UK Fusion Programme 2008-2010
Lead Research Organisation:
CCFE/UKAEA
Department Name: Culham Centre for Fusion Energy
Abstract
Fusion is the main energy source of the universe; it is the process that powers the sun and the stars. If it can be harnessed economically on earth, it has the potential to be an important component of the portfolio of measures needed to ensure a secure, environmentally responsible, supply of energy, at a time when fossil fuels will be becoming increasingly expensive. There is increasing realisation of this potential as reflected by the launch of the International Tokamak Experimental Reactor (ITER) project, being built in France, which will be the first fusion device to achieve energy gain and sustained burn.In a fusion reaction, large amounts of energy are released when the nuclei of two light atoms fuse together at extremely high temperatures to create a nucleus of a larger atom. In the most promising way to achieve these conditions on earth, strong magnetic fields in a tokamak configuration are used to control and confine the high temperature plasma.UKAEA's Culham Science Centre in Oxfordshire is one of the world's leading fusion research centres, and contributes to fusion research in two ways: (i) through the UK's own programme focused on the spherical tokamak experiment MAST, and (ii) by contributing to the Joint European Torus (JET) programme. International co-operation is strong with the focus on the International Tokamak Experimental Reactor (ITER). EURATOM part-funds all national programmes in Europe including the UK's.Experimental programmes on the MAST and JET tokamaks are performed to help resolve and refine understanding of key physics issues for ITER. In addition, experimental programmes on MAST focus on testing the potential of the spherical tokamak as a more compact option for future fusion devices. A strong theory and modelling group, utilising parallel- and super-computing facilities, supports the experimental programmes and contributes to the research and development of fusion materials and to studies of conceptual fusion power stations. The UK leads the research and development of two ITER specialist (diagnostic and heating) systems, and participates in several others of these large complex projects.The results of the research are presented in reports and publications, and at conferences, expert groups and specialist committees. Collaborations with researchers in other areas of science and technology are pursued strongly, where the research overlaps with fusion R&D, and increasingly there are fusion researchers in universities with whom UKAEA works.The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and the European Commission fund, provide advice and monitor the UK fusion programme (some of the European funding / for work on ITER systems - is now channelled through the new Fusion for Energy Agency in Barcelona). The Fusion Advisory Board (FAB) advises EPSRC and UKAEA on the programme and on the longer-term strategy for fusion research at Culham; FAB receives reports from the MAST Programme Advisory Committee, a sub-group on ITER and industry, and an annual UK Fusion Materials Forum.
Organisations
Publications
Rosanvallon S
(2008)
Dust control in tokamak environment
in Fusion Engineering and Design
Flanagan J
(2008)
The effect of periodicity on the defect modes of large mode area microstructured fibers
in Optics Express
Lang P
(2008)
Investigation of pellet-triggered MHD events in ASDEX Upgrade and JET
in Nuclear Fusion
Murari A
(2008)
Innovative diagnostics for ITER physics addressed in JET
in Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion
L Garzotti (Author)
(2008)
Observation and analysis of pellet material VB drift on MAST
Boutard J
(2008)
Foreword
in Comptes Rendus. Physique
Brix M
(2008)
Accuracy of EFIT equilibrium reconstruction with internal diagnostic information at JET.
in The Review of scientific instruments
Giacomelli L
(2008)
Neutron emission spectroscopy results for internal transport barrier and mode conversion ion cyclotron resonance heating experiments at JET.
