Analysis and design of the central stack for the SMART tokamak

Abstract

The SMall Aspect Ratio Tokamak (SMART) is a new spherical machine that is currently under construction at the University of Seville aimed at exploring negative vs positive triangularity prospects in Spherical Tokamaks (ST). The operation of SMART will cover three phases, with toroidal fields Bϕ ≤ 1 T, inductive plasma currents up to Ip = 500 kA and a pulse length up to 500 ms, for a plasma with R = 0.4 m, a = 0.25 m and a wide range of shaping configurations (aspect ratio, 1.4 < R/a < 3, elongation, κ ≤ 3, and average triangularity, -0.6 ≤ δ ≤ 0.6). The magnet system of the tokamak is composed by 12 Toroidal Field Coils (TFC), 8 Poloidal Field Coils (PFC) and a Central Solenoid (CS). With such operating conditions, the design of the central stack, usually a critical part in spherical tokamaks due to space limitations, presents notable challenges. The current SMART central stack has been designed to operate up to phase 2 and it comprises the inner legs of the TFC, surrounded by the CS, two supporting rings, a central pole and a pedestal. To achieve the plasma parameters of this phase (Bϕ=0.4 T with inductive Ip up to 200 kA), the high currents required, combined with the low aspect-ratio of the machine lead to high forces on the conductors that represent an engineering challenge. The loads expected in the central stack are a centring force up to 1.5 MN and a twisting torque up to 7.4 kNm. This work describes the design of the central stack and its mechanical validation with a multiphysics finite element assessment. Using a combined electromagnetic and mechanical assessment, it is shown that the SMART central stack will meet the physics requirements in phase 2.