Minor radius

Major radius

Poloidal Field

The Tokamak Concept

Toroidal Field
ITER is based on the tokamak concept. A tokamak is a
device able to produce and confine a large volume of
high temperature plasma -a mixture of electrons and
ions- in a toroidal shape by means of strong magnetic Resultant helical field
fields. The original design principle was developed at Magnetic confinement (exaggerated pitch)
the Kurchatov Institute in Moscow in the 1960s and
due to its ability to maintain the temperature in the
plasma the tokamak has become the most advanced
magnetically confined fusion concept in the world.

Because fusion plasmas are extremely hot

– above 100 million degrees – it is
necessary to keep the plasma parti-
Poloidal Field Coils
cles away from the walls of the
confinement device as much as
possible. This is achieved with a
combination of magnetic fields,
generated through external coils,
and by the current that flows in
the plasma.
Toroidal Field Coil
This “magnetic cage” creates
helical field lines inside the machine
around which the charged particles of
the plasma gyrate and are kept confined. Magnetic Field Line
Plasma
Plasma Current

The Tokamak concept

The plasma current is normally induced by a

transformer coil. Thus in its basic form, a tokamak
does not work continuously, but in pulses. In order
to achieve steady state operation in a future power
plant based on the tokamak principle, at least part
of the current has to be driven continuously by
means of high-frequency waves or the injection of
fast particles. Fortunately, a thermo-magnetic
effect - the so-called "bootstrap" current – can
then provide the remaining part of the current.

PULSATOR - an early European tokamak

The ITER Machine
The overall ITER plant comprises the tokamak, its auxiliaries and supporting plant
facilities. ITER has a vertically ‘D’ shaped plasma and a lower divertor. The divertor is
the main area of contact of the plasma and is one of the most critical components in the
machine as it controls the amount of impurities in the plasma and has to withstand high
surface heat loads of up to 10MW/m2. The volume of the plasma (850m3) and the thermal
insulating or confinement properties give an energy multiplication factor Q ~10, the factor
by which the fusion power exceeds the input heating power (50MW) to the plasma. For a
future reactor this factor will be typically 30 to 40. External heating can also be used to
drive the plasma current, extending the nominal inductive burn of 5 minutes up to about
50 minutes or longer. Plasma control is provided by the
poloidal field coils, pumping and fuelling and heating sys-
tems interlocked with feedback from diagnostic sensors.
Toroidal Field Coil
ITER uses low temperature superconducting magnets for
both the toroidal and the poloidal coils. These coils,
which can generate a magnetic field of 5.3T, hold the
plasma inside the vacuum chamber and limit contact
with the chamber walls. Access for the heating
systems, diagnostics and equipment to be used during
the remote maintenance of the machine are distributed Poloidal Field Coil
around the vacuum chamber surface at three levels.
The inner surfaces of the vacuum vessel are covered
with blanket modules which provide the shielding from
the high energy neutrons generated by the fusion reactions. In future reactors, these
modules will contain lithium for breeding tritium which will then be injected into the
plasma in a closed system.
A 70K cryostat encloses the whole machine creating a secondary vacuum for the
superconducting coils necessary to maintain their temperature of 4K.

The Advantages of Fusion

Fusion is a safe and environmentally benign energy option offering the possibility of a
sustainable and long-term energy supply. Several factors make it particularly attractive ITER Ma
for large-scale, base-load electricity production:
Total fusion power
❒ Almost limitless fuel supply. Energy multiplicati
❒ No greenhouse gas emissions. Plasma major radiu
❒ Suitable for the large-scale electricity production required for the
Plasma minor radiu
increasing energy needs of modern cities.
❒ Waste from fusion will not be a long-term burden on future generations. Plasma current
❒ The transport of radioactive material (Tritium) is not required Plasma volume
in the day-to-day operation of a fusion power station. On-axis toroidal fie
❒ The system has inherent safety aspects.
* Ratio between the generated
 ITER Research & Development (R&D)
ITER is truly a major step forward in fusion research
as it incorporates components of high accuracy and
magnitude and will be subjected to the full nuclear
licensing regulatory control. To minimise investment
risk and provide the basis for the licensing activities,
the detailed analysis and validation of ITER has been
performed through a rigorous R&D programme. Seven
large projects have shown that industrial fabrication of
the major components of the ITER machine are feasible
Blanket Module and that their quality can be assured. Such projects hav
also demonstrated the capability of the ITER partners
and their industries to collaborate on common projects.
The positive results from these seven projects have
given confidence for the successful construction and
operation of ITER.

