Negative-ion-based Neutral Beam Injection Research Articles

Reactor relevant current drive and heating by N-NBI on JT-60U

The current drive capability of negative ion based neutral beam injection (N-NBI) in JT-60U has been extended to the reactor relevant regime.The driven current profile and current drive efficiency have been evaluated in a high electron temperature regime Te(0) ≈ 10 keV, and reasonable agreement with the theoretical prediction has been confirmed in this regime. TheN-NB driven current reached 1 MA with an injection power of 3.75 MW at a beam energy of 360 keV. A current drive efficiency of 1.55 × 1019A m-2 W-1, approaching the ITER requirement, was achieved in the high βp H mode plasma with Te(0) ≈ 13 keV.This current drive performance permitted sustainment of a high beta (βN = 2.5) and high confinement (HHy2 = 1.4) plasma in the full current driven condition at a plasma current of 1.5 MA. The influence of instabilities on the N-NBI current drive was studied.When a burst-like instability driven by N-NBI occurred in the central region, reductions in loop voltage near the magnetic axis and in the neutron production rate due to loss of beam ions were observed although the lost driven current was at most ∼7% of the total driven current.When a neoclassical tearing instability appeared in high beta plasmas, the loss of beam ions was enhanced with increasing instability activity.

Operation of the negative ion-based neutral beam injection system during Large Helical Device experimental campaigns

The Large Helical Device (LHD) is the only machine that relies upon negative ion-based neutral beam injection system (NBI) as the principal heating power source. Since the first injection in 1998, NBI has been used to heat over 3000 shots for 2 years. Performance has progressed step by step to reach an injection power of 4.5 MW, with beam energy up to 165 keV, and pulse lengths up to 80 s at 0.5 MW. System operating level has reached ∼30% of the design power and ∼65% of the H − design current. This tangential high-energy NBI system based on negative ions has proved to be as efficient a heating system in a helical device as in a tokamak. The ratio of injection neutral beam power to high voltage drain power (injection power efficiency) was typically about 0.3. This is a low efficiency compared to the design one. For long pulse injection beam blocking (such as observed on PLT) was encountered, but it did not limit the operation. In order to achieve the design output of 15 MW, a great R&D effort is underway on the negative ion test stand to improve the performance of 40 A 180 keV negative hydrogen ion source.

Progress of JT-60U facilities and experimental research toward steady high performance plasmas

This paper briefly describes the status of JT-60 facilities, a negative ion based NBI (N-NBI) system, an ECRF system recently introduced and a W-shaped divertor, and presents recent experimental progress showing control potential of these systems for steady tokamak operations; current driving potential of the N-NBI system, local current drive/heating potential of the ECRF system and pumping performance of inner-leg pumping and both-leg pumping systems. A possibility is also shown of controlling the strength of internal transport barrier in reversed shear modes by conventional tangential NBI system with a suitable combination of co- and counter beams.

Beam divergence and power loading on the beamline components of the negative-ion based NBI system for JT-60U

In JT-60U, a high-energy neutral beam injection (NBI) program using negative-ion based NBI (N-NBI) for non-inductive current drive and core plasma heating studies in high-density plasma has progressed. The target performance of the N-NBI is a neutral beam injection power of 10 MW for 10 s at 500 keV. A neutral beam power of 5.2 MW at 350 keV with deuterium has already been injected into JT-60U plasma. The beam divergence and power loading onto the beamline components are two important items to evaluate beam performance. The beam divergence, estimated roughly from heat loads at the beam drift duct in beam injection experiments into JT-60U plasma, was around 4 mrad for the horizontal direction and 6 mrad for the vertical direction, which were close to the design values of 5 mrad. The power loading on beamline components were reasonable as compared with the design value.

Fusion gamma-ray measurements for D–3He experiments at JT-60U

Fusion gamma rays were measured in D–3He experiments using negative ion-based neutral beam injection (N-NBI) in reverse shear plasmas of the JT-60 tokamak. He3 gas was puffed at plasma initiation and just before N-NB injection. The D–3He reaction produces 3.6 MeV alphas and 14.7 MeV protons, but there is also a small branch which provides Li5 and 16.7 MeV gamma rays. The total D–3He reaction rate can be evaluated from measurement of gamma rays of the He3 (d,γ) 5Li reactions using a 3 in. diam by 3 in. long Bi4Ge3O12 scintillator. The gamma-ray detector was located 17 m below the plasma center and measured the gamma-rays in a vertical line of sight. The detector was mounted inside a heavy collimator with polyethylene and lead shielding. The floor penetration, a 4×8 cm2 hole, was used as a precollimator. Energy calibration of the detector was done with photopeaks for neutron capture gamma rays from the structural materials in D–D discharges. The detection efficiency was calculated with Monte Carlo code MCNP-4B for 16.7 MeV gammas. The pulse height analysis of the gamma rays resulted in the D–3He fusion power of 110±30 kW in this experiment.

