Toroidal field coil for use in a fusion reactor

Abstract

Disclosed herein is a toroidal field coil for generating a toroidal magnetic field in a nuclear fusion reactor comprising a toroidal plasma chamber having a central column, the toroidal field coil comprising a plurality of windings passing through the central column and around the outside of the plasma chamber. Each winding includes a cable comprising a plurality of stacked HTS tapes, each HTS tape including one or more layers of a high temperature superconductor material. The HTS tapes are arranged such that a face of each HTS tape is parallel to the toroidal magnetic field as the cable passes through the centre column.

Description

technical field

[0001] The present application relates to compact fusion reactors operating in strong toroidal fields. In particular, but not exclusively, the invention relates to a spherical tokamak reactor suitable for use as an energy source or as a high-efficiency neutron source and having a plasma confinement system comprising high temperature superconductor (HTS) coils. Background technique

[0002] The challenges of generating fusion energy are complex. Many alternatives to the tokamak have been proposed, although none have yet produced any results comparable to the best currently operating tokamaks such as JET.

[0003] After the construction of the largest and most expensive (cl5bn euro) tokamak ITER ever started, the world's nuclear fusion research has entered a new stage. A successful route to commercial fusion reactors requires long pulses, stable operation combined with high efficiencies to make electricity generation economical. These three conditions are pa...

Images