in The Review of scientific instruments
Perez Von Thun C
(2008)
Identifying the MHD signature and power deposition characteristics associated with type-II ELMs in ASDEX Upgrade
in Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion
Belo P
(2008)
Numerical simulation of hydrogenic and impurity flows in the boundary plasma on JET
in Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion
Abel I
(2008)
Linearized model Fokker-Planck collision operators for gyrokinetic simulations. I. Theory
in Physics of Plasmas
J W Connor (Author)
(2008)
Edge Localised Modes (ELMs): Experiments and Theory
McKay R
(2008)
Test-particle simulations of collisional impurity transport in rotating spherical tokamak plasmas
in Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion
Oyama N
(2008)
Effect of toroidal field ripple and toroidal rotation on H-mode performance and ELM characteristics in JET/JT-60U similarity experiments
in Journal of Physics: Conference Series
Marot L
(2008)
Characterization of sub-stoichiometric rhodium oxide deposited by magnetron sputtering
in Surface Science
S E Sharapov (Co-Author)
(2008)
Modelling of beam-driven high frequency Alfvén eigenmodes in MAST
V Kiptily (Co-Author)
(2008)
Super-heated fluid detectors for neutron measurements at JET
in Journal of Optoelectronics and Advanced Materials
Windsor C
(2008)
Prediction of the Charpy transition temperature in highly irradiated ferritic steels
in Modelling and Simulation in Materials Science and Engineering
V Kiptily (Co-Author)
(2008)
Mechanical design of the upgraded JET gamma-ray cameras
in Journal of Optoelectronics and Advanced Materials
S L Newton (Author)
(2008)
On kinetic theory and Hall MHD description of the q=1 inertial layer in fishbone modes
Roth J
(2008)
Tritium inventory in ITER plasma-facing materials and tritium removal procedures
in Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion
Gatu Johnson M
(2008)
The 2.5-MeV neutron time-of-flight spectrometer TOFOR for experiments at JET
in Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section A: Accelerators, Spectrometers, Detectors and Associated Equipment
Molchanov P
(2008)
Comparison of measured and simulated parallel flows at the edge plasma of MAST
in Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion
Aggarwal K
(2008)
Energy levels and radiative rates for transitions in B-like to F-like Kr ions (Kr XXXII-XXVIII)
in Atomic Data and Nuclear Data Tables
Nguyen-Manh D
(2008)
The Fe-Cr system: atomistic modelling of thermodynamics and kinetics of phase transformations
in Comptes Rendus. Physique
Avrigeanu M
(2008)
Fast-neutron induced pre-equilibrium reactions on 55Mn and 63,65Cu at energies up to 40 MeV
in Nuclear Physics A
Borgioli G
(2008)
The Detection of Buried Pipes From Time-of-Flight Radar Data
in IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing
Martin J
(2008)
Modelling dust transport in tokamaks
in EPL (Europhysics Letters)
K G McClements (Co-Author)
(2008)
Alfvén eigenmodes in magnetic X-point configurations with strong longitudinal fields
Pereverzev G
(2008)
Stable numeric scheme for diffusion equation with a stiff transport
in Computer Physics Communications
A Sykes (Author)
(2008)
The science of Spherical Tokamak plasmas: Progress and promise
T C Hender (Author)
(2008)
Kinetic effects on resistive wall mode stability
Alfier A
(2008)
Edge T e and n e profiles during type-I ELM mitigation experiments with perturbation fields on JET
in Nuclear Fusion
Tojo H
(2008)
Poloidal mode analysis of magnetic probe data in a spherical tokamak configuration.
