What's new @ ITER

FEATURED: ITER Design Handbook | Preserving the vital legacy of ITER

Mon, 06 May 2024 00:00:00 +0100

The contributions that ITER is making to fusion physics and engineering—through decades of decisions and implementation—are delivering insights to the fusion community that likely could never have been learned in any other way. Pioneering activities in design, integration, manufacture, assembly and operation not only drive the ITER Project forward, but help to advance future generations of nuclear fusion devices. At the direction of the ITER Director-General, a new initiative is underway to safeguard ITER's legacy and prevent the loss of knowledge. ITER is a huge, truly multi-dimensional project, already spanning decades. The wealth of technical information, the lessons learned, and the evolutionary design narrative of ITER is contained across a multiplicity of platforms and sources—including the multi-generational knowledge and experience detained by those who have been involved in the project. The new project is being spearheaded by Gianfranco Federici, who was involved in ITER back in the 1990s, and is currently working at EUROfusion. Between now and the end of 2026, Federici is leading the editorial board charged with building a comprehensive compendium to consolidate the information and accrued knowledge in an accessible and understandable manner. 'It's an exciting, complex and also somewhat daunting project,' says Federici. 'Our objective is to deliver a single, stand-alone publication detailing the design methodologies and principles, the underlying technical design basis for ITER, and its evolution from the years of conception to the start of construction. We also want to detail the technical, scientific, and regulatory rationale behind major decisions.' The project delivery team will comprise an editorial team, a coordination unit, and specific chapter authors, together with subject matter experts from numerous affiliations and senior retired experts. Acting as the bridge between ITER and the editorial board are Akko Maas, Science Coordination Officer in the Office of the Director-General, and Jesús Izquierdo, Deputy Head of the ITER Central Integration Division. The ITER Document Control group has already started work on compiling existing documentation, and retrieving, scanning and digitizing old paper-based documents going back to the very beginnings of ITER. 'In retrospect, we have to admit that we have done an incomplete job in publishing ITER engineering decisions,' says Izquierdo. 'We need to catch up now, to ensure that the vital legacy of ITER isn't lost when that first generation of ITER engineers and physicists disappears. Part of the problem is that engineers, unlike physicists, tend to focus on projects rather than publishing, and aren't always 100% documentation focused. So we need to go back and make sure we understand how everything was done, and record that.' 'We're going to document not just when technical decisions and fundamental technology choices were made, but why they were made,' adds Federici. 'A huge amount of research and development was required, and was done, and we need to show the lessons learned—both bad and good.' As Director-General Barabaschi has pointed out repeatedly, the scholarly tendency is to publish good results, not the lessons learned from avenues that were ultimately abandoned. But both are important: both the 'know-how' and the 'know-how-not' so to speak. The collaborative inclusion of senior retired experts alongside next-generation engineers is an essential part and key strength of the project. 'Indeed, it's one of the most exciting parts of the project, for me,' continues Federici, 'We're going to talk to as many as possible of the senior people who were there back when we designed ITER. This is the very last chance we have to capture their first-hand expertise, as the first generation gets older. And it's wonderful to see the passion these engineers and physicists still have for ITER, even though some of them are now long-retired.' The scope of the ITER Design Handbook project is itself ambitious, and it will be a challenge for the team to consolidate everything into a succinct publication that can facilitate accessibility and understanding both for stakeholders involved in ITER today and the wider fusion community. One of the main goals is to make the information available and easily accessible to those who are being asked—or who will be asked—to take informed decisions on ITER's evolution moving forward. 'Organizing data and information is its own skill,' says Izquierdo. 'In the old days, the challenge used to be in simply getting hold of the data in the first place. But the new challenge, with data absolutely omnipresent, is to screen out what's useful from all the noise surrounding it. We clearly need to move up the value chain from data to information to knowledge, and that's really our job here, in building the ITER Design Handbook.' There's a lot of ground to cover in ensuring a full understanding of the complexities, from the project genesis and the design evolutions, from conception right through to today. It needs to include a full description of the device—and the reasoning behind the many technical choices that were made along the way to ensure that systems meet the established project specifications and requirements in terms of performance and operation. These choices will encompass everything from the magnet design and vacuum systems to the safety and confinement process, and the shape of the plasma itself. All of this must be done in a clear stand-alone manner that doesn't require privileged access to a document management system. The goal is full transparency—so that the Design Handbook can serve as a valuable tool for all ITER stakeholders, as well as being a useful reference across the private sector, and a global educational resource for those studying within the nuclear fusion domain. 'I think it's important also to help bring some realism and engineering sense to both private and public enterprises,' says Federici. 'We've seen a lot of extremely optimistic statements. The promise of fusion energy is so great that it is easy to over-hype, by neglecting to add the caveats and remaining hurdles. And this is partially our fault. But now we need to share the knowledge we have—so that everyone truly understands the challenges and possible pitfalls.' 'We want this to be a useful and important contribution of the ITER Project,' adds Izquierdo, in closing. 'By its very nature, ITER is meant to be a gift to humanity and to society, and we feel that sharing the knowledge we have is an important part of that. After all, knowledge—just as much as megawatts—is power.' For further inquiries please contact Gianfranco Federici directly at gianfranco.federici@f4e.europa.eu.

