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In recent years it has been well known that in JET, with the ITER-like wall, the performance of high-power H-mode plasmas depends strongly on the magnetic topology of the divertor. This is generally attributed to the effect of the magnetic field shaping on the neutral flux transport and pumping, which—in high density H-mode plasmas—determine the pedestal properties and the global confinement. In this work we have analysed the spatial distribution and the dynamic behaviour of the Dα-emission for different magnetic configurations. Experimental observations indicate that for certain configurations, the surface temperature and the Dα—emission anomalously increase on top of the inner divertor, which points to thermal outgassing there. This is also the region where most beryllium co-deposits accumulate and most deuterium becomes trapped. The overheating at this region far from the strike point (SP) is observed to happen in magnetic configurations with reduced distance between the divertor material surface and the separatrix (clearance). The neutral flux that appears at the upper inner divertor during a few milliseconds after the ELM-crash, is more than an order of magnitude larger than the gas puffing rate and dominates over all other regions. Finally, a preliminary study describes how this thermal fuel outgassing from the co-deposited layers could be used intentionally as a wall-conditioning in JET technique with plasmas that focus their particle and heat flux there. This could be used as a complementary wall isotope control technique and more specifically for tritium recovery from the upper inner divertor where most fuel-trapping beryllium co-deposits accumulate in JET ITER-like wall. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The erosion of tungsten (W), induced by the bombardment of plasma and impurity particles, determines the lifetime of plasma-facing components as well as impacting on plasma performance by the influx of W into the confined region. The screening of W by the divertor and the transport of W in the plasma determines largely the W content in the plasma core, but the W source strength itself has a vital impact on this process. The JET tokamak experiment provides access to a large set of W erosion-determining parameters and permits a detailed description of the W source in the divertor closest to the ITER one: (i) effective sputtering yields and fluxes as function of impact energy of intrinsic (Be, C) and extrinsic (Ne, N) impurities as well as hydrogenic isotopes (H, D) are determined and predictions for the tritium (T) isotope are made. This includes the quantification of intra- and inter-edge localised mode (ELM) contributions to the total W source in H-mode plasmas which vary owing to the complex flux compositions and energy distributions in the corresponding phases. The sputtering threshold behaviour and the spectroscopic composition analysis provides an insight in the dominating species and plasma phases causing W erosion. (ii) The interplay between the net and gross W erosion source is discussed considering (prompt) re-deposition, thus, the immediate return of W ions back to the surface due to their large Larmor radius, and surface roughness, thus, the difference between smooth bulk-W and rough W-coating components used in the JET divertor. Both effects impact on the balance equation of local W erosion and deposition. (iii) Post-mortem analysis reveals the net erosion/deposition pattern and the W migration paths over long periods of plasma operation identifying the net W transport to remote areas. This W transport is related to the divertor plasma regime, e.g. attached operation with high impact energies of impinging particles or detached operation, as well as to the applied magnetic configuration in the divertor, e.g. close divertor with good geometrical screening of W or open divertor configuration with poor screening. JET equipped with the ITER-like wall (ILW) provided unique access to the net W erosion rate within a series of 151 subsequent H-mode discharges (magnetic field: T, plasma current: MA, auxiliary power MW) in one magnetic configuration accumulating 900 s of plasma with particle fluences in the range of 5– in the semi-detached inner and attached outer divertor leg. The comparison of W spectroscopy in the intra-ELM and inter-ELM phases with post-mortem analysis of W marker tiles provides a set of gross and net W erosion values at the outer target plate. ERO code simulations are applied to both divertor leg conditions and reproduce the erosion/deposition pattern as well as confirm the high experimentally observed prompt W re-deposition factors of more than 95% in the intra- and inter-ELM phase of the unseeded deuterium H-mode plasma. Conclusions to the expected divertor conditions in ITER as well as to the JET operation in the DT plasma mixture are drawn on basis of this unique benchmark experiment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The mitigation of target heat load in future steady state fusion devices will require dissipation of a significant amount of power through radiation. Plasma operations relying on ELMy H-modes could be problematic since ELMs may transport substantial amounts of power to the target without significant dissipation. Therefore, estimation of the average ELM power exhaust from the plasma core is crucial to evaluate the potential limitation on the power dissipation in ELMy H-mode regime. A series of more than 50 Type-I