Search

The realization of the Divertor Tokamak Test (DTT) facility is one of the key milestones of the European Roadmap, aiming to explore alternative power exhaust solutions for DEMO, the first nuclear-fusion power plant that will be connected to the European grid. For the actual implementation of the DTT and DEMO plants, it is necessary to define the structure of the internal electric power distribution system, able to supply unconventional loads with a sufficient level of reliability. The present paper reports the preliminary studies for the feasibility and realization of the electrical power systems of DTT, describing the methodology adopted to obtain a first distribution configuration and providing some simulation results. In particular, the first stage of the study deals with the survey and characterization of the electrical loads, which allows defining a general layout of the facility and size the main electrical components. To verify the correctness of the assumptions, simulation models of the grid were implemented in the DIgSILENT PowerFactory software in order to carry out power flow and fault analyses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pulsed power supply systems are employed in many fusion projects and in other scientific applications. A novel power supply approach and a first prototype unit were specifically developed to feed pulsed loads (low duty cycle), as the resistive or superconducting coils used to produce high magnetic fields for some seconds or longer. Thanks to the integrated energy storage, the high pulsed power required for the load is not drawn directly from the electrical grid. In fact, a huge amount of energy can be stored at low power (even through a single-phase 10 A plug, as normally used for household appliance). A significant fraction of the energy stored in the load can be recovered for successive operations. Without such energy storage, all the power supply devices and the upstream chain must be oversized and installed only in locations provided with adequate power. The first power supply unit (2 kA) was able to replace a previous system with comparable performances, but the old system occupies an extremely larger volume and needs a 20-kV connection at the input. Moreover, a specific solution was implemented to achieve a very fast (600 kW) energization of the magnets. The energy storage capability is intrinsically scalable: the setup can be rearranged and the storable energy can be updated even after the installation (for example, to increase the pulse duration). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

EU-DEMO is a European project, having the ambitious goal to be the first demonstrative power plant based on nuclear fusion. The electrical power that is expected to be produced is in the order of 700–800 MW, to be delivered via a connection to the European High Voltage electrical grid. The initiation and control of fusion processes, besides the problems related to the nuclear physics, need very complex electrical systems. Moreover, also the conversion of the output power is not trivial, especially because of the inherent discontinuity in the EU-DEMO operations. The present article concerns preliminary studies for the feasibility and realization of the nuclear fusion power plant EU-DEMO, with a special focus on the power electrical systems. In particular, the first stage of the study deals with the survey and analysis of the electrical loads, starting from the steady-state loads. Their impact is so relevant that could jeopardy the efficiency and the convenience of the plant itself. Afterwards, the loads are inserted into a preliminary internal distribution grid, sizing the main electrical components to carry out the power flow analysis, which is based on simulation models implemented in the DIgSILENT PowerFactory software. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Towards the middle of the current century, the DEMOnstration power plant, DEMO, will start operating as the first nuclear fusion reactor capable of supplying its own loads and of providing electrical power to the European electrical grid. The presence of such a unique and peculiar facility in the European transmission system involves many issues that have to be faced in the project phase. This work represents the first study linking the operation of the nuclear fusion power plant DEMO to the actual requirements for its correct functioning as a facility connected to the power systems. In order to build this link, the present work reports the analysis of the requirements that this unconventional power-generating facility should fulfill for the proper connection and operation in the European electrical grid. Through this analysis, the study reaches its main objectives, which are the definition of the limitations of the current design choices in terms of power-generating capability and the preliminary evaluation of advantages and disadvantages that the possible configurations for the connection of the facility to the European electrical grid can have. In reference to the second objective, the work makes possible a first attempt at defining the features of the point of connection to the European grid, whose knowledge will be useful in the future, for the choice of the real construction site. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]