FEATURED: Electron cyclotron heating | Aligning technology and physics

Mon, 06 May 2024 00:00:00 +0100

ITER, like other fusion devices, will rely on a mix of external heating technologies to bring the plasma to the temperature necessary for fusion. At a five-day workshop in Daejeon, South Korea, world specialists focused on one of the principal techniques: heating from electron cyclotron waves. Electron cyclotron (EC) waves will play a pivotal role in ITER, and in future fusion reactors in general, by providing reliable and efficient heating of the burning plasma. The development of high-power sources and robust equipment for wave transmission and injection is key for ITER to achieve its goals. What's more, an upgrade of the electron cyclotron resonance system (ECRH) before the beginning of the scientific research operations has recently been decided at ITER—with significant additional electron cyclotron resonance heating power required as part of a modified mix of heating and current drive power. The 22nd Workshop on Electron Cyclotron Emission (ECE) and Electron Resonance Heating (ECRH)—held in Daejeon, South Korea, from 22 to 26 April, focused on this topic, bringing together more than 80 scientists working worldwide on electron cyclotron theory, experiments, diagnostics and technology. The event was primarily organized by Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST) and the Korean Institute of Electromagnetic Engineering and Science (KIEES) in South Korea, led by local organizing chairs Professor EunMi Choi, Professor Gunsu Yun, and Dr. Sonjong Wang. The scientific program was coordinated by an international committee chaired by Professor Emanuele Poli and featured 13 invited talks, 30 contributed oral presentations spread across 13 sessions, and a 3-hour poster session that facilitated active discussions. Additionally, the program included a tour of the KSTAR tokamak. Contributions by ITER scientists and on ITER-related topic represented a strong focus of the workshop along with recent updates on various devices such as DIII-D, ASDEX Upgrade, KSTAR, and W7-X, and highlighted the importance of integrated development that aligns technological needs and physics applications.

