Superconductivity & Particle AcceleratorS 2026

Conductor on Round Core (CORC) cable, made from High-Temperature Superconducting (HTS) ReBCO tapes, is one of the leading candidate for nuclear fusion applications due to its high critical current density, high critical magnetic field, and ease of manufacturing [1]. However, its electrical performance is critically dependent on the mechanical integrity of the ReBCO layer, which must remain below 0.45% tensile strain to prevent degradation of the critical current [2].
In this study, a 3D finite element method (FEM) model is developed using ABAQUS software to simulate the process of winding of a single HTS tape around a round core. The model explicitly accounts for the multilayer structure of the tape, comprising the Hastelloy substrate, copper, and ReBCO layers. A parametric analysis investigates the influence of key parameters - angle, winding tension, core radius and geometry (round core, spiral tube), tape width - on the mechanical behavior of the tape. The results highlight the strain distribution in the ReBCO layer as well as the contact stress at the tape-core interface. The results will then be used in future studies to analyze the deformation of the ReBCO layer during tensile, bending and compression tests of CORC and Highly-Flexible Round Core (HFRC) cables.
[1] Van der Laan et al., Superconductor Science and Technology 37 (2024)
[2] Osamura et al., Superconductor Science and Technology 22 (2009)