ABSTRACT

In 2011 we celebrated the centenary of the discovery by two Dutch physicists, Gilles Holst and Heike Kamerlingh Onnes, of superconductivity in mercury, cooled by liquid helium, which was liquefied for the first time in 1908. We should do more than just reminisce about how it happened and who discovered superconductivity. Today could be the turning point in applied superconductivity and cryoscience R&D, where electric materials engineering and cryogenic technology combine with construction engineering to pave the way for providing a sustainable future energy and cryogenic infrastructure. It is expected that the hydrogen economy and related technological advances may reduce political tensions driven by the need for access to fossil fuel resources.