Method of forming BSCCO superconducting composite articles

US6069116A · kind A · utility

Assignee

• American Superconductor Corporation · US

Inventors

• Qi Li · Mountain View, US
• Gilbert N. Riley, Jr. · Marlborough, US
• Lawrence J. Masur · Needham, US
• Eric R. Podtburg · Natick, US
• Ronald D. Parrella · Shrewsbury, US
• Martin W. Rupich · Framingham, US
• Donald R. Parker · Randolph, US
• William L. Carter · Chelmsford, US
• William J. Rosati · Milford, US
• Mark D. Teplitsky · Westborough, US

Key dates

• Filing date: Sep 10, 1997
• Grant date: May 30, 2000
• Expiry date: Sep 10, 2017

Classification

• Technology area (CPC Y): Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
• CPC primary: Y10T29/49014

Abstract

A novel process of the production and processing of high quality, high T.sub.c BSCCO or (Bi,Pb)SCCO superconductors starts with fabrication of a forming a bundle including a plurality of billets, each billet containing at least one filament comprising a dominant amount of an tetragonal BSCCO phase with selected intermediate phases, and substantially surrounded by a constraining metal. The bundle is thermomechanically consolidated to form a multifilamentary precursor article by applying pressure and heat to the bundle under conditions cooperatively selected to cause interdiffusion of said constraining metal at the interfaces between said metal and said filaments and substantially complete elimination of voids in said bundle, and the consolidation step is completed before any high strain longitudinal deformation is performed on the bundle. The precursor article is then heated at a second selected processing temperature in an inert atmosphere with a second selected oxygen partial pressure for a second selected time period, the second processing temperature, the second time period and the second oxygen partial pressure being cooperatively selected to form a dominant amount of an orthor…