Compendium of ITER design principles taking shape
The first chapters of the ITER Engineering Basis Handbook, Volume 1, have been released and more will follow soon.
“The idea,” said ITER Director-General Pietro Barabaschi when he launched the project in 2023, “is to document the full range of acquired ITER know-how in the domains of engineering, fabrication, assembly, safety, and licensing—including insights from retired experts, without whom this knowledge would otherwise be lost.”
Some of the 80 authors who are contributing to the editorial effort behind the ITER Engineering Basis Handbook were part— like the Director-General himself—of the Engineering Design Activities for ITER in the 1990s. Others contributed their expertise to the earlier Conceptual Design Activities phase or, further down the road, had positions of responsibility at the ITER Organization.
All share something of value: they were in the room at key moments when engineering decisions were made that contributed to shaping ITER. Preserving this institutional knowledge—not only the reasons behind key choices, but also the alternatives that were considered and ultimately set aside over nearly four decades of ITER planning and construction—is essential for future generations and for the wider fusion community.
Under the editorial lead of EUROfusion and its Programme Manager Gianfranco Federici, the ITER Engineering Basis Handbook is coming together as a stand-alone compilation of ITER design principles, the underlying technical design basis and its evolution from conception to construction, together with the technical, scientific, and regulatory rationale behind major decisions.
The first chapters of Volume 1, “Genesis, Design and Evolution,” are now available on a dedicated ITER webpage under ITER Technical Reports. Additional chapters will be released in the coming weeks. By late 2026, the seven chapters of Volume 2, “Anatomy of the Plant,” are expected to be available.
The project delivery team comprises an editorial team (see list below), a coordination unit, and specific chapter authors, together with subject matter experts and senior retired experts. Acting as the bridge between ITER and the editorial board are Jesús Izquierdo, Deputy Head of the ITER Central Integration Division, and Esmeralda Moscatelli, Knowledge Management Coordinator. Layout and publication are supported by Barry Prescott, Martina Olcese, Virginie Marchal, and Valentyna Kovtun from the Data Configuration Management Section.
“ITER will generate not only megawatts of fusion power but also a vast amount of engineering knowledge that we have the obligation to preserve for the good of mankind,” concludes Jesús. “We are on it!”
Download the first chapters of the ITER Engineering Basis Handbook here.
