Pressure-coupling Scheme Research Articles

Influences of δB contribution and parallel inertial term of energetic particles on MHD-kinetic hybrid simulations: a case study of the 1/1 internal kink mode

Abstract The magnetohydrodynamic-kinetic (MHD-kinetic) hybrid model (Park et al 1992 Phys. Fluids B 4 2033–7) has been widely applied in studying energetic particles (EPs) problems in fusion plasmas for past decades. The pressure-coupling scheme or the current-coupling scheme is adopted in this model. However, two noteworthy issues arise in the model application: firstly, the coupled term introduced in the pressure-coupling scheme, ( ∇ ⋅ P h ) ⊥ , is often simplified by ∇ ⋅ P h , which is equivalent to neglecting the parallel inertial term of EPs; secondly, besides the δ f contribution caused by changing in the EP distribution function, the magnetic field perturbation (the δ B contribution) generated during development of the instabilities should also be considered, but it is often ignored in existing hybrid simulations. In this paper, we derive the analytical formulations under these two coupling schemes and then numerically study the representative case of the linear stability of the m / n = 1 / 1 internal kink mode (IKM) (Fu et al 2006 Phys. Plasmas 13 052517) by using the CLT-K code. It is found that the approximated models can still yield reasonable results when EPs are isotopically distributed. But it fails completely in cases with anisotropic EP distributions. In addition, we further investigate the influence of EP’s orbit width on the stability of IKM and verify the equivalence between pressure-coupling scheme and the current-coupling scheme.

Validation of the current and pressure coupling schemes with nonlinear simulations of TAE and analysis on the linear stability of tearing mode in the presence of energetic particles

Both current and pressure coupling schemes have been adopted in the hybrid kinetic–magnetohydrodynamic code CLT-K recently. Numerical equivalences between these two coupling schemes are strictly verified under different approximations. First, when considering only the perturbed distribution function of energetic particles (EPs), the equivalence can be proved analytically. Second, when both the variations of the magnetic field and the EP distribution function are included, the current and pressure coupling schemes numerically produce the same result in the nonlinear simulations. On this basis, the influences of co-/counter-passing and trapped EPs on the linear stabilities of the m/n = 2/1 tearing mode (TM) have been investigated (where m and n represent the poloidal and toroidal mode numbers, respectively). The results of scanning of EPs show that the co-passing and trapped EPs are found to stabilize the TM, while the counter-passing EPs tend to destabilize the TM. The behind (de)stabilization mechanisms of the TM by EPs are carefully analyzed. Furthermore, after exceeding critical EP betas, the same branch of the high-frequency mode is excited by co-/counter-passing and trapped EPs, which is identified as the m/n = 2/1 energetic particle mode.

Hamiltonian kinetic-Hall magnetohydrodynamics with fluid and kinetic ions in the current and pressure coupling schemes

We present two generalized hybrid kinetic-Hall magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) models describing the interaction of a two-fluid bulk plasma, which consists of thermal ions and electrons, with energetic, suprathermal ion populations described by Vlasov dynamics. The dynamics of the thermal components are governed by standard fluid equations in the Hall MHD limit with the electron momentum equation providing an Ohm's law with Hall and electron pressure terms involving a gyrotropic electron pressure tensor. The coupling of the bulk, low-energy plasma with the energetic particle dynamics is accomplished through the current density (current coupling scheme; CCS) and the ion pressure tensor appearing in the momentum equation (pressure coupling scheme; PCS) in the first and the second model, respectively. The CCS is a generalization of two well-known models, because in the limit of vanishing energetic and thermal ion densities, we recover the standard Hall MHD and the hybrid kinetic-ions/fluid-electron model, respectively. This provides us with the capability to study in a continuous manner, the global impact of the energetic particles in a regime extending from vanishing to dominant energetic particle densities. The noncanonical Hamiltonian structures of the CCS and PCS, which can be exploited to study equilibrium and stability properties through the energy-Casimir variational principle, are identified. As a first application here, we derive a generalized Hall MHD Grad–Shafranov–Bernoulli system for translationally symmetric equilibria with anisotropic electron pressure and kinetic effects owing to the presence of energetic particles using the PCS.

A low-frequency variational model for energetic particle effects in the pressure-coupling scheme

Energetic particle effects in magnetic confinement fusion devices are commonly studied by hybrid kinetic-fluid simulation codes whose underlying continuum evolution equations often lack the correct energy balance. While two different kinetic-fluid coupling options are available (current coupling and pressure coupling), this paper applies the Euler–Poincaré variational approach to formulate a new conservative hybrid model in the pressure-coupling scheme. In our case the kinetics of the energetic particles are described by guiding center theory. The interplay between the Lagrangian fluid paths and phase space particle trajectories reflects an intricate variational structure which can be approached by letting the four-dimensional guiding center trajectories evolve in the full six-dimensional phase space. Then, the redundant perpendicular velocity is integrated out to recover a four-dimensional description. A second equivalent variational approach is also reported, which involves the use of phase space Lagrangians. Not only do these variational structures confer on the new model a correct energy balance, but also they produce a cross-helicity invariant which is lost in the other pressure-coupling schemes reported in the literature.

Hybrid Vlasov-MHD models: Hamiltonian vs. non-Hamiltonian

This paper investigates hybrid kinetic-magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) models, where a hot plasma (governed by a kinetic theory) interacts with a fluid bulk (governed by MHD). Different nonlinear coupling schemes are reviewed, including the pressure-coupling scheme (PCS) used in modern hybrid simulations. This latter scheme suffers from being non-Hamiltonian and is unable to exactly conserve total energy. Upon adopting the Vlasov description for the hot component, the non-Hamiltonian PCS and a Hamiltonian variant are compared. Special emphasis is given to the linear stability of Alfvén waves, for which it is shown that a spurious instability appears at high frequency in the non-Hamiltonian version. This instability is removed in the Hamiltonian version.

Euler-Poincaré formulation of hybrid plasma models

Three different hybrid Vlasov-fluid systems are derived by applying reduction by symmetry to Hamilton's variational principle. In particular, the discussion focuses on the Euler-Poincar\'e formulation of three major hybrid MHD models, which are compared in the same framework. These are the current-coupling scheme and two different variants of the pressure-coupling scheme. The Kelvin-Noether theorem is presented explicitly for each scheme, together with the Poincar\'e invariants for its hot particle trajectories. Extensions of Ertel's relation for the potential vorticity and for its gradient are also found in each case, as well as new expressions of cross helicity invariants.

Hamiltonian approach to hybrid plasma models

The Hamiltonian structures of several hybrid kinetic-fluid models are identified explicitly, upon considering collisionless Vlasov dynamics for the hot particles interacting with a bulk fluid. After presenting different pressure-coupling schemes for an ordinary fluid interacting with a hot gas, the paper extends the treatment to account for a fluid plasma interacting with an energetic ion species. Both current-coupling and pressure-coupling MHD schemes are treated extensively. In particular, pressure-coupling schemes are shown to require a transport-like term in the Vlasov kinetic equation, in order for the Hamiltonian structure to be preserved. The last part of the paper is devoted to studying the more general case of an energetic ion species interacting with a neutralizing electron background (hybrid Hall-MHD). Circulation laws and Casimir functionals are presented explicitly in each case.