Comparison of theory-based and semi-empirical transport modelling in JET plasmas with ITBs

The theory-based Weiland transport model has been applied to JET discharges with internal transport barriers (ITBs) for the first time. The agreement of the modelling results with the experiments has been found to be comparable with the agreement of the modelling results produced by the semi-empirical Bohm/gyro-Bohm transport model. Weiland model overestimates the width of the ITB and the electron temperature. There is evidence that the density gradient in the Weiland model plays a more important role in governing the ITB formation dynamics for JET discharges than the suppression of turbulence by the omega(ExB) flow shearing rate

Comparison of theory-based and semi-empirical transport modelling in JET plasmas with ITBs

The theory-based Weiland transport model has been applied to JET discharges with internal transport barriers (ITBs) for the first time. The agreement of the modelling results with the experiments has been found to be comparable with the agreement of the modelling results produced by the semi-empirical Bohm/gyro-Bohm transport model. Weiland model overestimates the width of the ITB and the electron temperature. There is evidence that the density gradient in the Weiland model plays a more important role in governing the ITB formation dynamics for JET discharges than the suppression of turbulence by the omega(ExB) flow shearing rate

Application of ICRF waves in tokamaks beyond heating

Interaction of waves in the ion cyclotron range of frequencies (ICRF) with a plasma has a number of key properties that make them attractive beyond pure heating. First, the waves can interact resonantly with either the plasma ions or electrons. In the case of ion cyclotron damping, a small number of resonant ions are often accelerated to high energies. These ions, apart from heating the bulk plasma via Coulomb collisions, can increase fusion reactivity, affect plasma stability and drive current. They have also been invaluable in diagnostic applications and simulations of fusion-born 3.5 MeV alpha-particles. The second key property of ICRF waves is the transfer of wave momentum to the plasma. This allows one to drive current, affect plasma rotation and induce radial transport of the fast-ions with toroidally directed waves. Finally, ICRF power deposition is rather narrow and its location can be externally controlled, which has important applications in improving the plasma performance, affecting the local plasma transport and providing a tool for plasma transport studies. Representative examples from present-day tokamak experiments are reviewed to highlight the available capabilities

Bulk ion heating with ICRF waves in Tokamaks

Heating with ICRF waves is a well-established method on present-day tokamaks and one of the heating systems foreseen for ITER. However, further work is still needed to test and optimize its performance in fusion devices with metallic high-Z plasma facing components (PFCs) in preparation of ITER and DEMO operation. This is of particular importance for the bulk ion heating capabilities of ICRF waves. Efficient bulk ion heating with the standard ITER ICRF scheme, i.e. the second harmonic heating of tritium with or without He-3 minority, was demonstrated in experiments carried out in deuterium-tritium plasmas on JET and TFTR and is confirmed by ICRF modelling. This paper focuses on recent experiments with He-3 minority heating for bulk ion heating on the ASDEX Upgrade (AUG) tokamak with ITER-relevant all-tungsten PFCs. An increase of 80% in the central ion temperature T-i from 3 to 5.5 keV was achieved when 3 MW of ICRF power tuned to the central He-3 ion cyclotron resonance was added to 4.5 MW of deuterium NBI. The radial gradient of the Ti profile reached locally values up to about 50 keV/m and the normalized logarithmic ion temperature gradients R/L-Ti of about 20, which are unusually large for AUG plasmas. The large changes in the Ti profiles were accompanied by significant changes in measured plasma toroidal rotation, plasma impurity profiles and MHD activity, which indicate concomitant changes in plasma properties with the application of ICRF waves. When the He-3 concentration was increased above the optimum range for bulk ion heating, a weaker peaking of the ion temperature profile was observed, in line with theoretical expectations