FE simulation of the Wendelstein 7-X cryostat system

Abstract: The purpose of the Wendelstein 7-X cryostat is to thermally insulate the magnet system (operating at cryo-temperature) by high vacuum and super insulation, to provide and enclose the working space for the plasma, and to serve as a bearing structure for the system components that have to be placed in the immediate vicinity of the plasma, such as the first wall, the divertor and some of the diagnostic devices. Concerning structural components only, the cryostat is composed of the plasma vessel, the outer vessel and the ports that interconnect the vessels. The cryostat together with the machine base comprises the so called cryostat system, and this is the system that is under consideration in this paper. Due to both the geometrical complexity and the complexity of loading, individual subsystems of the cryostat system could not be analyzed separately. For that reason, a global finite element model of the whole cryostat system had to be created. The paper presents an overview of finite element modeling, simulations with ANSYS performed on this system, and the corresponding calculation results. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]