Subscribe options

Select your newsletters:

Please enter your email address:

@

Your email address will only be used for the purpose of sending you the ITER Organization publication(s) that you have requested. ITER Organization will not transfer your email address or other personal data to any other party or use it for commercial purposes.

If you change your mind, you can easily unsubscribe by clicking the unsubscribe option at the bottom of an email you've received from ITER Organization.

For more information, see our Privacy policy.

News & Media

Latest ITER Newsline

  • On site | 28 who "truly shined"

    The new ITER Star Awards recognize exemplary performance and commitment. Every year, during the annual assessment campaign, ITER staff may be recognized for exe [...]

    Read more

  • MT-28 Conference | Superconducting magnets as a catalyst

    Many passers-by paused for a moment and picked up their cell phones to capture the scene. It was indeed rare to see dancers on the square outside of the Pavillo [...]

    Read more

  • Fusion world | TCV tokamak turns 30

    The Swiss TCV tokamak (for Tokamak à Configuration Variable, or 'variable configuration' tokamak) has been exploring the physics of nuclear fusion for 30 years [...]

    Read more

  • Image of the week | Port cell with a view

    A visit to ITER would not be complete without a peek into the Tokamak pit where the machine is being progressively assembled. For several years, one of the equa [...]

    Read more

  • Visit | Chinese Minister reaffirms "full support"

    ITER Director-General Pietro Barabaschi and the Chinese Minister of Science and Technology (MOST) Wang Zhigang share a common academic background. They both tra [...]

    Read more

Of Interest

See archived entries

ITER NEWSLINE -

Historic signatures for the blanket system

ITER Director-General Motojima and the Deputy Director General of ITER China, Luo Delong, sign for 50% of the shield blocks. In attendance from left to right: Mario Merola, Head of the Internal Components Division; Zhang Fu, ITER Technical Responsible Officer (TRO) for the shield blocks procured by China; Francoise Flament, Head of Procurement & Contract; and Ju Jin, Director for General Administration. (Click to view larger version...)
ITER Director-General Motojima and the Deputy Director General of ITER China, Luo Delong, sign for 50% of the shield blocks. In attendance from left to right: Mario Merola, Head of the Internal Components Division; Zhang Fu, ITER Technical Responsible Officer (TRO) for the shield blocks procured by China; Francoise Flament, Head of Procurement & Contract; and Ju Jin, Director for General Administration.
Following the successful Final Design Review for the ITER blanket in April 2013, the first of seven Procurement Arrangements for the blanket system were signed last week between the ITER Organization and the Chinese and Korean Domestic Agencies.

China and Korea will share the procurement of the blanket shield blocks—the "backside" of the 440 blanket modules that support the plasma-facing first wall and provide neutron shielding for the vacuum vessel and coil systems. These thick steel blocks, weighing up to four tonnes a piece, also have to accommodate interfaces with other components and in particular a large number of diagnostic systems. For this reason there are a total of 28 major design variants and 150 or more minor design variants.

"Last week's signatures were the culmination of several years of design and R&D effort on the part of the ITER Organization and the Domestic Agencies," says Rene Raffray, Blanket Section Leader. "Working together with the ITER Organization as part of the Blanket Integrated Product Team (BIPT), the procuring Domestic Agencies have been fully involved in the design since the start."

DG Motojima shakes hands with Kijung Jung, the head of ITER Korea, for the other 50% of the system. Left to right: Hyeon-Gon Lee, Deputy Director-General of ITER Korea; Francoise Flament; Duck-Hoi Kim, TRO at ITER for Korea; Mario Merola; Geun Jae Lee, head of the Korean delegation, Director General of R&D Policy Bureau, MSIP; Joo-Shik Bak, Director for Project Control & Assembly; Myeun Kwon, President of NFRI; Taiyong Lee, Deputy Director of Fusion R&D Support Team, MSIP; and Jae Hyung Lee, head of the External Relations Team, ITER Korea. (Click to view larger version...)
DG Motojima shakes hands with Kijung Jung, the head of ITER Korea, for the other 50% of the system. Left to right: Hyeon-Gon Lee, Deputy Director-General of ITER Korea; Francoise Flament; Duck-Hoi Kim, TRO at ITER for Korea; Mario Merola; Geun Jae Lee, head of the Korean delegation, Director General of R&D Policy Bureau, MSIP; Joo-Shik Bak, Director for Project Control & Assembly; Myeun Kwon, President of NFRI; Taiyong Lee, Deputy Director of Fusion R&D Support Team, MSIP; and Jae Hyung Lee, head of the External Relations Team, ITER Korea.
The first phase of Procurement Arrangement execution will be the call for tender to be launched in China and Korea to manufacture the first shield block prototypes based on procurement specifications and 3D drawings/2D assembly drawings provided by ITER.

 "It has taken a lot of hard work, but it is rewarding and a credit to all those at ITER and in the Chinese and Korean Domestic Agencies who contributed to the achievement of these important milestones on time," says Raffray. "They are the latest in a list of on-time Blanket accomplishments that includes successfully going through the different system design reviews, and which have in great part been possible through active collaboration among the ITER Organization and the procuring Domestic Agencies within the BIPT framework."

return to the latest published articles