Energizing behaviors of a no-insulation and layer-wound REBCO coil in high magnetic field

•A small REBCO coil was designed and tested using SuperPower SCS4050 REBCO coated conductor.•The electromagnetic and no-insulation behaviors of the REBCO coil were investigated.•The REBCO coil was tested in a 31.5 T background field, leading to a high field of 32.5 T.•Two types of major mechanical damages in the REBCO coated conductor were found: peeling and bucking. REBCO coated conductor has been regarded as one of the most viable high-temperature superconductor (HTS) options for next-generation high field magnets, mainly owing to its large in-field current carrying capacity and higher mechanical strength. To explore REBCO coil technology, a small-scale REBCO coil was designed, fabricated and tested. The REBCO coil has a winding inner diameter of 15 mm, outer diameter of 29 mm and length of 38 mm using layer-wound and no-insulation technology. The REBCO coil was tested in a 31.5 T background field, leading to a high field of 32.5 T. The no-insulation behaviors of the REBCO coil, including the charging delay and magnet constant, were investigated at 77 K and 4.2 K respectively. With the magnetic load from the high fields, we found the REBCO coil was mechanically damaged after the experiments, being two major patterns: peeling and bucking.