On Aug 10, 2021, General Atomics (GA) marked the successful completion and shipment of the first module of the ITER Central Solenoid with a celebration at the firm’s Magnet Technologies Center in California. As the design and development unit of the large superconducting feeder system of the Central Solenoid, ASIPP was invited to attend the witness the celebration.

The Central Solenoid is a critical component of the ITER experiment, an international collaboration of 35 nations that will demonstrate the feasibility of fusion energy. When fully assembled, this massive magnet will be 59 feet tall and 14 feet in diameter, and will weigh a thousand tons. Often referred to as the “heart of the ITER facility,” it will drive 15 million amperes of electrical current that will be used to shape and control the fusion reaction.

The first Central Solenoid module recently arrived in France after being shipped from the California in late June. It is scheduled to reach the ITER site in the coming weeks. Five additional modules, plus one spare, are at various stages of fabrication, with the second module expected to ship this month. The Central Solenoid will be assembled as the modules arrive on site and is scheduled to be fully installed in the 2023-24 timeframe. ITER is scheduled to begin its first plasma operations in 2025.

Back to 2015, the large superconducting feeder system that GA entrusted to ASIPP, was successfully developed and demonstrated at ASIPP with the cooperation with GA. The system, which will be used for ITER Central Solenoid Module (CSM) testing, has passed the full current steady-state test at 55kA and a number of other tests designed to simulate various operational modes. The design and integration, manufacturing and assembly, and factory acceptance testing were accomplished in cooperation with GA.

ASIPP gathered to witness the celebration

Large superconducting feeder system of central solenoid coil developed by ASIPP

General Atomics has completed fabrication and testing of the first two ITER Central Solenoid modules. Module 1, at right, is currently in transit to the ITER site in France. Module 2, at left, is preparing to ship this month.

Contact:

ZHAO Weiwei
Hefei Institutes of Physical Science (http://english.hf.cas.cn/)
Email: annyzhao@ipp.ac.cn