skip to main content
OSTI.GOV title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Title: Observation and modeling of inner divertor re-attachment in discharges with lithium coatings in NSTX

Journal Article · · Journal of Nuclear Materials
 [1];  [2];  [2];  [2];  [1];  [1];  [1]
  1. Princeton Plasma Physics Lab. (PPPL), Princeton, NJ (United States)
  2. Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)

In the National Spherical Torus Experiment (NSTX), modifications to the inner divertor plasma regimes are observed in high triangularity, H-mode, NBI heated discharges due to lithium coatings evaporated on the plasma facing components. In particular, the drop in the recombination rate, the reduced neutral pressure and the reduced electron density (inferred from Stark broadening measurements of high-n deuterium Balmer lines) suggested that the inner divertor, which is usually detached in discharges without lithium, re-attached. In conclusion, experimental results are compared to simulations obtained with a 1D partially ionized plasma transport model integrated in the non-local thermodynamic equilibrium radiation transport code CRETIN to understand how the reduced recycling affects the divertor parameters in NSTX discharges with lithium coatings.

Research Organization:
Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA)
Grant/Contract Number:
AC52-07NA27344
OSTI ID:
1529185
Report Number(s):
LLNL-JRNL-434143; 402083
Journal Information:
Journal of Nuclear Materials, Vol. 415, Issue 1; ISSN 0022-3115
Publisher:
ElsevierCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 6 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

References (9)

Ideal interchange instabilities in stellarators with a magnetic hill journal October 1999
Divertor regimes in NSTX journal March 2005
Effect of hydrogen line radiation on the divertor target plate incident heat flux journal April 2004
Cretin—a radiative transfer capability for laboratory plasmas journal October 2001
Electron density measurements in the National Spherical Torus Experiment detached divertor region using Stark broadening of deuterium infrared Paschen emission lines journal October 2006
Fast neutral pressure gauges in NSTX journal October 2004
Ionization, recombination, and population of excited levels in hydrogen plasmas journal April 1973
The effect of lithium surface coatings on plasma performance in the National Spherical Torus Experiment journal May 2008
Multi-Fluid Modeling of Low-Recycling Divertor Regimes journal May 2010

Cited By (1)

Disruptions, disruptivity and safer operating windows in the high- β spherical torus NSTX journal April 2013