H-mode plasmas in the pre-fusion power operation 1 phase of the ITER research plan
A. Loarte, A.R. Polevoi, M. Schneider, S. D. Pinches, E. Fable, E. Militello-Asp, Y. Baranov, F. J. Casson, G. Corrigan, L. Garzotti, D. Harting, P. Knight, F. Koechl, V. Parail, D. Farina, L. Figini, H. Nordman, P. Strand, R. Sartori
Abstract
The optimum conditions for access to and sustainment of H-mode plasmas and their expected plasma parameters in the pre-fusion power operation 1 (PFPO-1) phase of the ITER research plan, where the additional plasma heating will be provided by 20 MW of electron cyclotron heating, are assessed in order to identify key open R&D issues. The assessment is performed on the basis of empirical and physics-based scalings derived from present experiments and integrated modelling of these plasmas including a range of first-principle transport models for the core plasma. The predictions of the integrated modelling of ITER H-mode plasmas are compared with ITER-relevant experiments carried out at JET (low-collisionality high-current H modes) and ASDEX Upgrade (significant electron heating) for both global H-mode properties and scale lengths of density and temperature profiles finding reasonable agreement. Specific integration issues of the PFPO-1 H-mode plasma scenarios are discussed taking into account the impact of the specificities of the ITER tokamak design (level of ripple, etc).