Patent ID: 6844490

Claim:
A superconducting cable having at least one phase comprising: a layer of tapes comprising superconducting material; a tubular element for supporting said layer of tapes, said tubular element comprising at least one portion made of metallic material and being in electrical contact with the layer of tapes; a cooling circuit configured to cool the layer of tapes to a working temperature not higher than the critical temperature of the tapes, the cooling circuit comprising a fluid at a predetermined working pressure ranging between a minimum value and a maximum value, wherein deformation of the layer of tapes consequent to a temperature variation between room temperature and the working temperature is lower than critical deformation of the layer of tapes; and a predetermined amount of conductive material of resistive type in electrical contact with the layer of tapes, the conductive material being configured to cause a maximum temperature reached by the layer of tapes in case of a short circuit to be lower than the lesser of the critical temperature of the superconducting material comprising the layer of tapes and the boiling temperature of said cooling fluid at a minimum working pressure of said fluid wherein said tubular element is a composite and comprises a first metallic material and a second material associated to said first material and having a thermal expansion coefficient higher than that of said first material.