Author: Earl Deshazer

Link to Nicholas Piper Master’s Thesis added to the FRC Website

A link to Nicholas Piper’s Master’s Thesis, Changes in ion orbit loss, intrinsic rotation, and particle pinch across the L-H transition in DIII-D plasmas, which was presented in May of 2018, has been added to the FRC website, thesis tab. The summary is presented here.

Some thermalized ions flowing slowly radially outward have sufficient energy to access loss orbits which allow them to free stream out of the confined plasma region and become ion orbit lost (IOL). Ions flowing in the counter-current (ctr-Ip)direction are more readily lost, exerting a net torque on the ions in the co-current direction. A particle-momentum-energy balance analysis, including the effects of IOL, was performed on three similar DIII-D discharges. After the L-H transition, the intrinsic rotation due to IOL decreases for a short time in the plasma edge near the separatrix. For 1 of the 3 discharges, there is a corresponding decrease in the measured carbon rotation in the edge. For all of the discharges, the electromagnetic pinch velocity went from weakly inward in L-mode to strongly inward in H-mode near the separatrix.

Annual Report 2018-2019 released

The Annual Report 2018-2019 for the Georgia Tech Fusion Research Center has been released. Topics covered in this report include:

  1. Ion Orbit Loss of particles, momentum and energy.
  2. Particle Pinch & Pinch-Diffusion theory.
  3. Examination of the change in particle pinch, intrinsic rotation and electric field at the L-H transition.
  4. Radial pressure gradient related to VxB forces.
  5. Taking non-diffusive transport effects into account in interpreting diffusive transport coefficients.
  6. Solution of the 2D ion-impurity rotation equations in axisymmetric tokomak geometry using neoclassical gyroviscosity.
  7. A future 1D Transport code that conserves particles, energy and momentum by incorporating ion orbit loss and long-range electromagnetic pinch forces; includes the GTNEUT 2D neutrals code.
  8. An examination of alpha heating and burn control mechanisms for thermonuclear excursions.

Weston Monroe Stacey Presented with the Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award by Marquis Who’s Who

Marquis Who’s Who, the world’s premier publisher of biographical profiles, is proud to present Weston Monroe Stacey with the Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award. An accomplished listee, Dr. Stacey celebrates many years’ experience in his professional network, and has been noted for achievements, leadership qualities, and the credentials and successes he has accrued in his field. As in all Marquis Who’s Who biographical volumes, individuals profiled are selected on the basis of current reference value. Factors such as position, noteworthy accomplishments, visibility, and prominence in a field are all taken into account during the selection process.

More about this recognition can be found at: https://www.24-7pressrelease.com/press-release/458866/weston-monroe-stacey-presented-with-the-albert-nelson-marquis-lifetime-achievement-award-by-marquis-whos-who

GEORGIA TECH FUSION DEMO STUDY 2018

The Demonstration Plant (DEMO) is the experimental tokamak reactor envisioned to follow ITER and (together with various plasma physics, fusion technology and fusion materials facilities) provide the basis for the design and construction of a first fusion electrical power tokamak demonstration reactor.

The Georgia Tech NRE4610 class undertook a study of the tokamak fusion DEMO in 2018. This study consisted of 1) a review of the international fusion literature on the fusion DEMO and supporting physics and technology studies, 2) the tabulation of REFERENCE parameters and materials recommended in various national DEMO studies, 3) the selection of a GUIDING set of DEMO parameters that would be realistically achievable within the next 1-2 decades and that would result in a demonstration of the practical production of electrical power by fusion, and 4) a preliminary performance analysis of such a tokamak fusion DEMO to confirm the consistency of the Guiding Parameters. The performance analysis was carried out in the three areas: 1) plasma physics; 2) plasma confinement technology; and 3) fusion nuclear technology.

More details and presentations can be found here: https://frc.gatech.edu/georgia-tech-fusion-demo-study-2018/