ELMy H-mode discharges in JET with ITER-Like Wall (JET-ILW) with a wide range of conditions has been used here to compare the average ELM power to the average input power. The effect of input power, ELM frequency, plasma current, confinement and radiation on ELM power exhaust has been studied and reported in this paper. Good agreement has been found here with previous studies made in carbon machines. This work suggests that it should not be possible to dissipate more than 70%–80% of the input power in Type-I ELMy H-modes in JET-ILW which is consistent with the maximum radiative fraction found experimentally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The design and operation of future fusion devices relying on H-mode plasmas requires reliable modelling of edge-localized modes (ELMs) for precise prediction of divertor target conditions. An extensive experimental validation of simple analytical predictions of the time evolution of target plasma loads during ELMs has been carried out here in more than 70 JET-ITER-like wall H-mode experiments with a wide range of conditions. Comparisons of these analytical predictions with diagnostic measurements of target ion flux density, power density, impact energy and electron temperature during ELMs are presented in this paper and show excellent agreement. The analytical predictions tested here are made with the ‘free-streaming’ kinetic model (FSM) which describes ELMs as a quasi-neutral plasma bunch expanding along the magnetic field lines into the Scrape-Off Layer without collisions. Consequences of the FSM on energy reflection and deposition on divertor targets during ELMs are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The low temperature boundary layer plasma (scrape-off layer or SOL) between the hot core and the surrounding vessel determines the level of power loading, erosion and implantation of material surfaces, and thus the viability of tokamak-based fusion as an energy source. This study explores mechanisms affecting the formation of flattened density profiles, so-called ‘density shoulders’, in the low-field side (LFS) SOL, which modify ion and neutral fluxes to surfaces—and subsequent erosion. There is evidence against local enhancement of ionization inducing shoulder formation. We find that increases in SOL parallel resistivity, Λdiv (=[L||νeiΩi]/csΩe), postulated to lead to shoulder growth through changes in SOL turbulence characteristics, correlates with increases in SOL shoulder amplitude, As, but only under a subset of conditions (D2-fuelled L-mode density scans with outer strike point on the horizontal target). Λdiv fails to correlate with As for cases of N2 seeding or during sweeping of the strike point across the horizontal target. The limited correlation of Λdiv and As is also found for H-mode discharges. Thus, while it may be necessary for Λdiv to be above a threshold of ~1 for shoulder formation and/or growth, another mechanism is required. More significantly, we find that in contrast to parallel resistivity, outer divertor recycling, as quantified by the total outer divertor Balmer Dα emission, I–Dα, does scale with As where Λdiv does and even where Λdiv does not. Divertor recycling could lead to SOL density shoulder formation through: (a) reducing the parallel to the field flow (loss) of ions out of the SOL to the divertor; and (b) changes in radial electric fields which lead to E  ×  B poloidal flows as well as potentially affecting SOL turbulence birth characteristics. Thus, changes in divertor recycling may be the sole process involved in bringing about SOL density shoulders or it may be that it acts in tandem with parallel resistivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The dynamics and stability of divertor detachment in seeded, type-I, ELMy H-mode plasmas with dominant NBI heating in the JET ITER-like wall device is studied by means of an integrated analysis of diagnostic data from several systems, classifying data relative to the ELM times. It is thereby possible to study the response of the detachment evolution to the control parameters (SOL input power, upstream density and impurity fraction) prevailing during the inter-ELM periods and the effect of ELMs on the detached divertor. A relatively comprehensive overview is achieved, including the interaction with the targets at various stages of the ELM cycle, the role of ELMs in affecting the detachment process and the overall performance of the scenario. The results are consistent with previous studies in devices with an ITER-like, metal wall, with the important advance of distinguishing data from intra- and inter-ELM periods. Operation without significant degradation of the core confinement can be sustained in the presence of strong radiation from the x-point region (MARFE). