An open-source 2D finite difference based transient electro-thermal simulation model for three-phase concentric superconducting power cables

Advances in superconductor technology make the prospect of economical operation of high temperature superconducting (HTS) power cables a practical concept for grid applications in urban centers. With more advanced cable designs being developed and commercialized, their geometrical features and dynamic behavior are becoming increasingly complicated to be modeled. This brings new challenges as the complex structure of HTS power cables significantly increases the computation power needed to perform simulations. In this paper we develop a two-dimensional open source simulation code based on the finite difference method which is solved by means of the alternating direction implicit routine. The algorithm has been written in MatLab programming language. The method improves computational performance and simulation time. In addition, this enables the creation of open-source simulation codes. A three-phase concentric HTS cable design has been chosen for the development of the code, nevertheless the model can be employed for any cable design. The results indicate an efficient, stable and powerful simulation code. During the development no numerical instabilities have been found. Besides that, the model is able to deliver quantities that are experimentally difficult to access. Simulation files are available for the scientific community on the HTS Modeling Workgroup webpage.(1)