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Fusion energy: Progress, partnerships, and the path to deployment
Over the past decade, fusion energy has moved decisively from scientific aspiration toward a credible pathway to a new energy technology. Thanks to long-term federal support, we have significantly advanced our fundamental understanding of plasma physics—the behavior of the superheated gases at the heart of fusion devices. This knowledge will enable the creation and control of fusion fuel under conditions required for future power plants. Our progress is exemplified by breakthroughs at the National Ignition Facility and the Joint European Torus.
Glenn Bateman, J. R. Fox
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 4 | Number 2 | September 1983 | Pages 1363-1367
Magnet Engineering | doi.org/10.13182/FST83-A23046
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Ripple Reduction Poloidal Field (RRPF) coils together with blocks of ferro-magnetic iron shielding are used to design a commerical tokamak reactor similar in size to STARFIRE with only eight rather than twelve toroidal field (TF) coils. The RRPF coils function like segmented poloidal field coils, placed between the TF coils and the neutron shielding, carrying an average of ±6 MA turns of current in the torroidal direction. Together with an additional pair of vertical field coils carrying 4.8 MAT, they produce the poloidal field needed for a β ∼ 6% plasma equilibrium with elongation 1.68 and a pair of separatrices suitable for a poloidal divertor. The RRPF coils also reduce magnetic ripple near the top and bottom of the plasma while the laminated blocks of iron magnetic shielding placed under each TF coil reduce magnetic ripple at the outer edge of the plasma near the midplane from a maximum of 5.48% to less than 1%.