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Boedo, J

Publications and source records attributed to Boedo, J.

4 records
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2011

Reduced model simulations of the scrape-off-layer heat-flux width and comparison with experiment

Reduced model simulations of turbulence in the edge and scrape-off-layer (SOL) region of a spherical torus or tokamak plasma are employed to address the physics of the scrape-off-layer heat flux width. The simulation model is an electrostatic two-dimensional fluid turbulence model, applied in the plane perpendicular to the magnetic field at the outboard midplane of the torus. The model contains curvature-driven-interchange modes, sheath losses, and both perpendicular turbulent diffusive and convective (blob) transport. These transport processes compete with classical parallel transport to set the SOL width. Midplane SOL profiles of density, temperature and parallel heat flux are obtained from the simulation and compared with experimental results from the National Spherical Torus Experiment (NSTX) to study the scaling of the heat flux width with power and plasma current. It is concluded that midplane turbulence is the main contributor to the SOL heat flux width for the low power H-mode discharges studied, while additional physics is required to explain the plasma current scaling of the SOL heat flux width observed experimentally in higher power discharges. Intermittent separatrix spanning convective cells are found to be the main mechanism that sets the near-SOL width in the simulations. The roles of sheared flows and blob trapping vs. emission are discussed.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2011

ITER Test Blanket Module Error Field Simulation Experiments at DIII-D

Experiments at DIII-D investigated the effects of magnetic error fields similar to those expected from proposed ITER test blanket modules (TBMs) containing ferromagnetic material. Studied were effects on: plasma rotation and locking, confinement, L-H transition, the H-mode pedestal, edge localized modes (ELMs) and ELM suppression by resonant magnetic perturbations, energetic particle losses, and more. The experiments used a purpose-built three-coil mock-up of two magnetized ITER TBMs in one ITER equatorial port. The largest effect was a reduction in plasma toroidal rotation velocity v across the entire radial profile by as much as Delta upsilon/upsilon similar to 60% via non-resonant braking. Changes to global Delta n/n, Delta beta/beta and Delta H(98)/H(98) were similar to 3 times smaller. These effects are stronger at higher beta. Other effects were smaller. The TBM field increased sensitivity to locking by an applied known n = 1 test field in both L-and H-mode plasmas. Locked mode tolerance was completely restored in L-mode by re-adjusting the DIII-D n = 1 error field compensation system. Numerical modelling by IPEC reproduces the rotation braking and locking semi-quantitatively, and identifies plasma amplification of a few n = 1 Fourier harmonics as the main cause of braking. IPEC predicts that TBM braking in H-mode may be reduced by n = 1 control. Although extrapolation from DIII-D to ITER is still an open issue, these experiments suggest that a TBM-like error field will produce only a few potentially troublesome problems, and that they might be made acceptably small.

Schaffer, M J↗