"Sound design" for poloidal field coils

Last week in Cadarache, representatives from the ITER Organization, the Russian and the European Domestic Agencies, and external experts met to review the ITER poloidal field coil design. The overall conclusion of the three-day review chaired by Michel Huguet was that the coil design is sound and forms an acceptable basis for the issue of the Procurement Arrangement which is expected to be signed in April 2009.

"The schedule is tight," said Gary Johnson, Deputy Director-General, Head of the ITER Tokamak Department in his opening remarks. "The ITER magnets are on the critical path and this meeting is an important milestone towards starting the fabrication."

Reviewers confirmed that results from the poloidal field insert test at Naka, Japan, in July 2008 have demonstrated that the conductor is able to meet the coil requirements for temperature margins, stability and AC loss. For the coils, reviewers found that the basic design concepts are sound. Some analysis and design adjustments in the region of the joints, as well as general documentation, are to be completed in the next six weeks before the Procurement Arrangements are signed. The reviewers stressed the need for careful design in these regions because of the high voltages at which the coils operate, with test voltages close to 30kV expected.