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The mitigation of divertor heat fluxes is an active topic of investigation on existing tokamaks. One approach uses radiation, both inside and outside the last closed flux surface (LCFS), to convert plasma thermal energy, usually directed towards dedicated plasma facing components, to soft X-ray and ultraviolet radiation, spread over a much larger surface area. Recent enhanced D-α H-mode experiments on Alcator C-Mod varied the ICRF input power and radiative power losses via impurity seeding to demonstrate that normalized energy confinement depends strongly on the difference between input power and the radiated power inside the LCFS. These investigations also show that when seeded with either Ne or N2, a factor of two and higher reduction in outer divertor heat flux is achieved while maintaining H98,y2 ∼ 1.0. Conversely, when seeding with Ar, confinement is limited to H98,y2 ∼ 0.8 for a similar level of exhaust power.

The convective radial transport effects of SOL turbulence have been estimated using recent turbulence data from the gas puff imaging (GPI) camera diagnostic on Alcator C-Mod. The average radial turbulence speed within the region 1-2 cm outside the separatrix near the outer was calculated by a 2-0 cross-correlation technique to be V-t similar to 0.2-0.3 km/s. Assuming this to be the local convective plasma velocity, the density SOL width lambda(n) was evaluated using a simple convective model to be lambda(n) similar to 4-7 cm, which is similar to 2-3 times higher than that measured using a Langmuir probe. This convective velocity was also similar to 2-3 times lower than the velocities estimated from analytic blob models, but showed a similar scaling with plasma current at constant q(95). The measured blob speeds were lower than both the convective speeds and the analytic blob model speeds.

Two aspects of edge turbulence and transport in Alcator C-Mod are explored. The quasi-coherent mode (QCM), an edge fluctuation present in Enhanced Dα H-mode plasmas, is examined with regard to its role in the enhanced particle transport found in these plasmas, its in/out asymmetry, its poloidal wave number and its radial width and location. It is shown to play a dominant role in the perpendicular particle transport. The QCM is not observed at the inboard midplane, indicating that its amplitude there is significantly smaller than on the outboard side. The peak amplitude of the QCM is found just inside the separatrix, with a radial width 5 mm, leading to a non-zero amplitude outside the separatrix and qualitatively consistent with its transport enhancement. Also examined are the characteristics of the intermittent convective transport, associated with the larger scale turbulent structures, also called blobs, and typically occurring in the scrape-off-layer (SOL). These turbulent structures are qualitatively similar in L- and H-mode. When their perpendicular extent, occurrence frequencies and magnitudes are compared, it is found that their size is somewhat smaller in ELMfree H-Mode, while their frequency is similar. A clear difference is seen in the magnitude of these turbulent fluctuations in the far SOL, with ELMfree H-mode showing a smaller perturbation there than L-mode. As the Greenwald density limit is approached (n/nGW ≥ 0.7), blobs are seen inside the separatrix consistent with the observation that the high cross-field transport region, normally found in the far SOL, penetrates the closed flux surfaces at high n/nGW.

Rapid changes in the loading resistance of fast wave antennas can limit high power operations of heating systems in the ion cyclotron range of frequencies (ICRF). Although novel matching techniques are being developed to reduce their effects, understanding the physics involved in these variations is of interest to guide and facilitate the design effort. We have studied the dependence of the loading resistance upon plasma parameters for the three ICRF antennas in the Alcator C-Mod tokamak. In contrast with similar studies in JET and Tore Supra, the evanescent decay term was not found to play an important role. The dominant variations could be related to changes in the shape of the electron density profiles in the propagating region. In H-mode, the loading resistance decreases as the density at the top of the pedestal is increased, and increases for higher scrape-off-layer (SOL) densities. This dependence on global plasma parameters is generally identical for the three antennas, up to a proportionality constant, while local changes in front of an individual antennas could explain the residual discrepancy. To link the observations with theory, the surface impedance at the Faraday shield was calculated by solving the wave equation in a slab geometry using experimental radial density profiles. This approach leads to a good agreement with measurements over a wide range of operating conditions in L-mode, ELM-free and EDA H-mode plasmas, and it can be interpreted qualitatively in terms of impedance transformation in the SOL region. Implications for more complex modelling approaches are also discussed.

