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Electron thermal transport in tokamak plasmas

Abstract

The process of fusion of small nuclei thereby releasing energy, as it occurs continuously in the sun, is essential for the existence of mankind. The same process applied in a controlled way on earth would provide a clean and an abundant energy source, and be the long term solution of the energy problem. Nuclear fusion requires an extremely hot (10{sup 8} K) ionized gas, a plasma, that can only be maintained if it is kept insulated from any material wall. In the so called `tokamak` this is achieved by using magnetic fields. The termal insulation, which is essential if one wants to keep the plasma at the high `fusion` temperature, can be predicted using basic plasma therory. A comparison with experiments in tokamaks, however, showed that the electron enery losses are ten to hundred times larger than this theory predicts. This `anomalous transport` of thermal energy implies that, to reach the condition for nuclear fusion, a fusion reactor must have very large dimensions. This may put the economic feasibility of fusion power in jeopardy. Therefore, in a worldwide collaboration, physicists study tokamak plasmas in an attempt to understand and control the energy losses. From a scientific point of view, the  More>>
Authors:
Publication Date:
Nov 30, 1994
Product Type:
Thesis/Dissertation
Report Number:
INIS-mf-15214
Reference Number:
SCA: 700330; PA: AIX-28:024319; EDB-97:076668; NTS-97:009769; SN: 97001789234
Resource Relation:
Other Information: TH: Proefschrift.; PBD: 30 Nov 1994
Subject:
70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION; TOKAMAK DEVICES; TRANSPORT THEORY; ENERGY LOSSES; HEAT TRANSFER; MAGNETIC FIELDS; PLASMA
OSTI ID:
475728
Research Organizations:
Rijksuniversiteit Utrecht (Netherlands)
Country of Origin:
Netherlands
Language:
English
Other Identifying Numbers:
Other: ON: DE97623825; ISBN 90-393-0675-3; TRN: NL97F2830024319
Availability:
INIS; OSTI as DE97623825
Submitting Site:
NLN
Size:
160 p.
Announcement Date:
Jun 10, 1997

Citation Formats

Konings, J A. Electron thermal transport in tokamak plasmas. Netherlands: N. p., 1994. Web.
Konings, J A. Electron thermal transport in tokamak plasmas. Netherlands.
Konings, J A. 1994. "Electron thermal transport in tokamak plasmas." Netherlands.
@misc{etde_475728,
title = {Electron thermal transport in tokamak plasmas}
author = {Konings, J A}
abstractNote = {The process of fusion of small nuclei thereby releasing energy, as it occurs continuously in the sun, is essential for the existence of mankind. The same process applied in a controlled way on earth would provide a clean and an abundant energy source, and be the long term solution of the energy problem. Nuclear fusion requires an extremely hot (10{sup 8} K) ionized gas, a plasma, that can only be maintained if it is kept insulated from any material wall. In the so called `tokamak` this is achieved by using magnetic fields. The termal insulation, which is essential if one wants to keep the plasma at the high `fusion` temperature, can be predicted using basic plasma therory. A comparison with experiments in tokamaks, however, showed that the electron enery losses are ten to hundred times larger than this theory predicts. This `anomalous transport` of thermal energy implies that, to reach the condition for nuclear fusion, a fusion reactor must have very large dimensions. This may put the economic feasibility of fusion power in jeopardy. Therefore, in a worldwide collaboration, physicists study tokamak plasmas in an attempt to understand and control the energy losses. From a scientific point of view, the mechanisms driving anomalous transport are one of the challenges in fudamental plasma physics. In Nieuwegein, a tokamak experiment (the Rijnhuizen Tokamak Project, RTP) is dedicated to the study of anomalous transport, in an international collaboration with other laboratories. (orig./WL).}
place = {Netherlands}
year = {1994}
month = {Nov}
}