EUROfusion Integrated Modelling (EU-IM) capabilities and selected physics applications

International audienceRecent developments and achievements of the EUROfusion Code Development for Integrated Modelling project (WPCD), which aim is to provide a validated integrated modelling suite for the simulation and prediction of complete plasma discharges in any tokamak, are presented. WPCD develops generic complex integrated simulations, workflows, for physics applications, using the standardized European Integrated Modelling (EU-IM) framework. Selected physics applications of EU-IM workflows are illustrated in this paper

Ion cyclotron resonance frequency heating in JET during initial operations with the ITER-like wall

Équipe 107 : Physique des plasmas chaudsInternational audienceIn 2011/12, JET started operation with its new ITER-Like Wall (ILW) made of a tungsten (W) divertor and a beryllium (Be) main chamber wall. The impact of the new wall materials on the JET Ion Cyclotron Resonance Frequency (ICRF) operation is assessed and some important properties of JET plasmas heated with ICRF are highlighted. A similar to 20% reduction of the antenna coupling resistance is observed with the ILW as compared with the JET carbon (JET-C) wall. Heat-fluxes on the protecting limiters close the antennas, quantified using Infra-Red thermography (maximum 4.5MW/m(2) in current drive phasing), are within the wall power load handling capabilities. A simple RF sheath rectification model using the antenna near-fields calculated with the TOPICA code can reproduce the heat-flux pattern around the antennas. ICRF heating results in larger tungsten and nickel (Ni) contents in the plasma and in a larger core radiation when compared to Neutral Beam Injection (NBI) heating. The location of the tungsten ICRF specific source could not be identified but some experimental observations indicate that main-chamber W components could be an important impurity source: for example, the divertor W influx deduced from spectroscopy is comparable when using RF or NBI at same power and comparable divertor conditions, and Be evaporation in the main chamber results in a strong reduction of the impurity level. In L-mode plasmas, the ICRF specific high-Z impurity content decreased when operating at higher plasma density and when increasing the hydrogen concentration from 5% to 15%. Despite the higher plasma bulk radiation, ICRF exhibited overall good plasma heating performance; the power is typically deposited at the plasma centre while the radiation is mainly from the outer part of the plasma bulk. Application of ICRF heating in H-mode plasmas has started, and the beneficial effect of ICRF central electron heating to prevent W accumulation in the plasma core has been observed

RF wave coupling, plasma heating and characterization of induced plasma-material interactions in WEST L-mode discharges

International audiencePlasma heating in the full Tungsten (W) Environment in Steady-state Tokamak (WEST) relies on electromagnetic waves in both Lower Hybrid (LH) and Ion Cyclotron Range of Frequencies (ICRF). The present study focuses mostly on the optimization of discharges heated with ICRF, by reporting different methods to first optimize wave coupling, optimize their absorption and reduce the impurity production. It is shown that ICRF coupling can be optimized either by moving the plasma closer to antennas, increasing the plasma density, wave frequency and LH power. We show that the absorption efficiency correlates with the hydrogen concentration with the existence of an optimum between 7 and 10% as expected for a minority heating scenario. Absolutely calibrated visible spectroscopy sightlines were used to monitor ion fluxes in different locations as part of an effort to quantitively estimate the contribution of different impurity sources to the core contamination by tungsten. It is typically found that in discharges with high total RF-power (above 5MW of LH and 3MW of ICRF), divertor and antenna limiter sources can reach similar order of magnitude during the ICRF phase

Progress at JET in integrating ITER-relevant core and edge plasmas within the constraints of an ITER-like wall

Équipe 107 : Physique des plasmas chaudsInternational audienceThis paper reports the progress made at JET-ILW on integrating the requirements of the reference ITER baseline scenario with normalized confinement factor of 1, at a normalized pressure of 1.8 together with partially detached divertor whilst maintaining these conditions over many energy confinement times. The 2.5 MA high triangularity ELMy H-modes are studied with two different divertor configurations with D-gas injection and nitrogen seeding. The power load reduction with N seeding is reported. The relationship between an increase in energy confinement and pedestal pressure with triangularity is investigated. The operational space of both plasma configurations is studied together with the ELM energy losses and stability of the pedestal of unseeded and seeded plasmas. The achievement of stationary plasma conditions over many energy confinement times is also reported

Expanding the Operating Space of ICRF on JET with a view to ITER

info:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

EUROfusion Integrated Modelling (EU-IM) capabilities and selected physics applications

International audienceRecent developments and achievements of the EUROfusion Code Development for Integrated Modelling project (WPCD), which aim is to provide a validated integrated modelling suite for the simulation and prediction of complete plasma discharges in any tokamak, are presented. WPCD develops generic complex integrated simulations, workflows, for physics applications, using the standardized European Integrated Modelling (EU-IM) framework. Selected physics applications of EU-IM workflows are illustrated in this paper

On the Use of Transfer Entropy to Investigate the Time Horizon of Causal Influences between Signals

Understanding the details of the correlation between time series is an essential step on the route to assessing the causal relation between systems. Traditional statistical indicators, such as the Pearson correlation coefficient and the mutual information, have some significant limitations. More recently, transfer entropy has been proposed as a powerful tool to understand the flow of information between signals. In this paper, the comparative advantages of transfer entropy, for determining the time horizon of causal influence, are illustrated with the help of synthetic data. The technique has been specifically revised for the analysis of synchronization experiments. The investigation of experimental data from thermonuclear plasma diagnostics proves the potential and limitations of the developed approach

Recent progress in L-H transition studies at JET: Tritium, Helium, Hydrogen and Deuterium

We present an overview of results from a series of L-II transition experiments undertaken at JET since the installation of the ITER-like-wall (JET-ILW), with beryllium wall tiles and a tungsten divertor. Tritium, helium and deuterium plasmas have been investigated. Initial results in tritium show ohmic L-H transitions at low density and the power threshold for the L-H transition (P-LH) is lower in tritium plasmas than in deuterium ones at low densities, while we still lack contrasted data to provide a scaling at high densities. In helium plasmas there is a notable shift of the density at which the power threshold is minimum ((n) over bar (e,min)) to higher values relative to deuterium and hydrogen references. Above (n) over bar (e,min) (He) the L-H power threshold at high densities is similar for D and He plasmas. Transport modelling in slab geometry shows that in helium neoclassical transport competes with interchange-driven transport, unlike in hydrogen isotopes. Measurements of the radial electric field in deuterium plasmas show that E-r shear is not a good indicator of proximity to the L-H transition. Transport analysis of ion heat flux in deuterium plasmas show a non-linearity as density is decreased below (n) over bar (e,min). Lastly, a regression of the JET-ILW deuterium data is compared to the 2008 ITPA scaling law