Pressure drop measurement on forced flow cable conductors

Forced flow cable conductors being developed for use in LCP coils and other large superconducting magnets utilize supercritical helium flowing through narrow, uneven channels with large cooling surfaces. Extensive measurements on pressure drop of a variety of samples were performed. It is found that the friction factor versus Reynolds number plots of all the data are clustered together and behave in a universal way. A factor of two to three higher in friction factor than the smooth tube value in turbulent helium flow regime can be expected for this type of conductor.