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to understand the mechanisms for the H-mode density limit in machines with fully metallic walls, systematic investigations of H-mode density limit plasmas in experiments with deuterium and hydrogen external gas fuelling have been performed on JET-ILW. The observed H-mode density limit on JET in D- as well as in H-plasmas demonstrates similar operation phases: the stable H-mode phase, degrading H-mode, breakdown of the H-mode with energy confinement deterioration accompanied by a dithering cycling phase, followed by the L-mode phase. The density limit is not related to an inward collapse of the hot core plasma due to an overcooling of the plasma periphery by radiation. Indeed, independently of the isotopic effect, the total radiated power stay almost constant during the H-mode phase until the H-L back transition. It was observed in D- and H-plasmas that neither detachment, nor the X-point MARFE itself do trigger the H-L transition and that they thus do not present a limit on the plasma density. It is the plasma confinement, most likely determined by edge parameters, which is ultimately responsible for the H-mode DL. By comparing similar discharges but fuelled with either deuterium or hydrogen, we have found that the H-mode density limit exhibits a dependence on the isotope mass: the density limit is up to 35% lower in hydrogen compared to similar deuterium plasma conditions (the obtained density limit is in agreement with the Greenwald limit for D-plasma). In addition, the density limit is nearly independent of the applied power both in deuterium or hydrogen fuelling conditions. The measured Greenwald fractions are consistent with the predictions from a theoretical model based on an MHD instability theory in the near-SOL. The JET operational domains are significantly broadened when increasing the plasma effective mass (e.g. tritium or deuterium–tritium operation), i.e. the L to H power threshold is reduced whereas the density limit for the L-mode back transition is increased. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the use of a novel modelling technique based around intermittent transport due to filament motion, to interpret experimental profile and fluctuation data in the scrape-off layer (SOL) of JET during the onset and evolution of a density profile shoulder. A baseline case is established, prior to shoulder formation, and the stochastic model is shown to be capable of simultaneously matching the time averaged profile measurement as well as the PDF shape and autocorrelation function from the ion-saturation current time series at the outer wall. Aspects of the stochastic model are then varied with the aim of producing a profile shoulder with statistical measurements consistent with experiment. This is achieved through a strong localised reduction in the density sink acting on the filaments within the model. The required reduction of the density sink occurs over a highly localised region with the timescale of the density sink increased by a factor of 25. This alone is found to be insufficient to model the expansion and flattening of the shoulder region as the density increases, which requires additional changes within the stochastic model. An example is found which includes both a reduction in the density sink and filament acceleration and provides a consistent match to the experimental data as the shoulder expands, though the uniqueness of this solution can not be guaranteed. Within the context of the stochastic model, this implies that the localised reduction in the density sink can trigger shoulder formation, but additional physics is required to explain the subsequent evolution of the profile. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent JET (ITER-Like Wall) experiments have shown that the fueling gas puffed from different locations of the vessel can result in different scrape-off layer (SOL) density profiles and therefore different radio frequency (RF) coupling. To reproduce the experimental observations, to understand the associated physics and to optimize the gas puff methods, we have carried out three-dimensional (3D) simulations with the EMC3-EIRENE code in JET-ILW including a realistic description of the vessel geometry and the gas injection modules (GIMs) configuration. Various gas puffing methods have been investigated, in which the location of gas fueling is the only variable parameter. The simulation results are in quantitative agreement with the experimental measurements. They confirm that compared to divertor gas fueling, mid-plane gas puffing increases the SOL density most significantly but locally, while top gas puffing increases it uniformly in toroidal direction but to a lower degree. Moreover, the present analysis corroborates the experimental findings that combined gas puff scenarios—based on distributed main chamber gas puffing—can be effective in increasing the RF coupling for multiple antennas simultaneously. The results indicate that the spreading of the gas, the local ionization and the transport of the ionized gas along the magnetic field lines connecting the local gas cloud in front of the GIMs to the antennas are responsible for the enhanced SOL density and thus the larger RF coupling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Burning plasmas with 500 MW of fusion power on ITER will rely on partially detached divertor operation to keep target heat loads at manageable levels. Such divertor regimes will be maintained by a real-time control system using the seeding of radiative impurities like nitrogen (N), neon or argon as actuator and one or more diagnostic signals as sensors. Recently, real-time control of divertor detachment has been successfully achieved in Type I ELMy H-mode JET-ITER-like wall discharges by using saturation current (Isat) measurements from divertor Langmuir probes as feedback signals to control the level of N seeding. The degree of divertor detachment is calculated in real-time by comparing the outer target peak Isat measurements to the peak Isat value at the roll-over in order to control the opening of the N injection valve. Real-time control of detachment has been achieved in both fixed and swept strike point experiments. The system has been