Vacuum Vessel

Cryostat Fuel for Fusion in ITER

The fuel for ITER will be a mixture of the two hydro-
gen species (“isotopes”) deuterium (D) and tritium (T).
10 grams of D and 15 grams of T would meet the entire
Divertor lifetime energy needs of a citizen living in a developed
country!
ain Design Parameters There are about 35 grams of deuterium in every cubic
metre of water. Tritium occurs in nature only in trace
500 MW quantities since it is a radioactive isotope with a half-
ion factor (Q) * 10 life of 12 years. Tritium can be produced from lithium,
us 6.2 m one of the most abundant light metals on earth.
However, ITER will burn tritium produced as waste
us 2.0 m from existing CANDU fission reactors. In ITER the
15 MA tritium fuel cycle will be demonstrated. Different
850 m3 concepts of tritium breeder blanket modules containing
eld 5.3 T lithium will be tested and their efficiency optimised for
use in future demonstration reactors.
fusion power and the power injected into the plasma
 Courtesy of JAERI Superconducting Magnet

Courtesy of PlanseeAG / NASA

Laboratry, Naka Active Metal Casting (AMC) for high heat flux fusion
components and space applications

ITER Central Solenoid Model Coil

e ITER & Industry

e
The EU Fusion Programme & ITER
All fusion research in the European Union (including
Associated States) is coordinated in a single programme.
Through this joint approach it has been possible to
realise the largest and currently most successful fusion
experiment in the world, JET (Joint European Torus,
Culham, UK) which is supported by the small and
medium size devices in the European Member State
laboratories.
One of the remarkable elements of the European fusion
research programme has been the participation in the
design of the ITER device. The basic outline of this
design follows that of the JET device, which achieved
world record results with 16 MW of fusion power
in 1997 and demonstrated the international position
of excellence that European research has acquired
e in this area.
Fusion research also relies on the expertise and skills of
the European industry. The intensive activities for ITER
have achieved many direct and significant spin-offs
from fusion and plasma research in industrial applica-
tions, in areas such as:
❒ Plasma Processing of Semiconductor Electronics
❒ Materials Coatings
❒ Plasma Lighting
❒ Plasma Electronics
❒ Superconducting Magnets for current applications
❒ Advanced diagnostics applied in other energy
systems.
The exchange of experts and know-how between an
international project like ITER and a strong European
industry will lead to even more important benefits for
all parties.

g
r Vertical target divertor
prototype

Full scale dome liner

Plasma processing
for chips manufacturing
The ITER Site
To assess the acceptability of the candidate sites, the
ITER final design report defines the requirements and
design assumptions, which include the following
considerations:

❒ Land and seismic aspects

❒ Heat sink and water supply
❒ Electric power supply
❒ Transportation and shipping of heavy and large
components
❒ Technological and socio-economic infrastructure
❒ Licensing, regulation and decommissioning
Taking these requirements, a Joint Assessment of
Specific Sites (JASS) was carried out by the ITER
Negotiators at the end of 2002. The final report from
this assessment showed that the proposed sites satisfied
all the agreed criteria.
Two candidate sites are currently being discussed: the
European candidate site of Cadarache, in the south of
France, and the Japanese one at Rokkasho-mura, in the
north of the main island. The ITER negotiators are in
discussion to reach a consensus.
ITER Cadarache Site Model
The Cadarache site is the main research centre of the
French Atomic Energy Commission, CEA, for power
oriented nuclear research with experience in a broad
variety of technologies. Experimental fission reactors,
specialised laboratories and workshops for a total of
18 nuclear facilities are hosted at Cadarache. At this
site, since the 1980s a major fusion team has worked
on the tokamak Tore Supra, the world record holder of
discharge duration.
At its meeting of the 25/26 March 2004 the European
Council of Ministers reaffirmed the unanimous support
for the European offer with a view to a rapid commence-
ment of the ITER project at the European candidate site.

