Investigation of electron parallel pressure balance in the scrape-off layer of deuterium-based radiative divertor discharges IN DIII-D
- General Atomics, San Diego, CA (United States)
- Lawrence Livermore National Lab., CA (United States); and others
Electron density, temperature, and parallel pressure measurements at several locations along field lines connecting the midplane scrapeoff layer (SOL) with the outer divertor are presented for both attached and partially-detached divertor cases: I{sub p} = 1.4 MA, q{sub 95} = 4.2, and P{sub input} {approximately} 6.7 MW under ELMing H-mode conditions. At the onset of the Partially Detached Divertor (PDD), a high density, low temperature plasma forms in the divertor SOL (divertor MARFE). The electron pressure drops by a factor of {approximately} 2 between the midplane separatrix and the X-point, and then an additional {approximately}3--5 times between the X-point and the outboard separatrix strike point. These results are in contrast to the attached (non-PDD) case, where electron pressure in the SOL is reduced by, at most, a factor of two between the midplane and the divertor target. Divertor MARFEs generally have only marginal adverse impact on important H-mode characteristics, such as confinement time. In fact, PDD discharges at low input power maintains good H-mode characteristics until a high density, low temperature plasma abruptly forms inside the separatrix near the X-point (X-point MARFE). Concurrent with the appearance of this X-point MARFE is a degradation in both energy confinement and the plasma fueling rate, and an increase in the carbon impurity concentration inside the core plasma. The formation of the X-point MARFE is consistent with a thermal instability resulting from the temperature dependence of the carbon radiative cooling rate in the range {approximately} 7--30 eV.
- Research Organization:
- General Atomics, San Diego, CA (United States); Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Oak Ridge Inst. for Science and Education, TN (United States); Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Energy Research, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- W-7405-ENG-48; AC03-89ER51114; AC05-96OR22464; AC04-94AL85000
- OSTI ID:
- 446393
- Report Number(s):
- GA-A22349; CONF-960569-16; ON: DE97003442; TRN: 97:006518
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: 12. international conference on plasma surface interactions in controlled fusion devices, Saint-Raphael (France), 20-26 May 1996; Other Information: PBD: Oct 1996
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Radiative detached divertor with acceptable separatrix Zeff
SOL effects on the pedestal structure in DIII-D discharges