LOW-COST COMPOSITE STRUCTURES FOR SUPERCONDUCTING MAGNETIC ENERGY-STORAGE SYSTEMS

As part of the Superconducting Magnetic Energy Storage/Engineering Tes t Model (SMES-ETM) program, design, analysis, fabrication and test pro grams were conducted to evaluate the low cost manufacturing of Fibergl ass Reinforced Plastic (FRP) beams for usage as major components of th e structural and electrical insulation systems. These studies utilized pultrusion process technologies and vinylester resins to produce larg e net sections at costs significantly below that of conventional mater ials. Demonstration articles incorporating laminate architectures and design details representative of SMES-ETM components were fabricated u sing the pultrusion process and epoxy, vinylester, and polyester resin systems. The mechanical and thermal properties of these articles were measured over the temperature range from 4 K to 300 K. The results of these tests showed that the pultruded, vinylester components have pro perties comparable to those of currently used materials, such as G-10, and are capable of meeting the design requirements for the SMES-ETM s ystem.