LEGAL LICENSE TO TOKAMAK

ENTITY CONSTRUCT ASSEMBLY STARTS

Year 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
EXCAVATE
Bid TOKAMAK BUILDING
Contract
PFC BUILDING
OTHER BUILDINGS
Complete
First sector Complete VV blanket/divertor
TOKAMAK ASSEMBLY
Abbreviations:
Install PFC Install CS
cryostat PFC = Poloidal Field Coil
COMMISSIONING
Bid
Vendor’s Design
CS = Central Solenoid
MAGNET
TFC = Toroidal Field Coil
Contract PFC TFC CS Last TFC Last CS VV = Vacuum Vessel
fabrication start
Bid
VESSEL

Contract First sector Last sector

ITER Construction Schedule

Safety
Once in operation, fusion power The remaining material,
plants would provide large typically the in-vessel
amounts of base load electric components and a part of
energy, burning a deuterium- the vessel, will need to be
tritium fuel. In a power plant, disposed of as waste in
tritium would be produced within geological repositories.
a closed cycle in the machine
and on the site of the power plant In a commercial fusion
from lithium and therefore no reactor, the use of low
radioactive material would have activation materials will
to be transported. ensure that after about
In a fusion power plant only small quantities of fuel are 100 years no long term storage will be required.
injected in the plasma at any given moment. If the fuel Materials development is in progress, but for their
supply is interrupted, the reaction stops in less than a complete qualification a dedicated fusion materials test
minute. In addition, the waste from the fusion reaction facility such as IFMIF (International Fusion Material
is helium which is not radioactive. Tritium is a source Irradiation Facility) must be built.
of limited radiological hazard which can be mitigated
by careful design of the plant facilities. The most
important design feature to achieve this is radioactivity
confinement. In ITER the multiple confinement barriers Cryostat
of the vacuum vessel, the cryostat and the buildings pre- Tokamak building
vent any tritium and dust escaping to the outside world. Vacuum Vessel

Waste
The activation by neutrons resulting from the
fusion reaction produces radioactivity in the
metal structures that surround the plasma.
Their radiological characteristics depend on
the choice of the materials to build the facility.
Research is being carried out to identify mate-
rials with the most advanced performances in
terms of reduced activation and mechanical
and physical properties. In the case of ITER,
conventional materials are being used and the
present assumption is that about 80%, possibly
more, of the total activated material can be
cleared of regulatory control after 100 years
from decommissioning of the plant.
ITER Confinement Barriers

EFDA Close Support Unit - Garching

Boltzmannstr. 2
D-85748 Garching / Munich - Germany
phone: +49-89-3299-4237
fax: +49-89-3299-4197
internet: http://www.efda.org
http://www.iter.org
e-mail: federico.casci@efda.org
editors: Federico Casci, Doris Lanzinger
graphic design: Karen Jens
© M-Q.Tran (EFDA Leader) 2004.
This brochure or parts of it may not be reproduced without permission. Text, pictures and
layout, courtesy of the EFDA Parties.
The EFDA Parties are the European Commission and the Associates of the European
Fusion Programme which is co-ordinated and managed by the Commission.
Neither the Commission, the Associates nor anyone acting on their behalf is responsible
for any damage resulting from the use of information contained in this publication.
The ITER Project
The JET plasma
ITER, a fusion tokamak capable
of generating 500MW of fusion
power for about 50 minutes,
began in 1985 as a collaboration
between the then Soviet Union,
the United States, the European
Union and Japan under the aus-
pices of the International Atomic
Energy Agency (IAEA). Conceptual and engineering
design phases led to a commonly agreed detailed
design in 2001, developed at a cost of about
$350million of engineering design effort, much of
which came from industry. This was underpinned by
$650million worth of research and development by
the ITER parties to establish its practical feasibility
primarily through the construction of full-scale
prototypes of key components. The ITER parties,
The JET machine
with the Russian Federation replacing the Soviet
Union in 1992, the United States opting out of the
project between 1998 and 2003, Canada (which

withdrew its participation at the end of 2003), the

People’s Republic of China, and the Republic of South
Korea have since joined in the negotiations on the futu-
re construction, operation and eventual decommissio-
ning of ITER. The project is expected to cost around
$10 billion over its complete lifetime of 35 years.

The leading fusion experiments such as JET (Culham,

UK), JT-60 (Naka, Japan) and TFTR (Princeton, USA,
closed in 1997) have provided the expertise in fusion
physics and technology in preparation for ITER.
The smaller European machines in the EURATOM
Associations have also contributed important data to
define the ITER physics basis. The crucial next step in
fusion research is to study the physics of burning
plasmas and to demonstrate and test the key technolo-
gies for developing fusion as a safe and environmen-
tally benign energy source. The ITER project is this
next step, and will provide the physics and techno-
logical basis for the construction of a demonstration
electricity generating power plant.

Remote Handling at JET