Mechanical behavior of strands in CIC conductor analyzed by Monte Carlo method

The computer simulation of mechanical behavior of strands in a cable-in-conduit (CIC) conductor analyzed by Monte Carlo method has been carried out for analyzing the stability of the CIC conductor. In the CIC conductor, the mechanical behavior of strands during energizing has not been evaluated sufficiently and hence the quantitative evaluation of the frictional heating, the contact stress between strands and the coupling losses that determine the stability of a CIC conductor hare not been clarified. A CIC conductor with 38% of void fraction were constructed in a computer by compressing the cable. In the Monte Carlo method, the position of strands which mere divided into mesh were changed to minimize the potential energy. It could simulate the strand motion induced by the Lorentz force and the change of the contact stress distribution between strands. The method developed in this work is also used to calculate the load-displacement curve of the cables and the position of strands. By using the method, it would be possible to estimate the stability of a CIC conductor.