Fast particle experiments in JT-60U

Results of fast particle experiments in JT-60U are presented. The fast particles were created with ICRF heating and negative ion based neutral beam injection (N-NBI) heating. With both heating systems Alfvén eigenmodes (AEs) were excited. The AEs that were excited with ICRF during sawtooth stabilization experiments are used to extract information about the magnetic safety profile in the plasma centre. These measurements are compared with motional Stark effect measurements and with sawtooth models. The first results on the radial mode structure of TAEs as measured with an X mode reflectometer system are also given. When the N-NBI beam was injected into a sawtoothing plasma, a significant increase in sawtooth period was observed. A survey is given of the bursting, chirping and stationary frequency modes that have been found in the Alfvén range of frequencies when N-NBI was injected. Most, but not all, of these modes scale with the Alfvén velocity. One group of modes that starts in the continuum and chirps up to the toroidicity induced Alfvén eigenmode (TAE) gap in typically 200 ms can be identified as resonant TAEs, whereas another group of modes appears as short bursts (up to 20 ms) in the Alfvén continuum.

Initial long-pulse plasma heating at reduced power with negative-ion-based neutral beam injector in large helical device

We have achieved long-pulse plasma heating using a negative-ion-based neutral beam injector (NBI) in the large helical device (LHD), where the confinement magnetic field is generated by only external superconducting coils. In the initial long-pulse experiments at lower power than that in short-pulse experiments, 80 keV–1.1 MW NBI heating lasted for 10 s with a little increase in the plasma density at the pulse end. Almost steady-state plasma heating was achieved for 21 s with 66 keV–0.6 MW NB injection. Plasma relaxation oscillation phenomena at a period of 1–2 s were also observed for 20 s. Above 1 keV plasma was easily sustained with a long-pulse NBI heating in LHD, without the current drive nor the disruption in tokamaks. Negative ion source operation was stable and the cooling water temperature rise of beam accelerator grids was nearly saturated with a temperature rise below 10 °C. For a higher power injection, the pulse duration is determined by the beam blocking, where the reionization loss is exponentially increased together with an increase in outgas in the injection port. The port conditioning by a careful repetition of injection is effective to the extension of the injection duration and the plasma maintenance duration. The initial long-pulse NBI heating at the reduced power has demonstrated an ability of steady-state operation in superconducting LHD.

JT-60U high performance regimes

High performance regimes of JT-60U plasmas are presented with an emphasis upon the results from the use of a semiclosed pumped divertor with a W shaped geometry. Plasma performance in transient and quasi-steady states has been significantly improved in reversed shear and high βp regimes. The reversed shear regime elevated an equivalent QeqDT transiently up to 1.25 (nD(0) τETi(0) = 8.6 × 1020m-3·s·keV) in a reactor relevant thermonuclear dominant regime. Long sustainment of enhanced confinement with internal transport barriers (ITBs) with fully non-inductive current drive in a reversed shear discharge was successfully demonstrated with LH wave injection. Performance sustainment has been extended in the high βp regime with high triangularity, achieving a long sustainment of plasma conditions equivalent to QeqDT ≈ 0.16 (nD(0) τETi(0) ≈ 1.4 × 1020 m-3·s·keV) for ∼4.5 s with a large non-inductive current drive fraction of 60-70% of the plasma current. Thermal and particle transport analyses show significant reduction of thermal and particle diffusivities around the ITB, resulting in a strong Er shear in the ITB region. The W shaped divertor is effective for helium ash exhaust, demonstrating a steady exhaust capability of τ*He/τE ≈ 3-10, which is favourable for ITER. Suppression of neutral backflow and chemical sputtering effects has been observed, while MARFE onset density is rather decreased. Negative ion based neutral beam injection (N-NBI) experiments have created a clear H mode transition. An enhanced ionization cross-section due to multistep ionization processes was confirmed as theoretically predicted. A current density profile driven by N-NBI is measured in good agreement with the theoretical prediction. N-NBI induced TAEs characterized as persistent and bursting oscillations have been observed from a low hot β of ⟨βh⟩ ≈ 0.1-0.2% without a significant loss of fast ions.

