To remove the heat from the components closest to the plasma, the tokamak cooling water system will rely on over 36 kilometres of nuclear-grade piping and fittings as well as a large number supports, valves, pumps, heat exchangers and tanks—all integrated into the limited space of the Tokamak Complex. The way has now been cleared for the fabrication and assembly of this complex system, after a final design review was held successfully held in November for the elements that need to be in place by First Plasma. At your home, water is delivered to the tap at a flow rate of 0.1 m³/ second, a velocity of 1 metre/ second, and at a pressure of around 3.5 bars.    In contrast, the water will surge through the pipes of ITER's tokamak cooling water system (TCWS) at a flow rate of 5 m³/second, a velocity of 10 metres/second, and a pressure of 14 bars (up to 50 bars at the pump outlet).   The TCWS is a one-of-a-kind nuclear system that is similar in complexity and scope to the cooling systems in a commercial nuclear power plant but—because of the unique design architecture of the machine—is much larger in size. The cooling system will have the capacity to remove up to a gigawatt of heat from the Tokamak. (For perspective, a gigawatt—one billion watts—provides enough power for the needs of a small city.) The TCWS will also provide capabilities that are not used in power plants, such as baking and drying in-vessel components, leak detection, and tokamak maintenance. The system will interface with the secondary cooling system, provided by India, as well as with other ITER plant systems. System layout and design have been challenging for a number of reasons, including limited space, a large number of interfacing systems, and the fact that—as a safety-important system for the containment of radioactive water—TCWS components must comply with French nuclear pressure equipment directives. All 36 kilometres (1,200 tonnes) of piping and fittings, along with 12,000 structural supports, 3,000 valves, and 100 pieces of equipment will be installed in tight spaces inside the Tokamak Complex.   An innovative arrangement was founded in 2013 to ensure that the procurement and integration could be carried out in the most efficient and cost-effective manner possible. While the global responsibility for the TCWS remains with the US Domestic Agency, part of the scope (including final design, and the procurement of piping) was transferred to a US-funded team based at ITER Organization headquarters, which is carrying out these activities on behalf of US ITER.   The design was done in-house at ITER on behalf of the US Domestic Agency. A small team, plus outside engineering support, was the most efficient and cost-effective way to go about the final design of the system. (Team head Moustafa Moteleb is pictured in the back right-hand corner.) Moustafa Moteleb heads the Tokamak Cooling Water System Division at ITER. "With a team of fewer than 30 people at ITER Headquarters, we have been able to produce high-quality work ... improving the initial design of the system, reducing cost, and bringing the first-round of components to the required level of maturity. We have been using Earned Value Management from the start to monitor our own performance against the schedule and to track cost savings."   The final design solution proposed by the ITER TCWS team addresses the important issue of the protecting electronics inside the Tokamak from the effect of activated cooling water—an issue that had been flagged at an earlier design stage. Through the use of specialized expertise and precise modelling tools, the team was able to propose a solution that meets all project requirements on safety.   "The design incorporates a configuration that was approved by Director-General Bigot in June 2015, which significantly improved the investment protection of electronics," says Moustafa. "For many areas, the strategy focused on additional shielding, relocation, and/or the qualification of electronics to withstand the harsh environment. While planning for in-service inspection of TCWS components remains a challenge due to the congestion of equipment, worker exposure rates inside the Tokamak are well below acceptable norms in fission plants."   Now the design of the TCWS piping and components has been confirmed—first at a design readiness review held at US ITER in September, followed by two design integration reviews at ITER in October, and finally in a three-day final review in November attended by approximately 40 experts from the ITER Organization, US ITER, and the industry.   The manufacturing of critical components like heat exchangers and pressurizers, expected on site from 2021 on, can begin.   "It is very exciting to be entering this new phase, with a major part of the design behind us and manufacturing contracts planned in 2018," says Moustafa. "The TCWS team at the ITER Organization dedicates this successful final design review for first-phase components to Responsible Officers Jan Berry and Brad Nelson, who have recently retired from US ITER. They have been involved since the system conceptual design, and without their strong contributions over the years we could not be where we are today."   As for the TCWS team at ITER, they have their work set out for them with the design of second-phase components as well as pre-fabrication engineering studies to reduce the amount of pipe welding carried out on site. Pipe installation will begin in late 2019 inside the Tokamak.

