach net-zero emissions by 2030, is ranked in the world top 20 for sustainability by the QS Worlds Sustainability Rankings, and 12th in the world by the THE Impact Rankings.