General Atomics Electronic Systems Capacitors Power Spallation Neutron Source

General Atomics Energy Products, a Division of General Atomics Electronic Systems

PRESS RELEASE
Contact: Randy Hartsock 858-522-8403
December 19, 2006, San Diego, CA

GENERAL ATOMICS ELECTRONIC SYSTEMS FILM CAPACITORS SUCCESSFULLY POWER SPALLATION NEUTRON SOURCE 10 MEGAWATT POLYPHASE RESONANT CONVERTER-MODULATORS

General Atomics Electronic Systems (GA-ESI) has delivered over 2800 plastic case state-of-the-art capacitors for the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) polyphase resonant converters. The SNS, installed at the Oakridge National Laboratory, is a particle accelerator used to conduct neutron scattering experiments. These capacitors have demonstrated over three years of successful operation without a single failure operating at up to 140 kV and 20 kHz.

The capacitors provided by GA-ESI push the performance boundaries for compact plastic case construction. Examples are low loss, low inductance, high voltage and long life. They were designed specifically to provide over 10 GigaPulses (10¹⁰ pulses), have over 90% reliability at voltage for 20 years, with inductance of 10 to 70 nanohenries based on the specific rating. They operate in a high frequency, high voltage, polyphase converter modulator. These cutting edge capacitors, circulating up to 3.5 MVAR at 140 kV and 20 kHz, were necessary to fulfill SNS's mission to provide the most intense pulsed neutron beams in the world.

"General Atomics Electronic Systems was the only manufacturer with the engineering, manufacturing, test, and quality capabilities capable of meeting the stringent requirements of our designs" said Bill Reass, developer of the polyphase resonant converter-modulator topology. "We tested and evaluated multiple vendors for each capacitor type we required. Performance criteria evaluated included: terminal inductance, equivalent series resistance, loss tangent, and mechanical integrity. As an example, the IGBT link bypass capacitors handle dI/dT's of over 4 kA/ms with 500 Amps RMS current at 20 kHz. The transformer resonating capacitors circulate 3.5 MVAR at 140 kV and 20 kHz. Different vendors used different dielectric systems and fabrication techniques. It was a real eye opener that GA-ESI beat all other vendors, for each capacitor type. GA-ESI was the only vendor that could meet all our specifications. Unfortunately, some vendors did not meet any specifications."

General Atomics Electronic Systems, formerly part of Maxwell Energy Products, is globally recognized as the leading U.S. developer and manufacturer of advanced film capacitors, high voltage capacitors, high energy capacitors, metallized capacitors and high current capacitors for pulse power and other demanding applications. Our primary markets include national laboratories and universities, energy and defense contractors, and medical and industrial companies around the world. In addition to capacitors, we develop and manufacture high voltage power supplies and pulse power systems, and provide other components such as resistors, fuses, and PFN's.