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A Reliable Method for Recycling ( RE )‐Ba‐Cu‐O ( RE : Sm, Gd, Y) Bulk Superconductors
Author(s) -
Shi Yunhua,
Namburi Devendra Kumar,
Wang Miao,
Durrell John,
Dennis Anthony,
Cardwell David
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
journal of the american ceramic society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.9
H-Index - 196
eISSN - 1551-2916
pISSN - 0002-7820
DOI - 10.1111/jace.13683
Subject(s) - raw material , superconductivity , materials science , grinding , microstructure , yield (engineering) , phase (matter) , grain size , single phase , metallurgy , analytical chemistry (journal) , chemical engineering , chemistry , chromatography , electrical engineering , physics , condensed matter physics , engineering , organic chemistry
Single grain (RE)‐Ba‐Cu‐O (RE: Sm, Gd, Y) high‐temperature superconductors are able to generate high magnetic fields. However, the relatively high cost of the raw materials and the low yield of the manufacturing process have impeded the development of practical applications of these materials to date. This article describes a simple, reliable, and economical method of recycling failed bulk (RE)‐Ba‐Cu‐O (RE: Sm, Gd, Y) samples. Sixty‐four failed bulk samples, with diameters up to 31 mm, were recycled with a yield of 90%. The key innovation in this recycling process involves reintroducing the liquid phase into the melt process, which is normally lost during the primary peritectic processing of these materials. This enables the direct re‐growth of failed samples from solid form without the need for re‐grinding into powder. We also demonstrate that the superconducting performance and microstructure of the recycled samples is similar to that of the primary grown samples.