The main focus of the project I will be undertaking is to develop, analyse, cost and optimise new designs for an optimised fusion energy tokomak. The designs will incorporate more conventional low temperature superconductors as well as next generation of high temperature superconducting materials. High temperature superconductors have yet to be used in fusion reactors, though they could offer great benefits. A magnet running at higher magnetic fields and higher cryogenic temperature offers the potential for cheaper[1] and compact modular reactors [2]. The project is computational and will make use of the PROCESS systems code [3]. PROCESS has very broad capabilities, including conversion of heat to electricity, reactor physics and costs [4] etc. making it ideal for this project.
I will be based in Durham (supervised by Prof. Damian Hampshire, Head of the Durham Superconductivity Group) collaborating with CCFE under Dr. Ian Jenkins (Head of the power plant group) and Dr. Liz Surrey (Head of Technology).
[1] T. S. Lee, I. Jenkins, E. Surrey, and D. P. Hampshire, “Optimal design of a toroidal field magnet system and cost of electricity implications for a tokamak using high temperature superconductors ” Fusion Engineering and Design, vol. 98-99, pp. 1072–1075, 2015.
[2] Y. Tsui, E. Surrey, and D. P. Hampshire, “Soldered Joints – an essential component of demountable high temperature superconducting fusion magnets,” Supercond. Sci. and Technology, vol. 290, p. 075005, 2016.
[3] M. Kovari, R. Kemp, H. Lux, P. Knight, J. Morris, and D. J. Ward, “PROCESS: A systems code for fusion power plants,” Fusion Engineering and Design, vol. 89, pp. 3054-3069, Part 1 2014, Part 2 2016.