The transformers arrive at SPS's access point 4 (BA 4) (Image: Anna Pantelia/CERN)
This week, CERN received the latest new transformers for the Super Proton Synchrotron (SPS). Stored in pairs in 24-tonne steel containers, these transformers will replace the old models, which have been in place since 1981.
During LS1, the TE-EPC Group will be replacing all of the transformers for the main converters of the SPS. This renewal campaign is being carried out as part of the accelerator consolidation programme, which began at the start of April and will come to an end in November. It involves 80 transformers: 64 with a power of 2.6 megavolt-amperes (MVA) for the dipole magnets, and 16 with 1.9 MVA for the quadrupoles.
These new transformers were manufactured by an Italian company and are being installed outside the six access points of the SPS by the EN-HE Group, using CERN's 220-tonne crane. They will contribute to the upgrade of the SPS, which should thus continue to operate as the injector for the LHC until 2040.