The world's most sophisticated superconducting magnet is made in Europe. It is 14 m high, 9 m wide and weighs 110 tonnes—as much as Boeing 747! This is the first of the 18 Toroidal Field (TF) coils that will operate in ITER, the biggest fusion machine that will demonstrate the feasibility of this energy source for the future. The coils will create a powerful magnetic cage that will entrap the fusion fuel which is expected to reach 150 million ° C. When powered with 68 000 A, the ITER TF coils will generate a magnetic field that will reach 11.8 Tesla—about 1 million times stronger than the magnetic field of the Earth!

Europe will manufacture nine of them, plus one spare. The other nine will be fabricated in Japan. Fusion for Energy (F4E), the EU organisation managing Europe's contribution to ITER, together with ASG Superconductors, Iberdrola Ingeniería y Construcción, Elytt Energy, CNIM, SIMIC and the ICAS consortium, have been collaborating for the production of these impressive magnets. At least 600 people from 26 companies have been involved in their production. ITER has given Europe's industry a one-of-a kind opportunity to improve their manufacturing standards through learning by doing. As a consequence, the companies have extended their know-how, employed and trained workforces, and have identified potential markets offering them a commercial edge in the field of superconductivity.

This achievement results from various contracts starting with the production of a 20 km conductor for the TF coils, involving ICAS, the Italian Consortium for Applied Superconductivity consisting of ENEA, Criotec Impianti Srl and TRATOS Cavi spa. Antonio della Corte, President of the ICAS consortium and Head of ENEA Superconducting Laboratory, explained that "our contribution to the superconducting conductor for the ITER magnets allowed us to develop new ideas which improved our production technologies and use them in different applications."  

ASG, Iberdrola Ingeniería y Construcción and Elytt, have used parts of this conductor to manufacture Europe's first TF coil magnet. A vast new facility, which used to be the site of a washing machines factory, has been constructed and has become a hub of expertise by retraining its original workforce and installing state of the art equipment.

Stefano Pittaluga, ASG Superconductors, stated that "thanks to ITER, and our company's leadership in fusion magnet technology, we now see new possibilities of growth in the energy sector. We are ready to this knowledge in new industrial applications." And in fact ASG has contributed to some of the most advanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) equipment used in healthcare to study the human brain.

Andrés Felipe, Project Manager of Iberdrola Ingeniería y Construcción, explained that "by being part of ITER, a project which will test the energy of the future, we have been given the opportunity to demonstrate our know-how and in return acquire further expertise in engineering."

For Aitor Echeandia, CEO of Elytt, the commercial benefits have been concrete. "Because of our involvement in the manufacturing of ITER magnets, our SME has acquired further competences in superconducting technologies for fusion and particle accelerators."

SIMIC and CNIM have been involved in the production of the 70 radial plates of the magnet, the metallic structures that support the insulated conductor in their grooves before the structures are laser welded, wrapped with insulating material, and impregnated. Both companies have upgraded their facilities, employed people and trained them to deliver their share of components respecting a tight schedule.

Marianna Ginola, SIMIC Commercial Manager, explained that "we have managed to grow as a company and improve both in terms of project management and in technical aspects." According to Philippe Lazare, CEO of CNIM Industrial Systems Division, "in order to manufacture our share of ITER components we had to upgrade our industrial facilities, establish new working methods and train new talent. In return, we have become a French reference in high-precision manufacturing for large components."

The first magnet has been completed and will be transferred to SIMIC to perform a series of tests. Then, it will be inserted into a massive case, welded, impregnated by resin and machined using the most advanced technologies, special tooling and one of the largest machines in Europe. Each TF coil will weigh over 300 T and will be transported via sea from SIMIC to the site of the ITER project, Cadarache, France.

For Alessandro Bonito-Oliva, F4E Manager for Magnets, and his team, this has been an accomplishment of significant importance. "Thanks to our determination and the excellent collaboration between F4E and its partners we have completed the core of Europe's first Toroidal Field coil. This is the result of the good cooperation between the different parties of this one-of-a kind project and clear proof that when Europe wants to be a pioneer-Europe can!" he stated.

Since 2008, F4E has signed contracts reaching a value of approximately 5 billion EUR with various European companies and R&D organisations. Research in the field of fusion has successfully generated many scientific breakthroughs of high relevance to this project. Small and big economic operators have seen in ITER a range of business opportunities and benefits. They have increased their turnover, created jobs and gained confidence in an international business context.

Background
To view how the TF coils are being manufactured click here.
To view how SIMIC has produced its radial plates click here.
To view how CMIM has produced its radial plates click here.

