Analysis of superconducting electric machines for naval ship propulsion.

Abstract

A proposed ship propulsion system which incorporates superconducting electric machines as the transmission system between the prime mover and the propeller is described. The propulsion system employs gas turbine prime movers, synchronous generators and synchronous motors with superconducting field windings, switch gear with a cycloconverter, variable frequency, power controller between the generators and the motors. The proposed system in the DD963 destroyer, which has a gas turbine propulsion system driving controllable pitch propellers through reduction gears. The resulting ship is compared with the original on the basis of weight and volume. A smaller ship with an identical payload but a smaller propulsion system is constructed to take advantage of the weight and volume savings which are a result of using superconducting electric machinery. The smaller ship is compared with the original DD963 on the basis of weight, volume, efficiency and cost ceiling for the superconducting electric propulsion system.