Research and development of superconducting magnetic systems for high power pulsed MHD-generators

Superconducting Magnetic Systems (SMS) of various configurations aimed at generation of magnetic fields up to 5 T induction in the operating volume of pulsed propellant MHD generators with up to 10 MW power and higher have been developed and built in TRINITI for gaining experience in design, optimization and technology of manufacturing. Possibilities of their weight - dimension characteristic optimization have been also presented. The main efforts were made to look for optimal decisions at the choice of a winding shape, operation current density and mechanical structure design. The conducted experimental investigations of SMS as a part of MHD setups have confirmed their reliability and agreement between their calculated and operation parameters. Further improvement of SMS aimed at upgrading their reliability and simplifying their maintenance is being considered. Light 20 - 50 MW MHD generators with superconducting magnetic systems are the most promising in the aerospace industry. The applicablity of these SMS for other purposes have been studied.