Study on Magnetomotive Force Control of Superconducting Maglev Vehicle with Onboard REBCO HTS Magnets

Onboard REBCO (rare-earth barium copper oxide) HTS (high temperature superconducting) magnets for SC (superconducting) Maglev vehicles are being developed, that do not require refrigerants such as liquid helium. Their simplified refrigeration system results in reduced vehicle weight and makes it possible to reduce the gap between the SC magnets and guideway coils. HTS magnets are designed to operate with constant current leading by an excitation power source. By using the power source, magnetomotive force of SCMs (superconducting magnets) can be controlled. This paper describes effects of magnetomotive force control of HTS magnets on the SC Maglev vehicle system in terms of rating and efficiency of the Maglev LSM (linear synchronous motor). Using onboard REBCO HTS magnets with magnetomotive force control, the efficiency of the SC Maglev vehicle system can be increased with the same rating of the system.