For steady state high-confinement-mode (H-mode) operation, a relaxation mechanism is required to limit build-up of the edge gradient and impurity content. Alcator C-Mod [Hutchinson et al., Phys. Plasmas 1, 1511 (1994)] sees two such mechanisms—EDA (enhanced D-alpha H mode) and grassy ELMs (edge localized modes), but not large type I ELMs. In EDA the edge relaxation is provided by an edge localized quasicoherent (QC) electromagnetic mode that exists at moderate pedestal temperature T 3.5, and does not limit the buildup of the edge pressure gradient. The q boundary of the operational space of the mode depends on plasma shape, with the q95 limit moving down with increasing plasma triangularity. At high edge pressure gradients and temperatures the mode is replaced by broadband fluctuations ( f

A study of four dairy farms showed that much of the straw stored for bedding was too wet (over 15 per cent moisture content). Most of the beds, including their top surfaces, were damp (above 75 per cent relative humidity). The temperature of the surface of most of the straw beds was related to the air temperature, many being below 15 degrees C, but below the surface the temperatures of most beds reached between 15 degrees C and 45 degrees C within about a week of their being renewed. Bacterial counts also reached a plateau within one to two weeks. The pH of the top layers of straw was usually between 8.5 and 9.5. Adding lime daily to the top layer of the straw failed to raise the pH to levels at which Escherichia coli and Streptococcus uberis do not survive. Most of the counts of E coli and faecal streptococci in the top layers of straw were above 10(6) colony-forming units/g. Counts of E coli and S uberis were much higher in the beds of early lactation cows than in those of dry cows. Many of the early lactation cows were heavily and persistently contaminated with faeces. Dry cows were much cleaner. Groups of cows with firmer faeces were also cleaner. The farm with the lowest incidence of mastitis had the cleanest cows and the most satisfactory beds.

High resolution measurements on the Alcator C-Mod tokamak [I. H. Hutchinson et al., Phys. Plasmas 1, 1551 (1994)] of the transport barrier in the “Enhanced Dα” (EDA) regime, which has increased particle transport without large edge localized modes, show steep density and temperature gradients over a region of 2–5 mm, with peak pressure gradients up to 12 MPa/m. Evolution of the pedestal at the L-H transition is consistent with a large, rapid drop in thermal conductivity across the barrier. A quasi-coherent fluctuation in density, potential, and Bpol, with f0∼50–150 kHz and kθ∼4 cm−1, always appears in the barrier during EDA, and drives a large particle flux. Conditions to access the steady-state EDA regime in deuterium include δ>0.35, q95>3.5, and L-mode target density ne>1.2×1020 m−3. A reduced q95 limit is found for hydrogen discharges.

A survey was made of 37 dairy farms in Wirral, mid-Cheshire, mid-Somerset and Dyfed, Wales, to assess the incidence and prevalence of lameness in the cows between May 1989 and September 1991. The incidence was obtained from records made whenever a cow was examined for lameness or received preventive foot-trimming. The mean annual incidence was 54.6 new cases per 100 cows with a range from 10.7 to 170.1 and the mean values during summer and winter were 22.9 and 31.7, respectively. The prevalence of lameness was measured by regular visits at which locomotion was scored on a scale of 1 to 5, and the prevalence of lameness was calculated for each visit as the proportion of cows with scores of 3 or more. The mean annual prevalence over the whole period was 20.6 per cent with a range from 2.0 to 53.9 per cent for the 37 farms. The mean prevalences during summer and winter were 18.6 and 25.0 per cent, respectively. The prevalence measured at a single visit in midsummer or midwinter was significantly correlated with the mean prevalence over the whole corresponding period and may be useful as an assessment of the extent of lameness in a herd and the efficacy of control measures. There was evidence that training farmers to recognise early cases of lameness and request veterinary treatment resulted in a marked reduction in the duration of cases of lameness.

Direction reversals of intrinsic toroidal rotation have been observed in diverted Alcator C-Mod Ohmic L-mode plasmas following electron density ramps. For low density discharges, the core rotation is directed cocurrent, and reverses to countercurrent following an increase in the density above a certain threshold. Such reversals occur together with a decrease in density fluctuations with 2 cm(-1)≤k(θ)≤11 cm(-1) and frequencies above 70 kHz. There is a strong correlation between the reversal density and the density at which the Ohmic L-mode energy confinement changes from the linear to the saturated regime.