Source: F4E

On April 21, the Ministry of Science, ICT & Future Planning of South Korea released its third five-year plan for the development of nuclear fusion energy.

The South Korean government enacted law for the purpose in 2006 and has set up and implemented its five-year plans since then in order to be capable of building nuclear fusion power plants by 2041. Based on the first plan, it built the Korea Superconducting Tokamak Advanced Research (KSTAR) facilities and participated in the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) project with the United States and the EU. In the phase of the second plan, it set up a new world record in plasma maintenance and signed international contracts worth more than 500 billion won via the ITER project.

The third plan is to set the foundation for research on power generation by means of nuclear fusion. In other words, it is to work on technology for actual power generation based on nuclear fusion and demonstrate the technology for commercial use based on the outcome of the project and the KSTAR.

The team of engineers from F4E, ASG and CNIM, working in Europe’s industrial facility on the ITER site, and their colleagues in ASIPP, the Institute of Plasma Physics of China’s Academy of Sciences, have officially started manufacturing the Poloidal Field (PF) coils assigned to Europe for the biggest fusion device –ITER. ITER will operate with six PF coils. Europe is responsible for five of them and through a collaboration agreement with China one will be fabricated in ASIIP. The remaining coil will be delivered by Russia.

After having successfully completed the winding tests using lengths of dummy conductor, the technicians have started unspooling the “real” conductor and inserted it in the machines to produce the impressive magnetic rings that will control the shape and stability of the super-hot plasma.

In ASIPP, the winding of the first Double Pancake (DP), which consists of two layers of conductors wound in the shape of massive pancakes, started in mid-March and has been completed. Works on the two Helium inlets at the inner joggles, from where Helium will circulate in the conductor to lower its temperature to freezing levels so as to make the coil superconductive, have been concluded. Carefully milling a hole in the jacket, without damaging the superconducting strand underneath, and welding a pipe to feed the helium into the conductor, have been some of the additional delicate works that needed to be performed. This weld has then been X-Rayed and leak tested to ensure that no Helium can escape through the weld. Subsequently, the Helium inlet insulation has then been wrapped around the inlet. On average, the winding of a DP is expected to take 4-5 weeks each.

After a series of rigorous dimensional checks, in order to check whether the shape and dimensions of the component are in compliance, the component will be transferred to the terminal assembly area. The DP will enter its final stage of fabrication by going through Vacuum Pressure Impregnation, where the necessary vacuum will be created to inject the epoxy resin and cure the insulation.

Meanwhile, a few weeks ago in F4E’s PF coils facility, CNIM has already started winding the conductor of the fifth PF coil and the first DP is expected to be completed by the end of May. When the first layers will be completed, the team of technicians will proceed with the installation of the Helium inlets and perform the same steps as in ASIPP.

The good collaboration between F4E, ASIPP and their industrial partners, has been fundamentally important in making good progress in a co-ordinated way. The engineers and technicians supervising the works are witnessing the moment they have all been waiting for: the winding tests are over and the coils are being manufactured for real!

Source: F4E

The first ITER diagnostic components to be supplied by F4E – five Continuous External Rogowski (CER) coils – were delivered to the ITER site earlier this week and  acceptance testing of these items by ITER IO was concluded successfully on 7 March 2017.

The CER coils are to be located outside the ITER vacuum vessel, within the cases of three Toroidal Field (TF) coils. Their purpose is to measure the total electric current flowing in the ITER plasma, a key measurement required for plasma control that also has relevance for safety. By contrast to other common methods of measuring the plasma current, the Rogowski method works with a single sensor, resulting in very high reliability, despite the cryogenic temperatures, high vacuum and mechanical stresses it will be subjected to during operation of the TF coils.

Each CER coil is a flexible, cylindrical structure, measuring approximately 40 metres in length and 12 millimetres in diameter. A special groove will be made in the TF coil cases to house these coils. The ends of the CER coils, emerging from the TF coils, will be housed in protective steel structures that have also been supplied by F4E.  

The CER coils have been manufactured by two companies Axon (France), which supplied the electrical parts of the system, and Sgenia (Spain), which supplied the mechanical parts.

The coils will shortly be transported to Japan by ITER IO, for installation in the TF coils by the Japanese Domestic Agency for ITER, with F4E’s support. Once the TF coils have been installed on the ITER machine, F4E will commission the CER coils for use during first plasma operations.

Source: F4E

The representatives of the nuclear institutions of Kazakhstan who visited ITER on 21st February 2017 stated it simply and clearly: they are very interested in collaborating with ITER. The largest of the Central Asian republics (5.5 times the size of France), Kazakhstan has immense mineral resources and a strong scientific and technological infrastructure inherited from its Soviet past and expanded since the country's independence in 1991.