The content described in this article is based on official and reliable sources, which are repeated at the end of this article.
Preface
Recently, a news about "VEIR, a company founded by MIT alumni in the United States, has developed superconducting transmission technology", which has caused a lot of shock in China.
Some media even claimed that the United States relied on this technology to "overtake in corners" in the field of power transmission, surpassing China's UHV transmission in one fell swoop.
Before this, China was a well-deserved leader in the field of ultra-high voltage transmission, with an absolute leading advantage in the world, and what about the technical parameters and actual performance of this American company that claims to "overtake"? Do we really have to worry that the strong strength accumulated by the State Grid over the years will be easily surpassed by a startup?
American start-ups play "low-temperature superconductivity"
In the wave of technological innovation, VEIR, a little-known American start-up, has recently attracted a lot of attention for a technology that sounds a little "deviant".
The company, founded by MIT alumni, claims to have developed a superconducting power transmission technology that it claims can increase power transmission capacity by as much as 5 to 10 times.
It's surprising to say that it's not easy to make such a leap forward in power transmission, but how exactly does VEIR's technology come about?
It turns out that they used a physical principle called "low-temperature superconductivity", and by "cooling" the superconducting material and cooling it to an extremely low temperature, the resistance to the flow of electrons in the material can be reduced to almost zero, thereby greatly improving the efficiency of power transmission.
The refrigeration medium used by VEIR is the common "liquid nitrogen" on everyone's dining table.
Liquid nitrogen, as anyone who has studied a little chemistry, knows that it is the liquid form of nitrogen, and its boiling point is extremely low, only minus 196 degrees Celsius.
When a superconducting material is immersed in liquid nitrogen, the temperature of the material drops rapidly, and the resistance drops to a very low level, which is the secret of VEIR's technology.
According to reports, the superconducting cable developed by VEIR company is continuously cooled by liquid nitrogen at room temperature, so that the cable is always in a superconducting state, and this design cleverly avoids the limitation that superconducting materials must work at extremely low temperatures, so that superconducting power transmission is expected to be applied in practical engineering.
According to VEIR, their superconducting cable system, which can initially achieve a transmission capacity of 400 megawatts at a voltage level of 69 kilovolts, is expected to be further increased to several gigawatts in the future.
If all this can be realized, it will undoubtedly be a revolutionary leap forward in transmission technology, after all, the capacity of conventional transmission lines is very limited, while the potential of superconducting technology is almost unlimited.
Therefore, as soon as this news came out, it immediately caused great repercussions in the industry, and some media even issued an exclamation of "the United States superconducting transmission achieves corner overtaking", as if VEIR's technology has surpassed China's leading edge in the field of UHV transmission.
There are even bold predictions that with the help of superconducting technology, the United States is expected to surpass China in power grid construction and regain the crown of the global power power.
However, are things really as simple as the outside world thinks?
seems to be a beautiful idea, but how many "greasy" are behind it?
Behind the blueprint of VEIR, people seem to see the promise of superconducting power transmission technology.
However, when the dazzling technical halo fades and the project is examined more closely, one can't help but ask: is there some unknown "cattiness" behind this seemingly perfect idea?
First, let's take a look at VEIR's technology path.
They claim to use liquid nitrogen to "cool down" superconducting materials, allowing for zero-resistance power transmission. There is nothing wrong with this idea, as low-temperature superconductivity has been around in physics for a long time.
But the problem is that in order to maintain the superconducting state, liquid nitrogen must be continuously evaporated, taking away the heat of the material, and the evaporated nitrogen needs to be re-liquefied through special equipment, how much energy is consumed in this cycle?
VEIR said nothing about it.
You know, the original intention of superconducting transmission research is to reduce the loss of electrical energy in the transmission process, if in order to maintain superconductivity, but to consume a lot of energy, then wouldn't it be upside down?
What's more, the preparation and storage of liquid nitrogen is not an easy task, and the production of industrial-grade liquid nitrogen requires huge refrigeration equipment and sophisticated control systems, and the cost is not low, and these hidden costs are probably not included in VEIR's budget.
Second, there are some doubts about VEIR's optimistic outlook for the technology landscape.
According to the information it disclosed, their superconducting cables have been able to achieve a transmission capacity of 400 megawatts in an experimental environment, but the ideal conditions in the laboratory are often very different from the complex environment of practical engineering applications.
Can superconducting cables operate stably in the field? Can it withstand the test of wind and sun, ice and snow and lightning strikes? I am afraid that no one can give a positive answer to these questions.
What's more, VEIR's predictions for future technological developments are also doubtful.
They vowed that in the future superconducting cables could easily transmit thousands of megawatts of power, but such a claim seems overly optimistic.
It is important to know that it is not easy to increase the transmission capacity, and a series of problems such as insulation, heat dissipation, and mechanical strength of the equipment need to be solved simultaneously.
These key technologies often require years of engineering practice to accumulate and verify, and it is doubtful how a startup can solve these problems in a short period of time.
In addition, VEIR's business model cannot be ignored, as a start-up, they urgently need the attention of the capital market and the public, and exaggerating the advantages of technology and making good promises for the future is undoubtedly a common trick to attract attention.
