Source:China Metallurgy Newspaper Office
On May 15th, experts from domestic research institutes, universities, leading enterprises, industry associations, etc. gathered in Yancheng, Jiangsu Province. They brought the latest research achievements of their respective teams and had in-depth exchanges and discussions on the key technical hot topics of the application of amorphous and nanocrystalline cores in solid-state transformers.
From the perspective of material innovation, amorphous and nanocrystalline materials possess a "dual personality", with amorphous phases providing high resistivity to reduce eddy current losses and nanocrystalline phases endowing them with excellent soft magnetic properties. This makes them have more obvious application advantages over other magnetic materials in solid-state transformers under the same magnetic density conditions.
The meeting revealed that by replacing traditional ferrite and other soft magnetic materials with amorphous and nanocrystalline materials, the manufacturing cost of solid-state transformers can be reduced by 30% and carbon emissions can be cut. It is expected that by 2030, the global energy system will save over 50 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity annually, making it one of the key technologies for promoting the green energy transition. At present, extremely thin nanocrystalline materials with a thickness of less than 12 microns have been produced domestically, and the loss can be further reduced by more than 50% compared with conventional nanocrystalline materials. It is evident that the breakthroughs in the research and development of amorphous and nanocrystalline cores are expected to further drive the transformation of materials required for the new power system.
From the perspective of technological breakthroughs, solid-state transformers are high-frequency power electronic conversion devices. Therefore, high-frequency isolation transformers are the core components of solid-state transformers. Their key technical bottlenecks include small capacity, high loss density, and the difficulty in designing large-capacity batteries. The system is complex and the cost is relatively high. In the field of high-frequency transformers, amorphous and nanocrystalline materials have more stable temperature characteristics and are suitable for high-frequency transformers operating at high temperatures. It is necessary to pay attention to thermal management. Meanwhile, amorphous and nanocrystalline materials can be used to manufacture larger-sized cores and have higher power density under the same design magnetic density, which is in line with the development trend of large-capacity and compact power electronic equipment.
From the perspective of standard guidance, there are currently domestic teams leading the formulation of international standards for power electronic transformers, and they have entered the final review stage. Standards imply industrial dominance. This is the first time that China has held the right to set standards in this field. The meeting also introduced that a domestic team is promoting the "Technical Specification for Medium and High Frequency Isolation Transformers for Flexible DC Systems", which fills the domestic gap. It clearly stipulates that the loss limit in the frequency band above 10 kilohertz is 15% stricter than the current EU standard.
Overall, material breakthroughs are reshaping the technical route of power equipment. Amorphous and nanocrystalline cores not only drive the upgrade of solid-state transformers but also provide fundamental material support for emerging fields such as hydrogen energy electrolysis and magnetic levitation power supply. With the vigorous promotion of the "dual carbon" goals, the market size of high-frequency transformers in China is expected to reach 120 billion yuan by 2030, and amorphous and nanocrystalline products will enter an important period of development opportunities.
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