Magnetic fields keep a ball of current-carrying gases (plasma) in place at fusion power plants. This creates a mini sun that produces energy via nuclear fusion. Compact Advanced Tokamak (CAT), a concept using state-of-the-art physics models, can potentially increase fusion energy production. These models demonstrate that fusion plant operators can reduce turbulent eddies by shaping the plasma and distributing current in the plasma. These eddies can lead to heat loss. Operators can attain higher pressures and greater fusion power by using lower currents. This advancement could lead to a plasma state in which it can sustain itself and drive most of its power.
This tokamak reactors approach reduces heat loads and stress by allowing for a lower plasma current. This reduces the engineering and material challenges that fusion plant designers face. The plasma’s motion generates the required current. This is also a result of higher pressure. This reduces the cost of current drive systems, which can minimize fusion plants’ potential electric power output. This allows for a stationary, “always-on” configuration. This allows for smaller and more affordable power plants, as plants are less stressed than traditional pulsed fusion power approaches.
The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (DOE) and the Department of Energy’s Fusion Energy Sciences Advisory Committee (DOE) released the roadmaps. They call for aggressive development of fusion fuel in the United States. Researchers believe there must be more economical and efficient ways to create fusion energy than currently available. To make the CAT concept, researchers developed novel reactor simulations that use the most recent plasma physics knowledge to improve performance. Researchers combined state-of-the-art theory from the DIII-D National Fusion Facility and advanced computing with the Cori supercomputer at National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center. These simulations revealed a pathway to a concept that allows for a more efficient, autonomous, high-performance configuration. It holds energy more efficiently than traditional pulsed configurations. This makes it possible to build at a lower scale and with less cost.