Confinement analysis in low‐confinement mode of hydrogen isotope experiments on the Tokamak Fusion Test Reactor

• Published in: Physics of plasmas 1996-12, Vol.3 (12), p.4521-4535
• Main Authors: Barnes, Cris W., Scott, S. D., Bell, M. G., Bell, R., Budny, R. V., Bush, C. E., Fredrickson, E. D., Grek, B., Hill, K. W., Janos, A., Kamperschroer, J. H., LaMarche, P. H., Mansfield, D. K., Park, H. K., Phillips, C. K., Ramsey, A. T., Schivell, J., Stratton, B. C., Synakowski, E. J., Taylor, G., Wilson, J. R., Zarnstorff, M. C.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 1070-664X; 1089-7674
• DOI: 10.1063/1.872069

The effect of isotope on confinement in high‐recycling, L‐mode plasmas is studied on the Tokamak Fusion Test Reactor (TFTR) [see D. M. Meade, J. Fusion Energy 7, 107 (1988)] by comparing hydrogen and deuterium plasmas with the same magnetic field and similar electron densities and heating power, with both Ohmic and deuterium‐neutral‐beam heating. Following a long operational period in deuterium, nominally hydrogen plasmas were created through hydrogen glow discharge and hydrogen gas puffing in Ohmic plasmas, which saturated the exposed limiter surface with hydrogen and raised the H/(H+D) ratio from 10±3% to 65±5%. Ohmic deuterium discharges obtained higher stored energy and lower loop voltage than hydrogen discharges with similar limiter conditions. Neutral‐beam power scans were conducted in L‐mode plasmas at minor radii of 50 and 80 cm, with plasma currents of 0.7 and 1.4 MA. To minimize transport differences from the beam deposition profile and beam heating, deuterium neutral beams were used to heat the plasmas of both isotopes. Total stored energy increased approximately 20% from nominally hydrogen plasmas to deuterium plasmas during auxiliary heating. Of this increase about half can be attributed to purely classical differences in the energy content of unthermalized beam ions. Kinetic measurements indicate a consistent but small increase in central electron temperature and total stored electron energy in deuterium relative to hydrogen plasmas, but no change in total ion stored energy. No significant differences in particle transport, momentum transport, and sawtooth behavior are observed. Overall, only a small improvement (∼10%) in global energy confinement time of the thermal plasma is seen between operation in hydrogen and deuterium.