Let's play the "spot the differences" game between these two general views of the ITER site, one taken last Thursday 18 January, the other three months ago on 11 October. At first view nothing stands out as being dramatically different. But on closer inspection, most everything has changed.   In the Tokamak Complex to the left, the bioshield has come full circle, at least visually. Only 30 percent of the last level (L4) remains to be poured, and this work should be completed in the coming weeks.   Just outside of the bioshield, in the area of the Tokamak Building that will host neutral beam injection equipment, many new columns are in place. These strong pillars will support the next-level floor slab (L3).   Running vertically down the centre of the photograph, columns and formwork are in place for what will be the roof (L4) of the Diagnostics Building.   As for the plant buildings on the right, the changes are mostly taking place on the inside with the installation of equipment and services. In the months to come, however, we can expect to see the first large tanks going up along the cryoplant (second building from the top)—11 will be installed in all.    More details in the photo gallery below.

It is not unusual in the course of a work day at the world's largest scientific experiment to rely on creativity to resolve the challenge at hand. But less common, is when an inventor's technique is rewarded for not only adding value to ITER, but also attracting the interest of outside firms. A case in point. An expert in nuclear analysis and shielding at ITER, Michael Loughlin's job is to understand and model the behaviour of neutrons in order to shield both equipment and people from their impact.   In the course of his work he had the idea for a web-based application for radiation mapping that was then developed under contract by AMEC (now part of the Wood Group). ITER licensed this software to AMEC for commercial exploitation in 2013—the first time that ITER issued a license for intellectual property developed to address an ITER-specific issue.   On 8 January, Loughlin received recognition for his creativity and inventiveness from the ITER Director-General. "It is important to demonstrate that we deliver real innovation," said Bernard Bigot as he presented Loughlin with the award. "I hope to encourage others to follow this example."   So, what is this innovation about? Nuclear fusion creates radiation in the immediate environment of the fusion reactor through escaping neutrons and gamma rays. Materials and equipment need to be able to withstand that radiation and people need to be protected against its harmful effects.   In the conception of their systems, engineers need to know about the radiation conditions at any location within the Tokamak Building and two adjacent buildings, the Tritium and Diagnostics buildings. Extensive calculations have been carried out, Loughlin explains. "We predicted and modelled what the radiation is likely going to be." The modelling considered data on the geometry and structure of the buildings—including information on materials, thickness of walls and floors, openings, and pipes systems—and on how radiation would travel in these locations.   The software tool helps to visualize radiation conditions in any given location in the Tokamak Complex by producing 3D maps. The result is an enormous database. Loughlin's initial idea led to the creation of a software tool that provides access to the database, helps query it, and then produces 3D radiation maps for any location within the buildings during the different operating phases of ITER. The user-friendly application is web-based and can be run on mobile devices.   Who might be interested in the software? There are a number of industries that could find this software application useful, such as the nuclear fission industry or medial facilities using radiation technology. "It's for anybody who wants to have a good overview over radiation conditions in a facility," says Loughlin.

Tullio Bonicelli, in charge of Europe's contributions to the ITER neutral beam heating system, calls them "beyond state-of-the-art components." The high voltage deck and bushing assembly for ITER's prototype neutral beam injector have been installed at the Neutral Beam Test Facility* in Padua, Italy. At the test facility for ITER's most powerful heating system, two separate development projects are underway: SPIDER, to characterize the high-energy negative ion source of neutral beam heating, and MITICA, a full-size prototype of the 1 MV beam injectors.   In the high-voltage hall of MITICA, two new pieces of equipment have taken their place, not far from components delivered by Japan in November.   The first—a two-storey metallic box on eight "legs"—stands more than six metres overhead, and contains transformers, power distribution systems, converters and control cubicles weighing approximately 50 tonnes. The role of the high voltage deck is to isolate the power supplies of the ion source from the ground. Nearby, the high voltage bushing, which will connect the ion source power supplies to the transmission line, stands 12 metres tall.   The high-voltage bushing first passed electrical tests at HSP Gmbh, Germany, before being delivered to the PRIMA neutral beam test facility in Italy. All required site tests have been completed. ©SIEMENS All assembly and testing activities on the equipment have been completed.   Three years of collaboration between the European Domestic Agency teams and industrial contractor Siemens were necessary to develop the non-standard equipment, which was not available on the market.   "The successful delivery and installation of these 'beyond the state-of-art' components at the MITICA facility paves the way for more tests that will be performed during the second half of the year, after the equipment is connected to the transmission line," according to Tullio Bonicelli, Hhad of the European Domestic Agency's Neutral Beam and Electron Cyclotron, Power Supplies and Sources. "The operation of such extensive system at 1 MV is not only challenging but also unprecedented."   Read the full report on the European Domestic Agency website.   * The ITER neutral beam test facility (NBTF), also called PRIMA, is a joint international effort to develop the neutral beam injector prototypes for ITER hosted by the Italian fusion laboratory Consorzio RFX. Europe, Japan and India are contributing all components according to the specifications of Procurement Arrangements signed with the ITER Organization; Italy hosts the facility and provides the buildings and a large contribution to the manpower.