progressively improved and can now automatically drive the divertor conditions from attached through high recycling and roll-over down to a user-defined level of detachment. Such a demonstration is a successful proof of principle in the context of future operation on ITER which will be extensively equipped with divertor target probes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Statistical analysis of the ion flux to the JET outer-wall is conducted in outer-wall limiter mounted Langmuir probe (OLP) time-series across a wide range of plasma current and line-averaged density during Ohmically heated horizontal target L-mode plasmas. The mean, μ, and the standard deviation, σ, of the ion-saturation current measured by the OLP show systematic variation with plasma current and density. Both increase as either plasma current decreases and/or density increases. Upon renormalization, achieved by subtraction of μ and rescaling by σ, the probability distribution functions (PDFs) of each signal collapse approximately onto a single curve. The shape of the curve deviates from a distribution in the tail of the PDF and is better described by a log-normal distribution. The invariance in the shape of the PDF, which occurs over approximately four decades of the ordinate, is shown to be the result of a balance between the duration time of the average burst wave-form, and the waiting time between bursts, . This implies that the intermittency parameter, , can be considered constant at the JET outer wall during horizontal target Ohmic L-mode operation. This result may be important both for model validation and prediction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Radiative divertor operation in JET high confinement mode plasmas with the ITER-like wall has been experimentally investigated and simulated with EDGE2D-EIRENE in horizontal and vertical low field side (LFS) divertor configurations. The simulations show that the LFS divertor heat fluxes are reduced with N2-injection in similar fashion in both configurations, qualitatively consistent with experimental observations. The simulations show no substantial difference between the two configurations in the reduction of the peak LFS heat flux as a function of divertor radiation, nitrogen concentration, or pedestal Zeff. Consistently, experiments show similar divertor radiation and nitrogen injection levels for similar LFS peak heat flux reduction in both configurations. Nevertheless, the LFS strike point is predicted to detach at 20% lower separatrix density in the vertical than in the horizontal configuration. However, since the peak LFS heat flux in partial detachment in the vertical configurations is shifted towards the far scrape-off layer (SOL), the simulations predict no benefit in the reduction of LFS peak heat flux for a given upstream density in the vertical configuration relative to a horizontal one. A factor of 2 reduction of deuterium ionization source inside the separatrix is observed in the simulations when changing to the vertical configuration. The simulations capture the experimentally observed particle and heat flux reduction at the LFS divertor plate in both configurations, when adjusting the impurity injection rate to reproduce the measured divertor radiation. However, the divertor Dα-emissions are underestimated by a factor of 2–5, indicating a short-fall in radiation by the fuel species. In the vertical configuration, detachment is experimentally measured and predicted to start next to the strike point, extending towards the far SOL with increasing degree of detachment. In contrast, in the horizontal configuration, the entire divertor particle flux profile is reduced uniformly with increasing degree of detachment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A parametrised spectral line profile model is formulated to investigate the diagnostic scope for recovering plasma parameters from hydrogenic Balmer and Paschen series spectroscopy in the context of JET-ILW divertor plasmas. The separate treatment of Zeeman and Stark contributions in the line model is tested against the PPP-B code which accounts for their combined influence on the spectral line shape. The proposed simplified model does not fully reproduce the Stark–Zeeman features for the α and β transitions, but good agreement is observed in the line width and wing profiles, especially for n  >  5. The line model has been applied to infer radial density profiles in the JET-ILW divertor with generally good agreement between the D , , , and lines for high recycling and detached conditions. In an L-mode detached plasma pulse the Langmuir probe measurements typically underestimated the density by a factor 2–3 and overestimated the electron temperature by a factor of 5–10 compared to spectroscopically derived values. The line model is further used to generate synthetic high-resolution spectra for low-n transitions to assess the potential for parameter recovery using a multi-parametric fitting technique. In cases with 4 parameter fits with a single Maxwellian neutral temperature component the D line yields the best results with parameter estimates within 10% of the input values. For cases with 9 parameter fits inclusive of a multi-component neutral velocity distribution function the quality of the fits is degraded. Simultaneous fitting of the D and profiles improves the fit quality significantly, highlighting the importance of complementary spectroscopic measurements for divertor plasma emission studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ITER