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The behavior of heavy/high-Z impurity tungsten (W) in the core of hybrid (high normalized beta β N plasmas) scenario on EAST with international thermonuclear experimental reactor-like divertor is analyzed. W accumulation is often observed and seriously degrades the plasma performance (Gao et al 2017 Nucl. Fusion 57 056021). The dynamics of the W accumulation process of a hybrid discharge are examined considering the concurrent evolution of the background plasma parameters. It is found that the toroidal rotation and density peaking of the bulk plasma are usually large in the central region, which is particularly prone to the W accumulation. A time slice during the W accumulation phase is modeled, accounting for both neoclassical and turbulent transport components of W, through NEO with poloidal asymmetry effects induced by toroidal rotation, and TGLF, respectively. This modeling reproduces the experimental observations of W accumulation and identifies the neoclassical inward convection/pinch velocity of W due to the large density peaking of the bulk plasma and toroidal rotation in the central region as one of the main reasons for the W accumulation. In addition, the NEO + TGLF + STRAHL modeling can not only predict the core W density profile but also closely reconstruct the radiated information mainly produced by W in the experiment.

The behavior of heavy/high-Z impurity tungsten (W) in an improved high-performance fully non-inductive discharge on EAST with ITER-like divertor (ILD) is analyzed. It is found that W could be well controlled. The causes of no W accumulation are clarified by analyzing the background plasma parameters and modeling the W transport. It turns out that the electron temperature (T e) and its gradient are usually high while the toroidal rotation and density peaking of the bulk plasma are small. In this condition, the modeled W turbulent diffusion coefficient is big enough to offset the total turbulent and neoclassical pinch, so that W density profile for zero particle flux will not be very peaked. Combining NEO and TGLF for the W transport coefficient and the impurity transport code STRAHL, not only the core W density profile is predicted but also the radiated information mainly produced by W in the experiment can be closely reconstructed. At last, the physics of controlling W accumulation by electron cyclotron resonance heating (ECRH) is illustrated considering the effects of changed T e by ECRH on ionization balance and transport of W. It shows that the change of ionization and recombination balance by changed T e is not enough to explain the experimental observation of W behavior, which should be attributed to the changed W transport. By comparing the W transport coefficients in two kinds of plasmas with different T e profiles, it is shown that high T e and its gradient play a key role to generate large turbulent diffusion through increasing the growth rate of linear instability so that W accumulation is prevented.

Extreme ultraviolet (EUV) spectra emitted from low-Z impurity ions in the wavelength range of 10–500 Å were observed in Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST) discharges. Several spectral lines from K- and L-shell partially ionized ions were successfully observed with sufficient spectral intensities and resolutions for helium, lithium, boron, carbon, oxygen, neon, silicon and argon using two fast-time-response EUV spectrometers of which the spectral intensities are absolutely calibrated based on the intensity comparison method between visible and EUV bremsstrahlung continua. The wavelength is carefully calibrated using well-known spectra. The lithium, boron and silicon are individually introduced for the wall coating of the EAST vacuum vessel to suppress mainly the hydrogen and oxygen influxes from the vacuum wall, while the carbon and oxygen intrinsically exist in the plasma. The helium is frequently used as the working gas as well as the deuterium. The neon and argon are also often used for the radiation cooling of edge plasma to reduce the heat flux onto the divertor plate. The measured spectra were analyzed mainly based on the database of National Institute of Standards and Technology. As a result, spectral lines of He II, Li II–III, B IV–V, C III–VI, O III–VIII, Ne II–X, Si V–XII, and Ar X–XVI are identified in EAST plasmas of which the central electron temperature and chord-averaged electron density range in T e0 = 0.6–2.8 keV and n e = (0.5–6.0) × 1019 m−3, respectively. The wavelengths and transitions of EUV lines identified here are summarized and listed in a table for each impurity species as the database for EUV spectroscopy using fusion plasmas.