Bored with the Kardashians? Not interested in your regular TV program? You can now tune in to a new channel that will allow you to follow—in real time!—the construction of the Tokamak Complex. Streamed from a video camera mounted 60 metres above platform level, the footage gives you an eagle eye's view of the ongoing activities in the Holy of Holies of the ITER Project —day and night, any day, any hour. Follow this link to the ITER homepage.

On 18 December 2017, the current was raised in the divertor coils and the very first X-point plasma was obtained in the WEST tokamak (France). The current was raised in limiter configuration up to 500 kA and controlled during a couple of seconds, while the divertor coils entered into action and an ITER-like configuration was reached. The WEST project consists in transforming the former Tore Supra tokamak in order to extend its long pulse capability and test ITER's divertor technology. The implementation of a full tungsten, actively cooled divertor with plasma-facing units that are representative of ITER's divertor targets will allow scientists and engineers to address the risks both in terms of industrial-scale manufacturing and operation. Read all about the test campaign underway in WEST's December 2017 newsletter here.

Early January, ITER's Director-General spoke with Foro Nuclear, the Spanish nuclear industry forum. The exchange covered the challenge of leading a multicultural project, the critical phase ahead as ITER begins assembly activities, and Bernard Bigot's conviction that there is nothing more exciting, more motivating, than contributing to a project that could change the course of civilization for hundreds of thousands of years. Excerpts below On managing one of the world's largest research projects: I accepted the Council's offer at a crucial moment in ITER history, when the project was entering into manufacturing and preparations for assembly. This new phase required a new organization—one tailored to meet the double challenge of delivering an installation that is both a research facility and an industrial facility.  What we needed at that point and need even more today was integration. ITER is a complex structure, with a central team here in France and seven "domestic agencies" emanating from the seven ITER Members that are responsible for the in-kind procurement of machine components and installation systems. To achieve this integration, we needed a clear, centralized decision-making process under the authority of the Director-General. This being established and accepted by all, we could move on, as "One ITER," to promote and establish a project culture based on shared values of excellence, adherence to commitments, adherence to schedule and budget, and careful and effective use of public funds. And all the while making safety and quality our highest priority. On striving for excellence in a multicultural environment: How do we achieve harmony and efficiency? Through mutual respect and the understanding that each culture has its own work habits, traditions and "best practices." However at the end of the day, after well documented debates, decisions have to be taken and implemented by all. The global world we live in has not erased national particularisms. But instead of seeing this as a problem, we see it as an asset: we are building a project culture in a way that takes advantage of the diversity of these "best practices" to achieve an optimal result.  On considering a job at ITER: I've often said that, when joining ITER you symbolically abandon your nationality. You become Iternational... Working at ITER is very demanding but it is also very rewarding. Can you think of something more exciting, more motivating, than contributing to a project that can change the course of civilization for hundreds of thousands of years? On the importance of fusion My conviction is that in the second half of this century, beyond 2060, we will have accumulated enough knowledge and experience to create a large fusion industry—just like in the past decades we have created an oil, gas or nuclear fission industry. But like with any of these industries, the decision will be both technical and political and rest in the individual governments' and investors' hands. Follow these links to read the article in English or Spanish.