The First Fusion Reactor: Iter

28 I n practical terms, the project’s goal is to construct and operate a tokamak experiment which can confine a deuterium-tritium plasma in which the α-particle heating dominates all other forms of plasma heating. Formally, the primary mission of the ITER project is to demonstrate sustainment of a DT plasma producing ~500 MW of fusion power for durations of 300 500 s with a ratio of fusion output power to input heating power, Q, of at least 10. ITER is also designed to explore the physics basis for continuous operation of fusion power plants by investigating ‘steady-state’ plasma operation by means of non-inductive current drive for periods of up to several thousand seconds while maintaining a fusion gain, Q, of ~5. If plasma confinement characteristics are favourable, ITER would also be capable of exploring the ‘controlled ignition’ regime of tokamak operation (with Q ~ 30) in which power plant plasmas are expected to operate. The project’s technical goals encompass significant technological demonstrations to prepare the design basis for a fusion power plant. The unique nature of the ITER international collaboration is reflected in the scheme by which the components for the tokamak and auxiliary plant are being constructed. The ITER Organization (IO-CT) in France is responsible for design integration, procurement of components amounting to about 10% of the project’s capital construction cost, management of the on-site installation of the tokamak and plant, and, ultimately, THE FIRST FUSION REACTOR: ITER