baseline scenario, with 500 MW of DT fusion power and Q = 10, will rely on a Type I ELMy H-mode, with ΔW = 0.7 MJ mitigated edge localized modes (ELMs). Tungsten (W) is the material now decided for the divertor plasma-facing components from the start of plasma operations. W atoms sputtered from divertor targets during ELMs are expected to be the dominant source under the partially detached divertor conditions required for safe ITER operation. W impurity concentration in the plasma core can dramatically degrade its performance and lead to potentially damaging disruptions. Understanding the physics of plasma-wall interaction during ELMs is important and a primary input for this is the energy of incoming ions during an ELM event. In this paper, coupled Infrared thermography and Langmuir Probe (LP) measurements in JET-ITER-Like-Wall unseeded H-mode experiments with ITER relevant ELM energy drop have been used to estimate the impact energy of deuterium ions (D+) on the divertor target. This analysis gives an ion energy of several keV during ELMs, which makes D+ responsible for most of the W sputtering in unseeded H-mode discharges. These LP measurements were possible because of the low electron temperature (Te) during ELMs which allowed saturation of the ion current. Although at first sight surprising, the observation of low Te at the divertor target during ELMs is consistent with the ‘Free-Streaming’ kinetic model which predicts a near-complete transfer of parallel energy from electrons to ions in order to maintain quasi-neutrality of the ELM filaments while they are transported to the divertor targets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The EDGE2D-EIRENE code is applied for simulation of divertor detachment during matched density ramp experiments in high triangularity, L-mode plasmas in both JET-Carbon (JET-C) and JET-ITER-Like Wall (JET-ILW). The code runs without drifts and includes either C or Be as impurity, but not W, assuming that the W targets have been coated with Be via main chamber migration. The simulations reproduce reasonably well the observed particle flux detachment as density is raised in both JET-C and JET-ILW experiments and can better match the experimental in-out divertor target power asymmetry if the heat flux entering the outer divertor is artificially set at around 2–3 times that entering the inner divertor. A careful comparison between different sets of atomic physics processes used in EIRENE shows that the detachment modelled by EDGE2D-EIRENE relies only on an increase of the particle sinks and not on a decrease of the ionization source. For the rollover and the beginning of the partially detached phase, the particle losses by perpendicular transport and the molecular activated recombination processes are mainly involved. For a deeper detachment with significant target ion flux reduction, volume recombination appears to be the main contributor. The elastic molecule-ion collisions are also important to provide good neutral confinement in the divertor and thus stabilize the simulations at low electron temperature (Te), when the sink terms are strong. Comparison between EDGE2D-EIRENE and SOLPS4.3 simulations of the density ramp in C shows similar detachment trends, but the importance of the elastic ion-molecule collisions is reduced in SOLPS4.3. Both codes suggest that any process capable of increasing the neutral confinement in the divertor should help to improve the modelling of the detachment. A further outcome of this work has been to demonstrate that key JET divertor diagnostic signals—Langmuir probe Te and bolometric tomographic reconstructions—are running beyond the limit of validity in high recycling and detached conditions and cannot be reliably used for code validation. The simulations do, however, reproduce the trend of the evolution of the line integrated bolometer chord measurements. The comparison between the code results and high-n Balmer line radiation intensity profiles confirms that a strong volume recombination is present during the experimental detachment and may play a role in this process, as suggested by the code. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A method based on restriction analysis of polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-amplified ribosomal DNA was developed for the rapid characterization of large populations of Rhizoctonia solani at the anastomosis group (AG) level. The restriction maps of the internal transcribed spacers (ITS) sequences were compared for 219 isolates of R. solani belonging to AG-1 to AG-12 and AG-BI, representing diverse geographic and host range origins. Four discriminant restriction enzymes (MseI, AvaII, HincII, and MunI) resolved 40 restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) types among the 219 ITS sequences of R. solani. Each RFLP type could be assigned to a single AG except for two RFLP types, which were common to two AG. A fifth enzyme allowed the discrimination of AG-6 and AG-12. In addition, the combination of four enzymes allowed the discrimination of subsets within AG-1, AG-2, AG-3, and AG-4. The efficiency of the typing method was confirmed by analyzing PCR-amplified ITS sequences of 30 reference strains. Furthermore, the PCR-RFLP method was used to characterize at the AG level 307 isolates of R. solani originating from ten sugar beet fields exhibiting patches of diseased plants in France. The PCR-based procedure described in this paper provides a rapid method for AG typing in R. solani.