in The Review of scientific instruments
Dudarev S
(2008)
The non-Arrhenius migration of interstitial defects in bcc transition metals
in Comptes Rendus. Physique
Ma P
(2008)
Large-scale simulation of the spin-lattice dynamics in ferromagnetic iron
in Physical Review B
Nardon E
(2009)
Edge localized mode control experiments on MAST using resonant magnetic perturbations from in-vessel coils
in Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion
Martin P
(2009)
Overview of RFX-mod results
in Nuclear Fusion
Mattei M
(2009)
ITER operational space for full plasma current H-mode operation
in Fusion Engineering and Design
Doerner R
(2009)
Codeposition of deuterium with ITER materials
in Nuclear Fusion
Connolley T
(2009)
Bonding of single crystal silicon to Cu and AlN: Trial results
in Science and Technology of Welding and Joining
De Temmerman G
(2009)
Revised scaling equation for the prediction of tritium retention in beryllium co-deposited layers
in Nuclear Fusion
AYED N
(2009)
Alfvén eigenmodes in magnetic X-point configurations with strong longitudinal fields
in Journal of Plasma Physics
Mertens P
(2009)
A bulk tungsten divertor row for the outer strike point in JET
in Fusion Engineering and Design
Winskel M
(2009)
Examining the prospects for accelerated development of renewable energy technologies - and its impact on energy system decarbonisation
in IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science
Rapp J
(2009)
Temperature effect on hydrocarbon deposition on molybdenum mirrors under ITER-relevant long-term plasma operation
in Physica Scripta
Voitsekhovitch I
(2009)
Non-inductive current drive and transport in high ß N plasmas in JET
in Nuclear Fusion
Bekris N
(2009)
Assessment of the flash-lamp photon-cleaning detritiation method tested at JET
in Journal of Nuclear Materials
Uytdenhouwen I
(2009)
Dimple optimization for XPS characterization of TEXTOR tile depositions
in Journal of Nuclear Materials
Description | Fusion research is focused on ITER (the international experiment being built in France) followed by a demonstration power station (DEMO). The Culham Centre for Fusion Energy (CCFE) is a world-leading fusion research centre. Some highlights from the last two years are summarised below (many the result of collaborations with universities and overseas laboratories). Additional information is in Annual Reports (http://www.ccfe.ac.uk/annual_reports.aspx). Reacting plasmas: The UK programme, funded by EPSRC and EURATOM, is focused on the MAST experiment. Physics studies benefited from high power heating systems and improvements to diagnostics. A major upgrade to the system to measure temperature and density profiles (part funded by York University) was completed and provides unmatched spatial resolution. Important progress from both MAST, and the linked Theory and Modelling programme, has been made in several key areas directly relevant to optimising ITER performance:- energy confinement, enabling more reliable prediction of plasma performance in future devices; control of potentially damaging instabilities; improved understanding of performance limiting core and edge plasma instabilities; gas injection to mitigate the effects of rapid plasma terminations (disruptions), etc. CCFE has contributed to the European JET programme, with notable achievements including operation at high power and current, and substantial progress in scenarios that are suitable for steady state operation in ITER. The EPSRC grant pays the UK contribution to JET operation. Materials: Work included: development of techniques for modelling iron-chromium alloys in the high-temperature limit; modelling of steels and tungsten to compare with experimental data from Oxford University; Ion Beam Analysis measurements of erosion, deposition and hydrogen-isotope retention in tiles removed from the JET tokamak. ITER Systems: CCFE has secured lead roles in two major grants to develop ITER heating systems, and leads a consortium to bid for the LIDAR temperature and density measurement system. CCFE has smaller roles in several other areas. Optimised power plants: Work has concentrated on a detailed assessment of the advantages and disadvantages of pulsed and steady-state DEMOs. Several clear advantages in a steady-state device were identified, however the potential simplification in a pulsed device (greatly reduced need for current drive) is a significant counter-advantage. Conceptual design studies of a spherical tokamak Component Test Facility have continued. A big challenge for any fusion system is dealing with the large exhaust power from burning plasmas. One novel promising option, for both DEMO and CTF, which will be part of the MAST upgrade, is the "Super-X" expanded divertor. Major upgrade to MAST: the design has been developed. The purpose is to give higher performance, longer pulse plasmas allowing definitive tests of the physics of an ST-based CTF, and more exacting studies of ITER physics. In late 2009, RCUK reviewed UK fusion research and following this EPSRC approved funding for the upgrade. In addition CCFE has promoted industry involvement in fusion and significantly assisted UK companies in winning ITER business, increased university involvement (e.g. PhDs), and developed its skills-base for an increased emphasis on technology as recommended by the RCUK review. |
Exploitation Route | In addition CCFE has promoted industry involvement in fusion and significantly assisted UK companies in winning ITER business, increased university involvement (e.g. PhDs), and developed its skills-base for an increased emphasis on technology as recommended by the RCUK review. |
Sectors | Energy |
URL | http://www.ccfe.ac.uk/annual_reports.aspx |
Description | As well as its long term task, developing fusion power, CCFE has promoted industry involvement in fusion. |
First Year Of Impact | 2008 |
Sector | Energy |
Impact Types | Economic |