ITER

ITER ( Apronym: English for International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor, Latin for Way ) is a France under construction nuclear fusion reactor to be won with the necessary knowledge on the way to perhaps possible fusion power plants. The reactor with a variety of installations for plasma heating and diagnostics based on the tokamak concept.

It is equipped compared to its predecessor JET much larger and with superconducting magnet coils. The first plasma to be generated in 2020, from 2027 experiments are provided with deuterium and tritium. ITER burning periods are to be realized by up to an hour. It is a thermal output of 500 megawatts will be reached at a heating power of about 50 megawatts. ITER will however not produce power and also do not have a complete lithium -blanket for the breeding of tritium. If ITER and parallel performed Materials Research ( IFMIF ) should show that the tokamak design can be enlarged in the gigawatt range, is the successor DEMO from about 2040 electricity fed into the grid and demonstrate a closed tritium cycle. The success of the ITER experiments is not only a prerequisite for DEMO, but also for a more reliable assessment whether electricity can be economical with fusion energy.

ITER is being developed at the research center of Cadarache as a joint research project of the seven equal partner European Atomic Energy Community, Japan, Russia, China, South Korea, India and the U.S., built and operated. The United States had dropped out from 1998 to 2003 temporarily from the project, Canada is no longer there since 2004. Between the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA ) and the ITER project in 2008 agreed to work together at expert level. Former French President Jacques Chirac described the project as the largest scientific project for the International Space Station.

Physical and technical bases

In the sun and other stars, the most common isotope of hydrogen, protium (1H) is merged in several steps to form helium in nuclear fusion. These fusion processes are mainly dependent on the proton-proton chain, a small percentage even after the Bethe- Weizsäcker cycle. It is a gram of hydrogen is about the same amount of energy is released as the burning of eight tons of oil or eleven tons of coal.

In ITER as with all other techniques and attempts to use nuclear fusion as an energy source on Earth, the much rarer hydrogen isotopes deuterium and tritium are used:

Tritium ( T) is present only in trace amounts due to the short half-life of about 12.3 years on earth and must first be won in heavy water reactors of the CANDU. In ITER, the technology will be tested to erbrüten tritium with the already released neutrons in the reactor plant from the abundant element lithium ( see Blanket ).

Technology

ITER works on the tokamak principle. The reactor is initially operate without fusion reactions with plasma from normal hydrogen to improve its stability; this is the first time for the end of 2020Vorlage: provided future / in 5 years. With the addition of helium to the divertor plasma can already be optimized at this stage. Operation with deuterium and tritium is only from 2027Vorlage: planned future / in 5 years.

A few grams of gas are admitted and very very hot, so that all atoms are ionized, ie, form a plasma in the evacuated toroidal plasma vessel. The plasma is compressed by a strong magnetic field is generated by means of superconducting coils. Since the plasma is electrically conductive, an electrical current can be induced by temporal variation in the magnetic field according to the principle of the transformer. This in turn contributes with its own magnetic field to confine the plasma and also causes further heating. These inclusion method allows as much heat a plasma of sufficient density that the fusion reaction ignites. The resulting fast neutrons carry away about 80 % of the fusion power from the plasma and give most of it in the blanket as heat, which is not utilized in the case of ITER. For intensive cooling of the blankets and the vessel wall helium gas to drive a turbine to produce electricity in future power plant reactors used. The remaining 20 % of the fusion power act as recoil energy of the resulting reaction in the helium-4 nuclei; it is delivered to the plasma and significantly contributes to the heating. With an additional external heating power of about 50 megawatts ( MW) "burns " the plasma continuously. The magnetic field required to maintain geometry and confinement of the plasma. It is about a 10 -fold performance gain, so a fusion power of about 500 MW can be achieved. For ITER is considered successful, must remain stable over 400 seconds of this condition. In another operating mode, the burn times are up provided to an hour at a power gain of at least 5 short term as a performance gain can be tested by more than 30, as it is intended for commercial reactors. A divertor leads from the helium produced and ejected from the vessel wall atoms. For the testing of the Blankettechnologie for neutron multiplication by beryllium and recovery of tritium from neutron and three lithium Testflansche are provided simultaneously at six different designs which can be tested.

Summary of technical data:

Location

Since 2001 was discussed at a location for ITER. Location applications came from France, Spain, Japan and Canada. 2005 competed with France still Cadarache and Japan at Rokkasho to the site. While the U.S., Japan and South Korea preferred the location of Rokkasho, voted the European Atomic Energy Community, the People's Republic of China and Russia for Cadarache. On 28 June 2005 decided the participating States to create the experimental reactor in Cadarache, France. With the approval of Japan not only factual considerations, but also foreign policy issues played a role. Furthermore, Japan were special terms granted in the event that the reactor in Europe was to be built. In November 2004, the EU Council of Ministers for the EURATOM unanimously decided to build ITER in Cadarache, if necessary even without the participation of Japan, South Korea and the United States.

After Japan had withdrawn his application, the participants agreed finally to the site of Cadarache in southern France, about 35 km northeast of Aix -en- Provence. On 24 May 2006, the contract was signed by the governments of all the project partners. France undertook herein to major investments in infrastructure such as roads, power supply, data cables and housing for the future researchers and their families.

