Pettigrew gives a(1)-a(6) in table 14. He conjectures that k exists for every n. Surprisingly, a(8) is greater than 10^6, but a(9)=524827. The Mathematica program creates all powerful numbers <= nMax by computing all products of the form x^2 y^3.
a(10) is greater than 10^8. - Giovanni Resta, May 11 2006