We report extended studies of the I-mode regime [Whyte et al., Nucl. Fusion 50, 105005 (2010)] obtained in the Alcator C-Mod tokamak [Marmar et al., Fusion Sci. Technol. 51(3), 3261 (2007)]. This regime, usually accessed with unfavorable ion B × ∇B drift, features an edge thermal transport barrier without a strong particle transport barrier. Steady I-modes have now been obtained with favorable B × ∇B drift, by using specific plasma shapes, as well as with unfavorable drift over a wider range of shapes and plasma parameters. With favorable drift, power thresholds are close to the standard scaling for L–H transitions, while with unfavorable drift they are ∼ 1.5–3 times higher, increasing with Ip. Global energy confinement in both drift configurations is comparable to H-mode scalings, while density profiles and impurity confinement are close to those in L-mode. Transport analysis of the edge region shows a decrease in edge χeff, by typically a factor of 3, between L- and I-mode. The decrease correlates with ...

An improved energy confinement regime, I-mode, is studied in Alcator C-Mod, a compact high-field divertor tokamak using ion cyclotron range of frequencies (ICRFs) auxiliary heating. I-mode features an edge energy transport barrier without an accompanying particle barrier, leading to several performance benefits. H-mode energy confinement is obtained without core impurity accumulation, resulting in reduced impurity radiation with a high-Z metal wall and ICRF heating. I-mode has a stationary temperature pedestal with edge localized modes typically absent, while plasma density is controlled using divertor cryopumping. I-mode is a confinement regime that appears distinct from both L-mode and H-mode, combining the most favourable elements of both. The I-mode regime is investigated predominately with ion ∇B drift away from the active X-point. The transition from L-mode to I-mode is primarily identified by the formation of a high temperature edge pedestal, while the edge density profile remains nearly identical to L-mode. Laser blowoff injection shows that I-mode core impurity confinement times are nearly identical with those in L-mode, despite the enhanced energy confinement. In addition, a weakly coherent edge MHD mode is apparent at high frequency ~100–300 kHz which appears to increase particle transport in the edge. The I-mode regime has been obtained over a wide parameter space (BT = 3–6 T, Ip = 0.7–1.3 MA, q95 = 2.5–5). In general, the I-mode exhibits the strongest edge temperature pedestal (Tped) and normalized energy confinement (H98 > 1) at low q95 ( 4 MW). I-mode significantly expands the operational space of edge localized mode (ELM)-free, stationary pedestals in C-Mod to Tped ~ 1 keV and low collisionality , as compared with EDA H-mode with Tped . The I-mode global energy confinement has a relatively weak degradation with heating power; leading to increasing H98 with heating power.

The goal of the Lower Hybrid Current Drive (LHCD) system on the Alcator C-Mod tokamak [Hutchinson et al., Phys. Plasmas 1, 1511 (1994)] is to investigate current profile control under plasma conditions relevant to future tokamak experiments. Experimental observations of a LHCD “density limit” for C-Mod are presented in this paper. Bremsstrahlung emission from relativistic fast electrons in the core plasma drops suddenly above line averaged densities of 1020 m−3 (ω/ωLH∼3–4), well below the density limit previously observed on other experiments (ω/ωLH∼2). Electric currents flowing through the scrape off layer (SOL) between the inner and outer divertors increase dramatically across the same density range that the core bremsstrahlung emission drops precipitously. These experimental x-ray data are compared to both conventional modeling, which gives poor agreement with experiment above the density limit and a model including collisional absorption in the SOL, which dramatically improves agreement with experiment above the observed density limit. These results show that strong absorption of LH waves in the SOL is possible on a high density tokamak and the SOL must be included in simulations of LHCD at high density.

Recent experiments have led to a fundamental shift in our view of edge transport physics; transport near the last-closed flux surface may be more appropriately described in terms of a critical gradient phenomenon rather than a diffusive and/or convective paradigm. Edge pressure gradients, normalized by the square of the poloidal magnetic field strength, appear invariant in plasmas with the same normalized collisionality, despite vastly different currents and magnetic fields—a behavior that connects with first-principles electromagnetic plasma turbulence simulations. Near-sonic scrape-off layer (SOL) flows impose a cocurrent rotation boundary condition on the confined plasma when B×∇B points toward the active x-point, suggesting a link to the concomitant reduction in input power needed to attain high-confinement modes. Indeed, low-confinement mode plasmas are found to attain higher edge pressure gradients in this configuration, independent of the direction of B, evidence that SOL flows may affect transport and “critical gradient” values in the edge plasma.

The Brabender Farinograph with a burr mill accessory was modified to measure the work in joules to grind 25–55g of wheat and to provide a digital readout of the data. Temperature (18–20°C), protein content (10.5–15.9%), kernel size, and growth location had little effect on the results, but the work required to grind wheat increased with increasing moisture content (7–13%). The average work was 530 joules (standard deviation 3.3) for 60 samples of a soft white winter wheat and 880 joules (standard deviation 5.3) for 60 samples of a very hard red winter wheat. The method may be suitable for distinguishing between hard and soft wheats.

