23 Oct (NucNet): Fusion for Energy (F4E) has signed an “engineering integrator” contract with ASG Superconductors of Italy for the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) poloidal field coils. The contract is worth approximately 27.5 million euros (EUR) (37.8 million US dollars) and will make use of a team of 20 engineers.
The contract is the first of a number of so-called “work packages” that will cover tooling, site and infrastructure, manufacturing and cold testing, F4E said.
ASG will be responsible for producing a manufacturing plan for ITER’s poloidal field coils. The plan will define the manufacturing layout and workflow, including manufacturing drawings and procedures for the production of all the poloidal field coils to be produced at ITER’s onsite poloidal field coils winding facility at Cadarache, France.
Europe is responsible for overseeing the fabrication and testing of ITER poloidal field coils numbers two to six. Poloidal field coil number one will be supplied by Russia. Coils two to five will be manufactured and tested in Europe, while coil six will be manufactured in China and cold tested in Europe. Cold testing will involve cooling the coils to low temperatures of 80 kelvin (minus 193 degrees Celsius) to reproduce the thermal stresses that will be experienced during ITER operation.
The poloidal field coils help generate the magnetic field to maintain the plasma’s shape and stability inside the tokamak, providing the conditions for the fusion reaction. The poloidal field coil system consists of six horizontal, circular coils placed outside the toroidal magnet structure. Due to their very large size – making transport difficult – manufacture of four of the six PF coils will take place in the PF coil winding facility.
In addition to the ASG contract, work packages are under preparation by F4E to cover the tooling, site and infrastructure, manufacturing and cold testing of the poloidal field coils. F4E said the focus will now be on implementing the ASG contract and negotiating the next procurement, which is for the tooling necessary for winding operations.
F4E was created under the Euratom Treaty and is responsible for providing Europe’s contribution to ITER.
ITER, under construction at Cadarache, is intended to demonstrate the scientific and technological feasibility of fusion power. It will be the world’s largest experimental fusion facility. Fusion is the process which powers the sun and the stars. When light atomic nuclei fuse together to form heavier ones, a large amount of energy is released.
ITER is a first-of-a-kind global collaboration. Europe will contribute 45 percent of its construction costs, while the other six members to the venture (China, India, Japan, South Korea, Russia and the US), will contribute equally to the rest. The total cost of the project has been estimated at EUR 15 billion.
