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13 - Magnetic fusion concepts

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 May 2010

Jeffrey P. Freidberg
Jeffrey P. Freidberg
Affiliation:
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
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Summary

Introduction

The goal of Chapter 13 is to describe the various magnetic configurations currently under investigation as potential fusion reactors. As will become apparent there is a substantial number of concepts to discuss. To succeed, each of these concepts has to successfully overcome the problems not only of MHD equilibrium and stability (p), but also of transport (τE) and heating (T). Even so, it still makes sense to introduce the concepts at this point in the book, immediately following MHD. The reason is that the underlying geometric features that distinguish each concept are primarily determined by MHD behavior. In contrast, transport is a far more difficult issue and significant progress has been made only for the tokamak configuration. With respect to heating, there are several techniques available providing a reasonable number of options. Because of this flexibility, heating can be accommodated in most fusion configurations, and thus is not a dominant driver of the geometry.

To motivate the discussion recall that the main objective of MHD is to discover magnetic geometries that are capable of stably confining sufficiently high plasma pressures to be of relevance to a fusion reactor. The leader for many years in terms of overall performance has been the tokamak which will therefore serve as the reference configuration against which all other concepts must be measured.

Type
Chapter
Information
Plasma Physics and Fusion Energy , pp. 333 - 448
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2007