Three degress of consolidation and air exclusion were imposed by vacuum compression during the making of three 60 tonne stacks of silage from a common source of mixed pasture grasses. Maximum air exclusion resulted in a silage having lowest pH and butyric acid and highest lactic acid content. When the three silages were fed as sole diets to lactating dairy cows intake was about 12% lower and butterfat yield about 14% lower on the silage from which air had been most effectively removed.

Silages made from direct-cut pasture herbage ensiled in stacks (i), bunkers (ii), and by vacuum compression (iii) have been evaluated as sole feedstuffs for milking cows in two series of experiments. Total nitrogen, ammonia-nitrogen, and pH were highest in (i), from which significantly more dry matter (D.M.) was consumed, and more milk of significantly higher fat percentage was produced, than from (ii) or (iii)|but these differences were too small to influence appreciably choice of the method of ensiling. Voluntary intakes of silage D.M. ranged between 2.2 and 3.0% of live weight. Feed requirements for maintenance and lactation have been calculated and are discussed relative to others previously obtained for pasture herbage.

The equipment produces automatically a compact photographic record of a step-scan of a powder diffraction pattern in steps of 0.02° (2θ). It is arranged that movement over the background region between lines is rapid, so that only the line profile and the immediate background on either side are recorded in detail. The specialized electronic circuits and the relay-operated automatic sequence control circuits are described, together with a special automatic camera provided with various safety devices to protect the record. Facilities for other scanning procedures are also provided.

Two sets of twin cows were used to compare the following methods of measuring the volume of water in the reticulo-rumen (fluid volume) :— 1. (i) directly, by removing the digesta from the reticulo-rumen; 2. (ii) indirectly, by dosing with polyethylene glycol (PEG) and following its disappearance curve from the reticulo-rumen; 3. (iii) indirectly, from body weight, by using information gained from (i) above on variations in empty body weight (i.e., weight after removing the digesta). The direct measurements were simple, rapid. and presumably accurate. During experiment I, PEG measurements showed no significant bias when compared with direct measurements, but standard errors of mean differences between PEG and direct measurements were relatively large. During experiment II, a modified technique gave PEG measurements which were more consistent (standard errors were smaller), but in two cows PEG measurements were significantly lower than direct measurements. The differences between fluid volumes obta...

Attention has been drawn to problems associated witb separating and collecting dung and urine from milking cows when on metabolism trials. The limitations of apparatus currently used for this purpose are outlined. Alternative equipment is described which has been designed specifically for collecting the excreta from Jersey cattle fed exclusively on fresh pasture herbage. This consists of four items; a special harness, a hinged metal separator, and dung and urine chutes. Faeces and urine are delivered into separate containers on the floor. All items are readily constructed by local tradesmen. Methods of assembly and fitting are outlined and an estimate of the total cost is provided.

The Brabender automatic micro hardness tester was used to measure the time required to grind 4g of wheat. Effects of temperature and moisture were determined. Increasing temperature from 15 to 40°C generally decreased grinding time, but differentiation among samples was better at 15°C than at higher temperatures. Increasing moisture content increased the grinding time of soft wheat much more than it increased the grinding time of hard wheat. The tester can detect differences related to milling properties of hard wheats, hardness among some wheat classes and among some varieties representing a single class of wheat. The instrument can also be used to evaluate hardness of plant-breeders' samples, so that selections with extreme hardness or softness can be discarded, and to distinguish between hard and soft wheats in marketing channels.

A dimensionless parameter dependence study of intrinsic torque has been performed on a database of H- and I-mode plasmas from the Alcator C-Mod tokamak. The torque was determined by comparing intrinsic angular momentum density profiles just before and just after L–H and L–I transitions. The intrinsic torque has been found to scale as β N 1.5 ρ * − 1.0 ν * 0.1 , with the parameter ranges 0.3 ⩽ β N ⩽ 1.5, 0.004 ⩽ ρ * ⩽ 0.011 and 0.04 ⩽ ν * ⩽ 0.9. Comparison with results from JET and DIII-D suggests that the intrinsic torque should be normalized by some measure of the device size. Depending upon this normalization, the estimated total intrinsic torques for ITER, SPARC and ARC are ∼20, ∼4 and ∼8 Nm, respectively.