Tokamak à configuration variable
Encyclopedia
Nuclear fusion
Nuclear fusion is the process by which two or more atomic nuclei join together, or "fuse", to form a single heavier nucleus. This is usually accompanied by the release or absorption of large quantities of energy...
reactor (tokamak
Tokamak
A tokamak is a device using a magnetic field to confine a plasma in the shape of a torus . Achieving a stable plasma equilibrium requires magnetic field lines that move around the torus in a helical shape...
) of the École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne
École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne
The École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne is one of the two Swiss Federal Institutes of Technology and is located in Lausanne, Switzerland.The school was founded by the Swiss Federal Government with the stated mission to:...
. Its particularity is that its torus section is three times higher than wide. This allows studying several shapes of plasmas, which is particularly relevant since the shape of the plasma has links to the performance of the reactor. The TCV was set up in November 1992.
Characteristics
- Plasma height: 1.40 metres
- Minor radius: 0.25 metre
- Major radius: 0.88 metre
- Plasma current: 1.2 megaamperes
- Plasma life span: 2 seconds maximum
- Toroidal magnetic field: 1.43 teslas
- Additional heating power: 4.5 megawatts
Main studies
- Confinement studies
- confinement as a function of the shape of the plasma (triangular, square or elongated)
- Improvement of the confinement of the core
- Studies on vertically elongated plasmas
- Studies with ECRH and ECCD (electron cyclotron resonance heating and electron cyclotron current drive)
History
- 1976: First proposal for an elongated tokamak by the "New Swiss Association"
- 1985: Second proposal, with a more elongated tokamak
- 1986: Acceptance of the TCV proposal (Tokamak à Configuration Variable)
- 1992: First plasma discharge
- 1997: World record of plasma elongation (see plasma shapingPlasma shapingMagnetically confined fusion plasmas such as those generated in tokamaks and stellarators are characterized by a typical shape. Plasma shaping is the study of the plasma shape in such devices, and is particularly important for next step fusion devices such as ITER. This shape is conditioning partly...
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