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Playing the “bad guy” to enhance next-generation safety
Sometimes, cops and robbers is more than just a kid’s game. At the Department of Energy’s national laboratories, researchers are channeling their inner saboteurs to discover vulnerabilities in next-generation nuclear reactors, making sure that they’re as safe as possible before they’re even constructed.
R. Sakamoto, H. Yamada, M. Kobayashi, J. Miyazawa, S. Ohdachi, T. Morisaki, S. Masuzaki, M. Goto, H. Funaba, I. Yamada, K. Ida, S. Morita, B. J. Peterson, N. Ohyabu, A. Komori, O. Motojima, LHD Experiment Group
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 58 | Number 1 | July-August 2010 | Pages 53-60
Chapter 3. Confinement and Transport | Special Issue on Large Helical Device (LHD) | doi.org/10.13182/FST10-A10793
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
An interesting high-density operational regime with an internal diffusion barrier (IDB) has been extended to the helical divertor configuration in the Large Helical Device. The IDB is characterized by steep density gradient in core plasma and the attainable central density exceeds 1 × 1021 m-3 at the moderate magnetic field [approximately]2.5 T while keeping relatively low density mantle plasma surrounding the core. In the IDB discharge, significant central pressure rise is observed, and the maximum central pressure attains 150 kPa by optimizing magnetic configuration. Such a high central pressure causes very large Shafranov shift, more than half radius, even at high magnetic field. Core fueling is absolutely essential for the IDB formation, and the IDB is reproducibly obtained by employing intensive multiple-pellet injections. The attainable density is restricted by lack of heat deposition at core plasma due to strong attenuation of a neutral beam in the high-density plasma.