OF-INTEREST: Summer training opportunities

Mon, 06 May 2024 00:00:00 +0100

As activity and investment in fusion swells, attention is turning to ensuring that a skilled workforce of fusion scientists, engineers, and technicians is trained and ready. National initiatives to expand training opportunities are multiplying as governments assess workforce development as critical to the development of a fusion industry. Universities are reporting growing interest in Master's and doctoral programs. For students in the early stages of their journey, summer can be a great time to explore choices and to network. Below is a list of opportunities in English where applications are still open, listed by application deadline. 13th ITER International SchoolNagoya, Japan, 9-13 December 2024Pre-registration opens in May here JT-60SA International Fusion SchoolNaka, Japan, 26 August-6 September 2024Apply by 24 May 2024 here PlasmaPyBryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, USA, 29 July-1 August 2024Apply by 24 May 2024 here IPP Summer University for Plasma Physics and Fusion ResearchGreifswald, Germany, 16-20 September 2024Apply by 31 May 2024 here PlasmaSurf 2024 Lisbon, Portugal, 14-20 July 2024Apply by 31 May 2024 here 11th International Workshop & Summer School on Plasma PhysicsKiten, Bulgaria, 24-30 June 2024Apply by 1 June 2024 here SUMTRAIC 2024Prague, Czech Republic, 26 August-6 September 2024Apply by 9 June 2024 here Culham Plasma Physics Summer School Oxfordshire, United Kingdom, 15-25 July 2024Apply by 28 June 2024 here Training opportunities are kept up to date in the calendar at the top of this page of the ITER website.

OF-INTEREST: FUSION 24: registration open

Mon, 06 May 2024 00:00:00 +0100

On Tuesday 18 June 2024, the London Science Museum will host FUSION24, an event for anyone who wants to learn more about the opportunities that this emerging industry offers businesses, communities and the planet. What will the power plants of the future look like? How do we fund fusion? What are we learning from other industries? How can we capitalize on a non-restrictive regulatory environment? How can we build on the current momentum? Sessions will cover everything from the solutions that a future with fusion will offer, to the skills required for success and the new markets that we will discover on the way. (See a list of planned sessions here.) The event is free of charge. See the FUSION24 website to register to attend in person (space limited) or on line.

PRESS: Production of ITER poloidal field coils completed

Mon, 06 May 2024 00:00:00 +0100

PRESS: Fusion nucléaire : les États-Unis misent gros pour une centrale opérationnelle d'ici 10 ans

Mon, 06 May 2024 00:00:00 +0100

PRESS: Unlocking the Mysteries of Plasma Dynamics: The Role of the JOREK Code in Fusion Energy Research

Mon, 06 May 2024 00:00:00 +0100

PRESS: Paul Wouters: la fusión nuclear "será parte de la solución al cambio climático"

Mon, 06 May 2024 00:00:00 +0100

PRESS: Nucléaire: nouvelle étape clé pour Iter (vidéo 1:21)

Mon, 06 May 2024 00:00:00 +0100

PRESS: Two seconds of hope for fusion power

Mon, 06 May 2024 00:00:00 +0100

PRESS: Fusion Energy Week begins today

Mon, 06 May 2024 00:00:00 +0100

PRESS: Nuclear Fusion / UK And Czech Republic To Work Together On Crucial Testing

Fri, 03 May 2024 00:00:00 +0100

PRESS: Un grand pas pour la fusion nucléaire : des chercheurs dépassent la limite théorique de densité du plasma au sein d'un tokamak

Fri, 03 May 2024 00:00:00 +0100

PRESS: Die Sonnen-Anbeter

Fri, 03 May 2024 00:00:00 +0100

PRESS: Bipartisan Fusion Energy Act pushes for regulatory clarity

Fri, 03 May 2024 00:00:00 +0100

PRESS: Construction of China's fusion energy research facility in full throttle

Thu, 02 May 2024 00:00:00 +0100

PRESS: Production of ITER poloidal field coils completed

Thu, 02 May 2024 00:00:00 +0100

PRESS: A world first: Decommissioning a nuclear fusion machine (audio 37'31")

Thu, 02 May 2024 00:00:00 +0100

PRESS: Europe delivers ITER's final poloidal field coil

Thu, 02 May 2024 00:00:00 +0100

PRESS: FuseNet: Advancing Fusion Education for All

Thu, 02 May 2024 00:00:00 +0100

PRESS: The linear plasma device PSI-2 and its role in fusion materials research

Thu, 02 May 2024 00:00:00 +0100