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References

Bateman, G. (1978). MHD Instabilities. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
Bernstein, I. B.et al. (1958). An energy principle for hydromagnetic stability problems. Proceedings of the Royal Society, A223, 17.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Connor, J. W., Hastie, R. J., and Taylor, J. B. (1978). Shear, periodicity, and plasma ballooning modes. Physical Review Letters, 40, 396.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Coppi, B. (1977). Topology of ballooning modes. Physical Review Letters, 39, 939.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Freidberg, J. P. (1987). Ideal Magnetohydrodynamics. New York: Plenum Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Goedbloed, H. and Poedts, S. (2004). Principles of Magnetohydrodynamics.Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Laval, G., Pellat, R., and Soule, J. S. (1974). Hydromagnetic stability of a current-carrying pinch with noncircular cross section. Physics of Fluids, 17, 835.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Menard, J. E., Bell, M. G., et al. (2004). Aspect ratio scaling of ideal no-wall stability limits in high bootstrap fraction tokamak plasmas. Physics of Plasmas, 11, 639.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sykes, A. and Wesson, J. A. (1974). Two-dimensional calculation of tokamak stability. Nuclear Fusion, 14, 645.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Troyon, F. (1984). MHD limits to plasma confinement. Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion, 26 (1A), 209.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wesson, J. A. (1978). Hydromagnetic stability of tokamaks. Nuclear Fusion, 18, 87.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wesson, J. (2004). Tokamaks, third edn. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
LDX Group (1998). Levitated Dipole Whitepaper. Innovative Confinement Concepts Workshop, Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory, Princeton, New Jersey.
Barnes, D. C. (1997). Scaling relations for high gain, magnetized target fusion systems. Comments on Plasma Physicss and Controlled Fusion, 18, 17.Google Scholar
Barnes, D. C.et al. (2002). Field-Reversed Configuration (FRC) equilibrium and Stability. 19th IAEA Fusion Energy Conference, Lyon, France. Paper TH/4–5. Vienna: IAEA.Google Scholar
FRC community (1998). FRC Development Whitepaper. Innovative Confinement Concepts Workshop. Princeton: New Jersey Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory.
Siemon, R. E., Lindemuth, I. R., and Schoenberg, K. F. (1999). Why magnetized target fusion offers a low-cost development path for fusion energy. Comments on Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion, 18, 363.Google Scholar
Bodin, H. A. B. and Newton, A. A. (1980). Reversed field pinch research. Nuclear Fusion, 20, 1255.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Miyamoto, K. (2001). Fundamentals of Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion, revised edn. Toki City: National Institute for Fusion Science.Google Scholar
RFP Research Community (1998). The Reversed Field Pinch Whitepaper. Innovative Confinement Concepts Workshop. Princeton: New Jersey Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory.
Bellan, P. M. (2000). Spheromaks. London, England: Imperial College Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hooper, E. B., Pearlstein, L. D., and Ryutov, D. D. (1998). The spheromak path to fusion energy. Innovative Confinement Concepts Workshop. Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory.Google Scholar
Hooper, E. B. (1999). Spheromak overview. Fusion Summer Study. Colorado: Snowmass.Google Scholar
Wesson, J. (2004). Tokamaks, third edn. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Peng, M. (1998). The spherical torus pathway to fusion power. Innovative Confinement Concepts Workshop. Princeton: New Jersey Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory.Google Scholar
Spherical Torus White Paper (1999). US Spherical Torus Fusion Energy Science Research. Fusion Summer Study, Snowmass, Colorado.
Boozer, A. H. (1982). Establishment of magnetic coordinates for a given magnetic field. Physics of Fluids, 25, 520.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Boozer, A. H. (2004). Physics of magnetically confined plasmas. Reviews of Modern Physics, 76, 1071.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Miyamoto, K. (2001). Fundamentals of Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion, revised edn. Toki City: National Institute for Fusion Science.Google Scholar
National Stellarator Program Planning Committee (1998). US Stellarator program plan. Innovative Confinement Concepts Workshop. Princeton: New Jersey, Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory.
Bateman, G. (1978). MHD Instabilities. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
Bernstein, I. B.et al. (1958). An energy principle for hydromagnetic stability problems. Proceedings of the Royal Society, A223, 17.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Connor, J. W., Hastie, R. J., and Taylor, J. B. (1978). Shear, periodicity, and plasma ballooning modes. Physical Review Letters, 40, 396.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Coppi, B. (1977). Topology of ballooning modes. Physical Review Letters, 39, 939.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Freidberg, J. P. (1987). Ideal Magnetohydrodynamics. New York: Plenum Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Goedbloed, H. and Poedts, S. (2004). Principles of Magnetohydrodynamics.Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Laval, G., Pellat, R., and Soule, J. S. (1974). Hydromagnetic stability of a current-carrying pinch with noncircular cross section. Physics of Fluids, 17, 835.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Menard, J. E., Bell, M. G., et al. (2004). Aspect ratio scaling of ideal no-wall stability limits in high bootstrap fraction tokamak plasmas. Physics of Plasmas, 11, 639.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sykes, A. and Wesson, J. A. (1974). Two-dimensional calculation of tokamak stability. Nuclear Fusion, 14, 645.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Troyon, F. (1984). MHD limits to plasma confinement. Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion, 26 (1A), 209.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wesson, J. A. (1978). Hydromagnetic stability of tokamaks. Nuclear Fusion, 18, 87.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wesson, J. (2004). Tokamaks, third edn. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
LDX Group (1998). Levitated Dipole Whitepaper. Innovative Confinement Concepts Workshop, Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory, Princeton, New Jersey.
Barnes, D. C. (1997). Scaling relations for high gain, magnetized target fusion systems. Comments on Plasma Physicss and Controlled Fusion, 18, 17.Google Scholar
Barnes, D. C.et al. (2002). Field-Reversed Configuration (FRC) equilibrium and Stability. 19th IAEA Fusion Energy Conference, Lyon, France. Paper TH/4–5. Vienna: IAEA.Google Scholar
FRC community (1998). FRC Development Whitepaper. Innovative Confinement Concepts Workshop. Princeton: New Jersey Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory.
Siemon, R. E., Lindemuth, I. R., and Schoenberg, K. F. (1999). Why magnetized target fusion offers a low-cost development path for fusion energy. Comments on Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion, 18, 363.Google Scholar
Bodin, H. A. B. and Newton, A. A. (1980). Reversed field pinch research. Nuclear Fusion, 20, 1255.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Miyamoto, K. (2001). Fundamentals of Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion, revised edn. Toki City: National Institute for Fusion Science.Google Scholar
RFP Research Community (1998). The Reversed Field Pinch Whitepaper. Innovative Confinement Concepts Workshop. Princeton: New Jersey Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory.
Bellan, P. M. (2000). Spheromaks. London, England: Imperial College Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hooper, E. B., Pearlstein, L. D., and Ryutov, D. D. (1998). The spheromak path to fusion energy. Innovative Confinement Concepts Workshop. Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory.Google Scholar
Hooper, E. B. (1999). Spheromak overview. Fusion Summer Study. Colorado: Snowmass.Google Scholar
Wesson, J. (2004). Tokamaks, third edn. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Peng, M. (1998). The spherical torus pathway to fusion power. Innovative Confinement Concepts Workshop. Princeton: New Jersey Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory.Google Scholar
Spherical Torus White Paper (1999). US Spherical Torus Fusion Energy Science Research. Fusion Summer Study, Snowmass, Colorado.
Boozer, A. H. (1982). Establishment of magnetic coordinates for a given magnetic field. Physics of Fluids, 25, 520.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Boozer, A. H. (2004). Physics of magnetically confined plasmas. Reviews of Modern Physics, 76, 1071.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Miyamoto, K. (2001). Fundamentals of Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion, revised edn. Toki City: National Institute for Fusion Science.Google Scholar
National Stellarator Program Planning Committee (1998). US Stellarator program plan. Innovative Confinement Concepts Workshop. Princeton: New Jersey, Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory.

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