Image of the week
15th D-shaped coil delivered
16 Jan 2023
Fifteen out of ITER's 19 D-shaped toroidal field coils have been delivered.
TF15 from Japan was delivered to ITER in the wee hours of Friday 13 January. © Jean-Marie Hosatte - REA
Toroidal field coils are among the largest and heaviest components of the ITER machine. Weighing approximately 330 tonnes each and measuring 9 x 17 metres, they stand in a circle around the steel vacuum vessel and generate a powerful magnetic field (11.8 Tesla) whose primary function is to confine the plasma.
Of the 18 toroidal field coils required by the ITER machine (plus one spare), 10 are procured by Europe and 9 by Japan.
The first European coil (TF9) was delivered to the ITER site on 17 April 2020, followed a week later by TF12 from Japan.
Last week, in the wee hours of Friday 13 January, Japan delivered its seventh toroidal field coil (TF15, pictured here). After Europe delivers TF1 later this week, a total of 16 toroidal field coils will have been received on the ITER site—leaving only three more to be delivered.