Technology
A common design of a SMES installation would consist of a coil of superconducting wire buried underground, with power conditioning equipment connecting the coil to the electricity distribution grid.
Application
In principal there is no reason why SMES couldn't be used on a very small scale in place of conventional batteries. In practice the relatively low energy density possible, exacting cooling requirements, and high cost, mean that near-term applications are likely to be limited to power grid applications.
Problems
Size - To achieve commercially useful levels of storage, around 1,000 MWh, a SMES installation would need a loop of around 100 miles. This is traditionally pictured as a circle, though in practice it could be more like a rounded rectangle. In either case it would require access to a significant amount of land to house the installation, and to contain the health effects noted below.
Manufacturing
Critical current
Critical Magnetic Field
Health effects
Future
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