For the construction of ITER, there was also an unofficial until 2003 German application with the former nuclear power plant " Bruno Leuschner " Greifswald in Lubmin near Greifswald. Thus, the plants would have been built for the world's largest tokamak experiment in close proximity to the site of the world's largest stellarator experiment. The ITER funding Greifswald Association under the leadership of former Prime Minister Alfred Gomolka presented in 2002 a full site application to the state government of Mecklenburg - Western Pomerania. However, this was not forwarded by the responsible Minister Harald Ringstorff. In the summer of 2003, Chancellor Gerhard Schröder took the commitment of former Chancellor Helmut Kohl to apply for hosting ITER back. Until then Lubmin was internationally the most promising competitor, especially since the now established Cadarache site in France is an earthquake - risk area, as well as the third contemplated Japanese site.

Financing

On 21 November 2006, the project participants signed at the Elysee Palace in Paris, the final agreement, which regulates the financing of the construction. Participating States along with the European Atomic Energy Community (EURATOM ) States, China, India, Japan, Russia, South Korea and the United States. The Treaty entered into force on 24 October 2007. To compensate for the election of a European site Japan was promised at least ten percent of the orders for the equipment of the reactor and the promotion of Japanese research funded by EURATOM.

During the construction phase, the European Union or Euratom contributes 5/11 of the total cost ( about 45 % ), of which 40% is applied France (2/11 of the total cost ). The remaining six project partners each contribute 1/11 of the total cost ( about 9 %) and thus represent the remaining 6/11 of the funds. Part of this is provided by either party as payment in kind to be provided regardless of the final cost of procurement and delivery. The cost of the operation and deactivation are worn to 34% by EURATOM.

The establishment should first good 5.5 billion euros cost ( EUR 5.896 billion in 2008 prices ). Already in June 2008, voices that heralded a significant increase in costs were increasing. In September 2008, the Deputy Director Norbert Holtkamp ITER declared at the 25th Symposium on Fusion Technology Rostock in that the initially planned costs would rise by at least 10 percent, maybe even 100 percent. This was due to the sharp rise in prices for raw materials and energy as well as expensive technical advancements.

In May 2010, the European Commission announced that according to a recent cost estimate their share will triple to the construction costs of formerly planned 2.7 billion euros to 7.3 billion euros. The EU cowed then the EURATOM agent at 6.6 billion euros. Any additional costs they will cover by transfers from the agricultural and research funds.

During the ITER organization makes no cost estimates, according to a recent worst-case scenario, the DOE the U.S. share could rise to 6.9 billion U.S. dollars, which would correspond to about a further tripling the cost.

Project History

Initiation by the Soviet Union

In talks with the President of France and the United States, François Mitterrand and Ronald Reagan, 1985, a cooperation in nuclear fusion research and the joint construction of a reactor were decided on the basis of a proposal by the Soviet leaders Mikhail Gorbachev. Planning began in 1988 at the German Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics in 1990 and led to a first draft of the experimental reactor. Until 1998, the key figures of 8.1 m torus diameter and 1500 MW of fusion power have been worked out.

ITER contract

After the original design into a smaller (500 MW), cost-reduced version of ITER has been converted with lower technical requirements, the participating parties expressed on 28 June 2005 after long negotiations to kick off the construction of ITER. The decision includes the construction of an experimental reactor at Cadarache in southern France for a total of nearly 5 billion euros. The operating costs over the planned duration of the reactor of 20 years would be similar. On 21 November 2006, the ITER agreement was signed by the seven partners, with the participation of the then French President Jacques Chirac in Paris. At the same time the first meeting of the Interim ITER Council took place. The Treaty entered into force on 24 October 2007, 30 days after he had been ratified by the last contracting party, China.

Organization

Each of the seven partners will manage its own national authority which has the task to fulfill the contractual obligations of each country with regard to ITER. For the European Atomic Energy Community the task of the newly established Agency Fusion for Energy falls - The European Joint Undertaking for ITER and the Development for Fusion Energy to based in Barcelona.

Involved the German side in the project include the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics ( IPP) in Garching near Munich, the Institute for Plasma Physics ( IEK -4) at the Forschungszentrum Jülich and various institutes of the KIT. Further scientific centers are located in San Diego ( USA) and Naka (Japan).

The Board of Directors (IC, ITER Council) has its headquarters in Moscow.

The central management (IO, ITER Organization) with 500 direct employees and 350 external employees residing in located near the construction site village of Saint- Paul- lès -Durance. Every two years, is subjected to the management of an external evaluation.

Progress

Early 2007, preparations began for the construction. 2009, the building on 42 acres was flat. 2011, the excavation for the main complex was worked out ( Seismic Pit, 130 × 90 × 17 m3) and the shell of the first annexe, over 250 m long poloidal field coils Winding Facility completed. Here are the five largest in the annular coil to be wound for the poloidal magnetic field. 2012 was cast in the Seismic Pit 1.5 m thick foundation. 2013 and 2014 is made to 2 m high, anti-vibration bases the 1.5 m thick base plate, which will carry the reactor building and the north and south adjacent building earthquake- safe for tritium handling and plasma diagnostics. At the same time the management and control center was obtained, and the temporary hall erected, the four 30 m wide and 600 tons to 1250 tons heavy parts of the cryostat ( top, bottom, and two rings ) are composed of 52 delivered by India individual parts in the later.

In the construction of production facilities and the reactor itself, however, major delays have occurred, " one year delay for each year of the project", with corresponding increases in costs. The result of the last evaluation of management by Madia & Associates was so damning that the ITER Organization wants to keep the report under wraps. The New Yorker has published the executive summary of the report. The ITER Organization points to the project partners: The management would be complicated by the fact that each of the seven project partners with regard to the domestic industry designed to better parts and supplies than money. In tough negotiations, development and manufacturing jobs are fragmented, with the risk that the parts do not fit together during assembly.