Recent progress in high performance and steady-state experiments on the Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute Tokamak-60 Upgrade with W-shaped divertor

In the Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute (JAERI) Tokamak-60 Upgrade [H. Shirai and the JT-60 Team, Phys. Plasmas 5, 1712 (1998)], high performance and steady-state experiments have been conducted in the W-shaped divertor. The equivalent deuterium-tritium (D-T) fusion multiplication factor, QDTeq, was enhanced transiently up to 1.25 in the reversed shear plasma. The reduction in particle diffusivity in the internal transport barriers (ITB) region of the reversed shear plasma was confirmed as well as the thermal diffusivity. It was also confirmed that the correlation length of density fluctuations is reduced inside the ITB of density. The performance with a confinement-enhancement factor (H-factor, H89) of 2.2 and QDTeq of 0.16 was sustained in a quasi-steady-state in the high-poloidal-beta (βp) and high confinement mode (H-mode) regime. The reversed shear configuration with ITBs was sustained by injecting the lower-hybrid waves combined with neutral beam injection and fully noninductive current drive in the reversed shear plasmas was realized for the first time. The driven current by the negative-ion-based neutral beam (NNB) injection increased up to 0.6 MA. The H-mode transition was triggered with the NNB injection and the H-mode with H89∼1.6–1.8 was sustained. The toroidicity-induced Alfvén eigenmode was excited for a volume-averaged fast ion beta, 〈βh〉, as low as ∼0.1%.

Development of Negative-Ion Based NBI System for JT-60

The negative-ion based neutral beam injector (N-NBI) for JT-60 has been developed for plasma core heating and neutral beam current drive in higher density plasmas. Construction of the N-NBI system was completed in 1996, and just after this completion, the efforts to increase beam power and beam energy started. The N-NBI system has already operated with negative ion beams with 14.3 A at 380 keV of deuterium and with 18.5A at 360 keV of hydrogen. During N-NBI experiments on JT-60, a deuterium neutral beam power of 5.2MW at 350keV has been injected for 0.7s stably, and the response of the JT-60 plasma to high energy beam injection with the N-NBI has been confirmed to be in agreement with a theoretical prediction.

Beamline performance of 500 keV negative ion-based NBI system for JT-60U

Construction of the 500 keV negative-ion-based NBI system (N-NBI) with its maximum capability of 10 MW and 10 s for NB current drive and plasma core heating in high-density plasmas in JT-60 was completed in March 1996. The neutral beam injection into JT-60 with N-NBI has been performed since then. One of the key issues in the injection was how to control the bending magnetic field for residual ion beams. In N-NBI for JT-60, a stray magnetic field from the tokamak was actively used for bending of the residual ion beams. Combination of the stray magnetic field from JT-60 and the magnetic field of the deflecting coils was controlled sufficiently to successfully deposit residual ion beams at a constant point on the ion dump surface. The deposited positive and negative beam profiles on the ion dump were measured with an array of thermocouples brazed on the dump surface. This report describes the performance test of bending the residual ion beams and the measurement of the heat load on the ion dump for JT-60 N-NBI experiments.

Three-dimensional analysis of ion beam deflection by the magnetic field at H− ion sources for the negative-ion-based neutral beam injection

In negative-ion-based neutral beam injection (NBI) systems for the large helical device (LHD), beams must be transported over 13 m from the H− ion source to the injection port. In order to clarify beam deflection by the electron deflection magnets set in a beam extraction grid (EG) and to control beam transport direction, we analyzed beam trajectories. The physics of the beam deflection was studied with theoretical calculations and the deflection angle was estimated by 3D beam trajectory simulation. The evaluated deflection angle was 10 mrad in the opposite direction of the electron deflection when the maximum magnetic field on the beam axis was 480 G and the beam energy was 83.2 keV. The electrostatic lens effect on the beam deflection at the EG exit was estimated to be larger than the magnetic field effect. This deflection was reduced to 2 mrad by a 1.3 mm displacement of the grounded grid (GG) aperture, a result in agreement with experimental results of a 1/3-scale model for the LHD ion source. The maximum GG aperture displacement of the LHD ion source was designed as 3.4 mm to reduce the deflection and to focus multibeamlets using the simulation. We have developed the ion source with this design. The targeted performance is a production of H− beams of 40 A (40 mA/cm2), 180 keV.

