Use of EPICS and Python technology for the development of a computational toolkit for high heat flux testing of plasma facing components

Abstract

The high heat flux testing and characterization of the divertor and first wall components are a challenging engineering problem of a tokamak. These components are subject to steady state and transient heat load of high magnitude. Therefore, the accurate prediction and control of the cooling parameters is crucial to prevent burnout. The prediction of the cooling parameters is based on the numerical solution of the critical heat flux (CHF) model. In a test facility for high heat flux testing of plasma facing components (PFC), the integration of computations and experimental control is an essential requirement. Experimental physics and industrial control system (EPICS) provides powerful tools for steering controls, data simulation, hardware interfacing and wider usability. Python provides an open source alternative for numerical computations and scripting. We have integrated these two open source technologies to develop a graphical software for a typical high heat flux experiment. The implementation uses EPICS based tools namely IOC (I/O controller) server, control system studio (CSS) and Python based tools namely Numpy, Scipy, Matplotlib and NOSE. EPICS and Python are integrated using PyEpics library. This toolkit is currently under operation at high heat flux test facility at Institute for Plasma Research (IPR) and is also useful for the experimental labs working in the similar research areas. The paper reports the software architectural design, implementation tools and rationale for their selection, test and validation.