FUSION IN EUROPE NEWS & VIEWS ON THE PROGRESS OF FUSION RESEARCH "WE CAN LEAD THE WORLD OF FUSION RESEARCH" The prince ONE SMALL EQUATION – A BIG STEP and the FOR NUCLEAR FUSION? tokamak 4 2018 FUSION IN EUROPE 4 2018 Contents EUROfusion Homepage! Check out our EUROfusion web­ site! It offers an amazing ex­ plainer video and breath taking photographs. The responsive de­ sign also allows you to smoothly browse through it with your mobile. www.euro-fusion.org A tungsten tile being tested at the new HIVE (Heat by Induction to Verify Extremes') facility in Culham. Picture: © Copyright protected by United Moving Forward Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority 2 Contents 5 Editorial 6 We can lead the world of fusion research 10 The road to fusion electricity 6 11 13 In 2019, Ambrogio Fasoli takes over the EUROfusion Programme Manager Tony Donné with The Duke of Cambridge, Prince William (left), Chair of the EUROfusion General Assembly. Petra Nieckchen during an interview launching the with Ian Chapman and Kim Cave-Ayland Picture: SPC new EUROfusion roadmap. Picture: EUROfusion during his visit in Culham. Picture: © Copyright protected by United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority 2 FUSION IN EUROPE | Table of content | EUROfusion | Research Units 13 Approaching MAST Upgrade – the Prince and Imprint the tokamak FUSION IN EUROPE ISSN 1818­5355 14 One small equation – a big step for nuclear fusion? Impressions 16 Impressions For more information see the Broader Approach website: www.euro-fusion.org EUROfusion 18 New high­speed launch system for European Programme Management Unit – Garching Japanese tokamak Boltzmannstr. 2 85748 Garching / Munich, Germany phone: +49-89-3299-4128 The ITERsection email: [email protected] editor: Anne Purschwitz 21 Jobs @ITER Subscribe at [email protected] /fusion2050 @PetraonAir Community @FusionInCloseUp @APurschwitz 22 Soft voices 2018 © Petra Nieckchen, Head of Communications Department 2019 This newsletter or parts of it may not be reproduced 24 Fusion Energy Conference 2018 without permission. Text, pictures and layout, except where noted, courtesy of the EUROfusion members. The EUROfusion members are the Research Units of the European Fusion Programme. Responsibility Perspectives for the information and views expressed in this magazine lies entirely with the authors. Neither the Research Units or anyone acting on their behalf 26 Summing up is responsible for any damage resulting from the use of information contained in this publication. 14 18 22 How does nuclear radiation effect Pellet “looping system” at ASDEX Upgrade Thomas Härtl (right) from EUROfusion’s materials? One equation might answer developed for high speed inboard launch Power Plant Physics and Technology team this question. Picture: Andrea E. Sand/ taken as blue print for JT-60SA. Picture: during the poster session at SOFT. University of Helsinki Bernhard Ploeckl Picture: EUROfusion 2 3 FUSION IN EUROPE Stellarator Deuterium Tritium Wendelstein 7-X RESEARCH ENERGY The European Roadmap to the Realisation of Fusion Energy DEMO Fusion industry Material testing ITER EURATOM Plasma TOKAMAK Joint European Torus Postdocs EUROPEAN COMMISSION DISCOVER THE LATEST STORIES OF FUSION RESEARCHERS FROM ALL OVER EUROPE. Subscribe to Fusion in Europe: euro-fusion.org/subscribe FUSION IN EUROPE | Editorial | EUROfusion | Shortly before completing its first lustrum by the end of 2018, EUROfusion has published its revised Fusion Research Roadmap. It is an evolution of the first roadmap pre - ser ving the unshakeable elements such as the eight missions. It focusses on the main devices ITER, DEMO and DONES. But in updating the path to fusion energy, we have emphasised the relative timing of the DEMO and ITER projects to achieve the demonstration of fusion electri- city as fast as possible. Acting fast is vital as climate change needs to be battled right now. Energy from fossil fuels must be replaced by CO2 free energy. There is tremendous and worldwide effort in the devel op­­ment of renewables as wind and solar, in combination with storage in lakes, batteries and chemical fuels. Tony Donné, EUROfusion Programme Manager Fusion will not contribute to the CO2 transition by 2050, but given its inherent advantages (safe, low physical footprint, abundant availability of fuel) it has the potential to deliver an important part of the world’s energy need around the turn Assembly during the past four years and guided of the century. EURO fusion from shortly after its inception to the organisation it is now. We are indebted and The new Fusion Roadmap has been written with very thankful for his contributions and all the all this in mind: it shows a realistic time path energy he has invested in our consortium. For towards a fusion reactor while trying to mini- this issue of Fusion in Europe we interviewed mise risks as much as possible by proposing a him as well as his successor, Ambrogio Fasoli. dedicated research plan. Currently, 4.000 people work for EUROfusion. Now EUROfusion