They are keen to render the concept of "corner overtaking", and seem to be bent on crushing competitors in public opinion, but on the road of technological development, the real winner and loser are often not obtained by the right to speak, blindly pursuing the current economy, and ignoring the solid R & D accumulation, which is tantamount to sacrificing the basics.
Based on the above analysis, it is not difficult to see that although VEIR has made some progress in the field of superconducting power transmission, there are still many questions about whether its technical path is economically feasible and how much room for future development there is.
So, what should we think about VEIR's superconducting technology? Does it really represent the future of transmission technology? In contrast, can China's leading position in the field of UHV transmission be maintained?
China's UHV: the real "Big Mac"!
When we look away from VEIR's superconducting technology and focus on China's ultra-high voltage power transmission sector, a real "Big Mac" comes into view.
Compared with the technology of American companies, China's superiority in the field of UHV transmission is almost like a comparison between a giant and a dwarf.
China has always been the world's largest producer and consumer of electricity, while major energy sources such as coal and hydropower are unevenly distributed, mostly concentrated in the northern and western regions.
How to efficiently and economically deliver electricity to the load centers on the eastern coast has always been a major issue for China's power industry.
In order to solve this problem, China began to research ultra-high voltage transmission technology in the 50s of the last century.
Through the unremitting efforts of several generations of researchers, China's UHV transmission technology has made great progress.
At present, China has built a number of world-leading UHV transmission projects, which have attracted the attention of the world because of their large scale and high technical level.
Taking the "West-to-East Power Transmission" project as an example, this UHVDC transmission line with a total length of more than 2,000 kilometers starts from Kunming, Yunnan Province and ends in Guangzhou, Guangdong.
It adopts the world's most advanced ± 800 kV DC transmission technology, with a rated transmission capacity of up to 8 million kilowatts, which is equivalent to the power generation of 6 large nuclear power units.
What's even more amazing is that the loss rate of this transmission line is only about 7%, which is much lower than the level of conventional transmission lines.
In addition to the "west-to-east power transmission", China has also built a large number of ultra-high voltage AC transmission projects, which generally use the ultra-high voltage level of 1,000 kV, and the transmission capacity of a single circuit line can reach more than 5 million kilowatts, and the maximum transmission distance is more than 1,000 kilometers.
Compared with conventional high-voltage transmission, UHV AC can reduce line losses by more than 30%, greatly improving transmission efficiency.
The leading position of China's UHV technology is not only reflected in the scale of the project and technical indicators, but also in the fact that it has formed a complete industrial chain and standard system.
From design, manufacturing, construction, operation and maintenance, Chinese enterprises have mastered all the core technologies of UHV transmission.
In the manufacturing of transformers, transformers, insulators, wires and other key equipment, Chinese companies have also occupied a significant share of the global market.
At the same time, China has also led the formulation of a number of international standards in the field of ultra-high voltage transmission, becoming a veritable "leader" in the industry.
These standards cover the design, construction, testing, and operation of UHV AC and DC transmission systems, and provide an important technical basis for global UHV transmission projects.
Compared with the superconducting technology of the American VEIR company, the advantages of China's UHV transmission are self-evident, and China's technology has not only achieved large-scale engineering application, but also has formed a mature industrial chain and standard system.
In contrast, VEIR's superconducting technology is still in the laboratory stage and is still far from commercial application.
More importantly, the development of China's UHV technology is the result of the joint efforts of large state-owned enterprises such as the State Grid Corporation of China and the majority of scientific researchers, which embodies the painstaking efforts of several generations of Chinese power workers and reflects China's determination and ability to innovate independently in key areas.
And the superconducting technology of the American VEIR company, although it looks beautiful, relies more on the hype of the capital market and the rendering of the media.
Leading the world is not a day's work
Every progress of China's UHV technology is inseparable from the hard work of the majority of workers in the power industry, from the design institute to the manufacturing plant, from the construction site to the front line of operation and maintenance, countless power people with a high sense of responsibility and mission, contributing their own strength to the UHV cause.
Among them, there are operation and maintenance personnel who climb the high tower under the scorching sun to carry out line inspections; There are attendants who are on duty day and night in the substation to ensure the safe and stable operation of the equipment; There are also equipment manufacturing workers who carefully assemble in a small workshop and strive for zero defects.
It is precisely with their conscientiousness and selfless dedication that China's UHV projects can achieve great results and maintain safe and high-quality operation.
On the road of China's UHV technology development, independent innovation has always been a main line, China's power industry is well aware that the key core technology is not bought, can not be bought, only through independent innovation, in order to truly grasp the initiative of development.
Over the years, Chinese enterprises have adhered to the road of independent innovation, formed a unique technical advantage in the field of UHV transmission, and Chinese enterprises have broken the monopoly of foreign enterprises with their own technical strength and realized the localization of key equipment and technology.
Compared with the impetuous mentality of the American VEIR company in the pursuit of "corner overtaking", the development of China's UHV technology can be described as down-to-earth and long-term success.
Looking back on the development of UHV technology in China, we have reason to be proud of the excellent achievements of China's power industry.
But at the same time, we must also be soberly aware that in the new round of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation, the global energy and power pattern is undergoing profound changes, and China must continue to achieve new breakthroughs in key core technologies if it wants to win the initiative in more fierce international competition.
Resources:
Big U.S. tech companies are desperate for more power, and the government approves transmission upgrade plan - 2024-07-03 Financial community