High-current negative-ion beam acceleration with a large negative-ion source for large helical device-neutral beam injection system

A large hydrogen negative-ion source was constructed as a prototype one for the negative-ion-based neutral beam injection (NBI) system in large helical device. The ion source is designed to produce 180 keV-40 A of the negative ion beam with a current density of 40 mA/cm2, and is a cesium-seeded volume production source characterized by the external magnetic filter. The arc chamber of multicusp bucket is rectangular of 35 cm×145 cm in cross section and 21 cm in depth. The accelerator is a three-grid single-stage one, and the total grid area is 25 cm×125 cm, which is divided into five sections. The ion source was installed on the negative-ion-based NBI test-stand, and using one section of the grid 5.5 A of the negative-ion beam was produced at a gas pressure of 1.8 mTorr corresponding to a current density of 27.5 mA/cm2. The extracted electron current is low of 50% of the negative ion current, and the acceleration efficiency, defined as the negative ion current divided by the acceleration drain current, is more than 75%. The ion source operation with the full grid area has just started, and, so far, 21 A of the negative ion beam was obtained. The large area beam has been successfully focused by both the geometrical arrangement of five grid sections and the aperture displacement technique of the grounded grid.

Development of Negative-Ion Based NBI System for JT-60.

The negative-ion based neutral beam injector (N-NBI) for JT-60 has been developed for plasma core heating and neutral beam current drive in higher density plasmas. Construction of the N-NBI system was completed in 1996, and just after this completion, the efforts to increase beam power and beam energy started. The N-NBI system has already operated with negative ion beams with 14.3 A at 380 keV of deuterium and with 18.5A at 360 keV of hydrogen. During N-NBI experiments on JT-60, a deuterium neutral beam power of 5.2MW at 350keV has been injected for 0.7s stably, and the response of the JT-60 plasma to high energy beam injection with the N-NBI has been confirmed to be in agreement with a theoretical prediction.

Recent progress of high-power negative ion beam development for fusion plasma heating

A negative-ion-based neutral beam injector (N-NBI) has been constructed for JT-60U. The N-NBI is designed to inject 500 keV, 10 MW neutral beams using two ion sources, each producing a 500 keV, 22 A D − ion beam. In the preliminary experiment using one ion source, a D − ion beam of 13.5 A has been successfully accelerated with an energy of 400 keV (5.4 MW) for 0.12 s at an operating pressure of 0.22 Pa. This is the highest D − beam current and power in the world. Co-extracted electron current was effectively suppressed to the ratio of Ie/ I D − < 1. The highest energy beam of 460 keV, 2.4 A, 0.44 s has also been obtained. To realize 1 MeV class NBI system for ITER (International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor), demonstration of ampere class negative ion beam acceleration up to 1 MeV is an important mile stone. To achieve the mile stone, a prototype accelerator and a 1 MV, 1 A test facility called MeV Test Facility (MTF) were constructed. Up to now, an H − ion beam was accelerated up to the energy of 805 keV with an acceleration drain current of 150 mA for 1 s in a five stage electrostatic multi-aperture accelerator.

Production of high-current large-area H/sup -/ beams by a bucket-type ion source equipped with a magnetic filter

A negative-ion-based neutral beam injection (NBI) system is planned for plasma heating of the Large Helical Device (LHD). We have developed a negative ion source, which is 1/3 the scale of the source for the NBI. A magnetic filter held was generated by external permanent magnets to lower the electron temperature in a large-area bucket plasma source (35 cm/spl times/62 cm) for efficient H/sup -/ production. We investigated the magnetic field configuration and found a low electron temperature high density plasma ( 15 A: 1/3 current of LHD ion source). Based on the results, we are designing a negative ion source for the LHD.

Design and R&amp;D for ITER NBI System at Jaeri

A 1 MeV, 50 MW Negative-ion-based Neutral Beam Injector (N-NBI) is proposed as a promising heating and current drive system for International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER). The most cru...

Development of a 500 keV, 22 A D− ion source for the neutral beam injector for JT-60U

The first results of the performance test of the large negative ion source for a JT-60U negative-ion-based neutral beam injector (N-NBI) are presented. The ion source consists of a cesium seeded multicusp plasma generator, where negative ions are produced via volume and surface processes, a 110 cm×45 cm multiaperture extractor, and a three-stage electrostatic accelerator. After negative ion production and voltage holding tests in test stands, the ion source was installed in the N-NBI system and the full power test began. Up to now, the ion source has produced 400 keV, 5.9 A (2.4 MW) D− ion beams, the world highest D− current and beam power, with a pulse duration of 0.1 s.