is five years on its way, we I would like to end this editorial by thanking have already made progress along the time line all scientists, engineers, managers and adminis- of the roadmap. Recent highlights are Wendel- trators for their contribution to the success of stein 7-X‘s world record triple product for stella- EUROfusion. rators achieved and the mimicking of a full per year of ITER divertor heat load on the tungsten For 2019, I wish all readers of Fusion in tiles in MAGNUM-PSI. EUROfusion funded Europe a very successful and productive work has been awarded with many prizes year in good health for you and your as the Nuclear Fusion prize, the SOFT Innova- families. tion Prize, and the American Landau-Spitzer prize. We are very proud and look forward to con tinuing our excellent performance also in coming years. At the end of 2018 we also say goodbye to Tony Donné, Jérôme Paméla, who has chaired the General EUROfusion Programme Manager 5 FUSION IN EUROPE WE CAN LEAD THE WORLD OF FUSION RESEARCH Jérôme Paméla chaired EUROfusion's General In 2019, Ambrogio Fasoli took over the Assembly from 2015 until 2018. Picture: ITER chairmanship from Jérôme Paméla. Picture: SPC hen Jérôme Paméla took over the chair on the first Wof January 2015, newly born EUROfusion welcomed a senior Expert in international fusion research lead its General Assembly. Now, Ambrogio Fasoli will take over EUROfusion's highest decisive body. Read what both think about the past, the present and the future of the largest complementary European research programme ever. 6 FUSION IN EUROPE | Moving Forward | EUROfusion | What were your personal goals when taking Have you been concerned regarding the up the Chair of EUROfusion’s General ! image of fusion research? Assembly? Yes, that as well. Overselling and being over I was very enthusiastic when I took over from ambitious with our projects is technically Sibylle Guenter. She had done a wonderful dangerous and can be politically fatal. job in preparing the transition from EFDA to EUROfusion which was a major step forward. Did the fusion community become more modest regarding public announcements and What was the main struggle in transitioning status definitions? from EFDA to EUROfusion? Maybe. Initially the laboratories were eager to secure their resources. They wanted to avoid any significant cutback, which was legiti- mate. This resulted in tensions at the first The difficulties with the ITER General Assembly meetings in 2014/15. schedule have made us necessa- I think, this was just normal. EUROfusion is eminently cooperative. The rily more modest. We have to be chairman is just the chairman. The work is aware of what is our image in the done by the programme manager, the task force leaders, the project leaders, scien- public and among stakeholders. tists and technicians, administrators – it’s all these people who make EUROfusion a We have to be realistic. success. One example during my chairmanship was Bernard Bigot stated earlier that ‘EUR O- the correction of the status of DEMO: it is fusion is an excellent example of what Europe now understood and accepted that DEMO is can do. What is your opinion on that? not in a conceptual design phase yet. This is absolutely true. The development of Euro pean cooperation over the past 20 years What does ‘conceptual design phase’ actu- indeed proves that: from the “Associations” ally mean? to EFDA in 2000 and from EFDA to EU- It means that all the main technical options RO-fusion in 2014. Each step has been a step are frozen, otherwise you cannot conduct a full towards stronger cooperation and reinforced conceptual study which requires integrating coordination in a truly European spirit. all systems and functions into a single design. There are still a lot of open options for DEMO, You just said, that EUROfusion’s MST pro- some challenging demonstrations and difficult gramme is a paradigm of what Europe can be. choices to be made. What do you mean? The correct definition of the status of our By complementing each other we can be very projects is very important in order not to over- efficient. You keep your national specifics but rate our research. you share them and let others participate. I also say, let’s keep the different education sys- tems. When you put together a Swedish, an Italian, a French and a Spanish Researcher, The correct definition of the you get four people with different approach- status of our projects is very es. But, in the end, their diversity makes them much more efficient together than four per- important in order not to sons from a single nationality. Different cul- tures give us different skills and, above that, overrate our research. complementary approaches which help us addressing problems more powerfully. 6 7 FUSION IN EUROPE What do you think is the first big challenge that EUROfusion would work smoothly, my for your successor Ambrogio Fasoli? successor Ambrogio Fasoli needs now to man- In fact, each of the chairs face a new chal- age the transition from the European research lenge.