On the occasion of the 40th meeting of the Fusion Power Coordination Committee meeting in Paris on 2 February, ITER Director-General Osamu Motojima and the Director-General of the National Institute of Fusion Science (NIFS), Japan, Akio Komori, signed a Memorandum of Understanding that builds the framework for technical cooperation between the two institutions.

The principal objective of this cooperation is to provide opportunities for the exchange of ideas, information, technique, and expertise relating to the various research and development areas for ITER construction and operation. The scope and type of technical activities within this cooperation include cooperative and joint research activities on the cryoplant and cryo-distribution, superconducting magnet quality control, heat treatment, winding, CODAC, vacuum leak localization, power supply commissioning, integrated tests with superconducting coils, heating and current drive, and neutral beam injection.

Besides the exchange of expertise and information, researchers and staff will also be exchanged to train personnel, conduct seminars and engage in workshops in both institutions.

Superconducting Cable

Scientists and engineers, using The VULCAN Engineering Diffractometer at the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), are working with the U.S. ITER Project Office at ORNL, the Japanese Atomic Energy Agency and the ITER Organization to examine superconducting cables for ITER's central solenoid magnet.

The central solenoid, a joint Japan-U.S. ITER responsibility, is on a tight schedule. The superconducting cables, supplied by Japan, cost more than $3,000 per meter. Improving the cable performance by reducing the degradation of the superconducting strands is important to staying on schedule and on budget. "We are working on an important problem that will have an immediate impact on science and technology on an international scale," said Ian Anderson, head of ORNL's Neutron Sciences directorate, which operates SNS.

The team of Japanese, U.S. and ITER Organization engineers discovered in late 2010 in a sample test that the superconducting cables making up the central solenoid magnet at the core of the ITER design were losing their current-carrying capacity over time to an extent well beyond that experienced in an earlier ITER model coil test. The cables can generate a magnetic field as strong as 13 Tesla, and the electromagnetic (Lorentz) force exerted on the wires by the high magnetic field and powerful current is known to cause some degradation over a period of constant magnetic cycling. The exact cause of the degradation in the conductor sample is unknown. In addition to the Lorentz force, it may also be attributable to the sample manufacture or the particular sensitivity of the wires to the loads. The magnet team at the U.S. ITER Project Office in Oak Ridge consulted with scientists at SNS about using neutron scattering to examine the states of materials inside the cables.

Component Transport

The Director-General of the ITER Organization Osamu Motojima, and the Directors of all seven Domestic Agencies this week signed a Memorandum of Understanding that provides for the use of one single "Logistic Service Provider" to assure the transport of all the ITER components from their manufacturing sites around the world to the ITER construction site — may this happen by road, water or air.

The signing of this Memorandum is the culmination of a joint effort that started years ago involving staff from the ITER Organization and the Domestic Agencies. "It was really impressive to see this international tender evolve," the Head of the ITER Procurement Division, Francoise Flament, said after the signature. "It was a bit like a big puzzle that, looking at all the pieces spread across the table, seemed impossible to complete in the beginning. But thanks to a great collaborative spirit, the legal framework covering every aspect of the transport of ITER components - including storage, insurance, handling, and customs management - will facilitate the complex logistics of the worldwide procurement of ITER components, and enable us to ensure their safe arrival on site."

The tender process for the "Logistic Service Provider" is ongoing and bids are currently being evaluated by the ITER Organization and the Domestic Agencies in order to award the contract by May of this year.

Magnet Feeders

In total there will be 31 "Feeders" relaying the electrical power and cryogens through the warm-cold barrier to the ITER magnets. Each Feeder consists of three main units: the In-Cryostat Feeder, the Cryostat Feed-Through and the Coil Terminal Box which provides the housing for the connections of the magnets and 12 other interface systems.

In total there will be 31 "Feeders" relaying the electrical power and cryogens through the warm-cold barrier to the ITER magnets. Each Feeder consists of three main units: the In-Cryostat Feeder, the Cryostat Feed-Through and the Coil Terminal Box which provides the housing for the connections of the magnets and 12 other interface systems.

The design operating current of the Feeders is 68 kA. High Temperature Superconductor (HTS) Current Leads transmit the high-power currents from the room-temperature power supplies to the low-temperature superconducting coils 4K (-269°C) with minimum heat load. Superconducting busbars - made out of steel conduit containing niobium-titanium superconductor cable - are designed to absorb the large temperature variations during the cool-down of the machine. They also withstand the various Lorentz forces acting on the material connecting the current lead and the magnet. The most challenging issues remaining are the electrical and mechanical designs of the high-voltage insulation.

The ITER Feeders will be manufactured by Chinese enterprises under the supervision of the Chinese Domestic Agency (CN-DA) and are scheduled to be delivered in several steps to the ITER site. The Procurement Arrangement that paves the way for the manufacturing of this system was recently signed by ITER Director-General Osamu Motojima and the Head of the CN-DA, Luo Delong.

Thermal Shield Mockup Tested in Korea

The Korean Domestic Agency, in cooperation with Daebong Acrotec, has completed a full-scale mock-up of a 10° inboard section of the ITER Thermal Shield, and tested the main procedures of fabrication including cutting, bending, forming, buffing, welding, and machining.

"We are pleased to report that all the processes for thermal shield manufacture were demonstrated, with the exception of last-stage silver coating," said Wooho Chung, Technical Responsible Officer. "The fabrication of the mock-up allowed us to validate the design and manufacturing process for the ITER Thermal Shield."

Inserted between toroidal field magnets and the vacuum vessel, the ITER Thermal Shield (TS) system minimizes the thermal radiation to the superconducting magnets. Made of stainless steel panels coated with low-emissivity silver, connecting joints (flanges) and cooling pipes welded to the panels, the TS is operated within the range of 80-100 K during plasma operation. The TS surface area covers 10,000 square metres; once assembled, it will stand 25 metres at its highest point.

The detailed design of the ITER Thermal Shield will be reviewed in 2011. The beginning of fabrication is expected in early 2012.

Additional Direct Investments

At its 10th meeting held on 26-27 January 2011, the ITER Management Advisory Committee (MAC) looked at a detailed analysis of Additional Direct Investments (ADI) that had been performed by the ITER Organization and the seven Domestic Agencies in response to the request from the ITER Council at its seventh meeting in November 2010 (IC-7). These ADI are the items deemed essential for the operation of the ITER machine, but that are not presently part of the ITER Baseline.

The Baseline that describes the project's scope, schedule and cost for the construction phase of the ITER project was approved by the extraordinary ITER Council in July 2010. The total value of the project's construction costs was capped at 4,700 kIUA^*, including a contingency of 115.3 kIUA. It was agreed that any additional necessary resources were to be made available within this capped value.

^*[ITER Units of Account (IUAs) are the ITER "currency", a very unique feature of the ITER project based on the principle of procurement sharing. Instead of contributing cash to the ITER project, the Members will provide "in-kind" contributions; all of the components of the ITER facility will be built by the seven ITER Members and delivered to the ITER site in France. The IUA was devised in order to measure the value of in-kind contributions consistently over time, and neutralize market fluctuations.]

During its meeting, the MAC developed guidelines that will be used to evaluate the allocation of responsibilities and credit values associated with the ADI based on the capped ceiling. Following these guidelines, future ADI risks will now be accounted for. MAC encouraged the ITER Organization to continue pursuing reduction in the overall cost of the ITER project and efforts to accelerate its schedule.

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