An efficient MHD equilibrium solver for control oriented transport models

•Internal profile control will play a key role in advanced tokamak plasmas.•Plasma control design benefits from first principle driven models.•MHD equilibrium condition can be coupled to control oriented transport codes.•Plasma equilibrium is computed using the safety factor profile with a q solver....

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Fusion engineering and design 2020-03, Vol.152, p.111455, Article 111455
Main Authors: Garcia-Martinez, P.L., Montes, P.E.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Active control
Configurations
Control stability
Coupling
Equilibrium
Magnetohydrodynamics
MHD equilibrium
Nuclear fusion
Physics based model
Plasma profile control
Plasmas (physics)
Safety factors
Tokamak
Tokamak devices
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Summary:•Internal profile control will play a key role in advanced tokamak plasmas.•Plasma control design benefits from first principle driven models.•MHD equilibrium condition can be coupled to control oriented transport codes.•Plasma equilibrium is computed using the safety factor profile with a q solver.•Changes in plasma geometry due to high beta or transport barriers can be considered. In tokamak plasmas, the current density profile is a strong determiner of both MHD stability and confinement. The design of active control techniques for this profile relies on control oriented transport models that capture the essential dynamics of its evolution. The physics of transport is coupled to the MHD equilibrium that determines the spatial structure of the magnetic configuration. However, since this coupling is difficult to solve, the common practice is not to update the equilibrium condition during profile control design or current profile tracking. In this work, a simplified coupling scheme for transport and equilibrium suitable for internal profile control design is proposed. The scheme relies on a new MHD equilibrium solver that efficiently updates the magnetic configuration using the safety factor and pressure profiles computed by the control oriented transport code. The new solver is described in detail and validated in advanced tokamak conditions including challenging features like reversed magnetic shear in the plasma core, edge transport barrier and high plasma beta.
ISSN:0920-3796
1873-7196
DOI:10.1016/j.fusengdes.2020.111455