Open AccessDevelopment of a Cost-Effective Design for the Fusion Ignition Research Experiment
Author(s) -
P. Heitzenroeder
Publication year - 1999
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Reports
DOI - 10.2172/15035
Subject(s) - ignition system , radius , nuclear engineering , fusion , engineering design process , approx , environmental science , aerospace engineering , mechanical engineering , computer science , engineering , linguistics , philosophy , computer security , operating system
The Fusion Ignition Research Experiment (FIRE) is one of the components of a US Next Step Options (NSO) study which is considering what major experiments might be undertaken in a restructured US Fusion Sciences Program. FIRE is designed for a plasma current of {approx}6.5 MA, a burn time of at least 10 s, and a Q in the range of 5 to 10. FIRE has a major radius of 2.0 m, a minor radius of 0.525 m, and a field on axis of 10T. All of the coils are inertially cooled by liquid nitrogen. FIRE will operate primarily in a double null configuration with an x-point triangularity of 0.8 and an x-point elongation of 2.2. In addition to these technical requirements, a major goal for the FIRE project is for a total project cost of approximately $1B (in FY 99 dollars). This paper describes the process and rationale for the engineering design chosen for FIRE, taking into account both the performance and cost goals