NSTX research and the connection to community needs

1
NSTX research and the connection to community
needs
Columbia U Comp-X General Atomics INEL Johns
Hopkins U LANL LLNL Lodestar MIT Nova
Photonics NYU ORNL PPPL PSI SNL UC Davis UC
Irvine UCLA UCSD U Maryland U New Mexico U
Rochester U Washington U Wisconsin Culham Sci
Ctr Hiroshima U HIST Kyushu Tokai U Niigata
U Tsukuba U U Tokyo Ioffe Inst TRINITI KBSI KAIST
ENEA, Frascati CEA, Cadarache IPP, Jülich IPP,
Garching U Quebec
E.J. Synakowski NSTX Team Meeting December 15,
2004
2
NSTX research had a strong presence in the
national and international stages this fall

• Strong, clear papers underscored that we are
  competitive or leading in critical areas,
  including, in MHD

3
NSTX research had a strong presence in the
national and international stages this fall
4
In addition, at the APS there were

• 12 contributed orals
• 40 posters (2 sessions)
• Overall, a very good showing.

5
ETs are/need to be working towards a sharp
research program in 05

• Activities include
• Boundary physics discussions are taking place on
  how to approach lithium pellet experiments this
  year (Kaita, Kugel)
• CHI Important research operations work (Bell) in
  preionization, insulation, and control.
• MHD global mode stabilization discussions have
  taken place. The bar is set high (Sabbagh,
  Menard).
• Transport discussions regarding sensitivity
  studies to be performed with linear gk codes to
  assess robustness of results (Kaye, Redi, Mikk)
• HHFW/EBW discussions on run priorities at the
  APS
• Control meeting on what we can strike for and
  how to manage the control development effort
  (Gates, Mueller, Bell)
• Jon Menard is beginning to work with ET leaders
  on run planning, with attention paid to
  cross-cutting issues

6
Point of concern that we have to continually
confront what is the relation between our goals
and national/international considerations

• We all know and talk about ITER and its impact on
  our research.
• Despite this, for me there was nothing like
  being there. There was no substitute for the
  experience of being at the IAEA and being
  immersed in the world of ITER
• This raises good questions
• What is our relationship to ITER?
• What is the right balancein our program between
  ITER contributions, an ST-centric mission, and
  contributions to toroidal confinement overall? Do
  they help each other, or are they at odds?

7
(No Transcript)
8
Recall how we described things at the last PAC
Unique NSTX plasma properties provide scientific
leverage in all major areas of toroidal
confinement research
Strengthen the scientific basis for fusion
energy
Edge transport stability
Core transport turbulence
MHD stability helicity injection
Wave/particle interactions
Test theory by isolating important physics and
challenging models at their extremes of
applicability
9
Belief ST-, ITER-, and science-oriented pursuits
are consonant with each other
Consonant being in agreement or harmony free
from elements making for discord
ITER considerations include Critical
issue RWM control considered ITER-relevant heat
fluxes Common interest in advanced scenarios

• For example, to be able to extrapolate high
  beta,high confinement, long pulse, non-inductive
  operations, we must
• Understand confinement
• Push stability towards the with-wall limit
• Manage high heat fluxes and control the density
• Keep q elevated, drive lots of bootstrap, drive
  current off-axis

Physics issues include Electron transport
high k RWM control. Flows MHD Potentially very
high power densities Integration of JBS, EBW,
NBI CD. NTM stabilization
10
The ITPA is an international forum that provides
a critical opportunity challenge for NSTX

• It is to your benefit, and the benefit of NSTX,
  to take part in these forums
• We have the elements to lead in many of the
  discussions. Increasingly, we are seeing the
  benefits of joint research. Such experiments will
  be embraced by the ITPA process
• These are forums by which our approach to science
  by compare contrast naturally contributes to
  ITER-relevant discussions
• Participation is growing, but
• We have to be prepared to share the burden of
  travel with each other

11
Recent ITPA participation in Lisbon includes

• Jon
• Martin
• Rajesh
• Roger
• Stan
• myself

12
Another significant feature of the program is the
dialogue of the Priorities Panel

• Report due out very soon. Public session held at
  APS (Baker). Message Liven it up!
• Priorities are not device-specific, but rather
  are topical
• NSTX has a great opportunity to contribute in
  several key areas, and to lead via
  contrast/compare experiments
• We need to be visible in these areas

13
Areas that make the top 6 research topics from
the Priorities Panel include areas central to the
NSTX program
Dont recall them all, but two are

• High k scattering opportunity. e-m effects
• Edge diagnostics improving. Opp for tests of role
  of ri, role of magnetic shear
• Report coming out soon.

• Electron thermal transport
• Developing predictive capability of the pedestal

14
NSTX milestones for FY 05 speak to ST needs as
well as national program priorities

• Milestone FY05-1 on Physics Integration Plasma
  stability and confinement of strongly shaped
  high-beta plasmas for longer durations will be
  characterized. (September 2005)
• Milestone FY05-2 for MHD Stability Produce and
  characterize strongly shaped ST plasmas
  approaching the wall-stabilized pressure
  limits. (September 2005)
• Milestone FY05-3 on Wave-Particle Interactions
  Assess the requirements for the high-power
  Electron Bernstein Wave (EBW) heating and current
  drive systems on NSTX. (September 2005)
• Milestone FY05-4 on Boundary Physics
  Characterize the plasma edge pedestals and
  scrape-off layer in high performance spherical
  torus plasmas. (September 2005)
• Milestone FY05-5 on Turbulence and Transport The
  effects of variations in the magnetic shear and
  gradients in Te on electron transport will be
  characterized. (September 2005)

15
NSTX research for 05 - 07 is well aligned with
the fusion programs scientific priorities and
supports strategic goals
FESAC Theme Understand the role of magnetic
structure on confinement, plasma pressure
limits
FESAC Theme Learn to use energetic particles
e-m waves to sustain and control high temperature
plasmas
NSTX
Stability pressure limits magnetic
reconnection vs. A, shape, profile, q flows,
for internal external modes with Vflow/VA lt 0.4
unity b helicity transport
EM waves in overdense plasma Phase space
manipulation with high electron trapping
energetic ions with large orbits Alfven
eigenmodes and turbulence with Vfast/VA gtgt 1
_
Determine Most Promising Configurations Develop
New Materials, Components, Technologies
Demonstrate Feasibility with Burning
Plasmas Develop Understanding and Predicitve
Capability
Microscopic ion, electron, and tearing turbulence
measurement theory comparison over wide range
in b, flows, and magnetic shear, with good
average curvature and high trapping
Physics of ELMs, pedestal, SOL turbulence high
divertor heat flux, with large in/out asymmetry
Li coatings liquid surface interactions with
plasma.

• FESAC Theme Learn to control the interface
  between a 100 million degree plasma and its room
  temperature surroundings

FESAC Theme Understand control the processes
that govern confinement of heat, momentum, and
particles