Prototype

This full-scale prototype of the inner vertical target was produced by European supplier Ansaldo Nucleare as part of a manufacturing qualification program. The inner vertical target (highlighted, bottom right) is one of three plasma-facing components assembled on each divertor cassette.

Approximately 300,000 individual monoblocks in tungsten will armour the divertor plasma-facing components. Each one must be shaped and positioned precisely; in this photo, metrologists from the European Domestic Agency are performing dimensional checks.

During a pre-qualification phase in Europe for the inner vertical target, multiple suppliers had fabricated and tested small-scale (~1/20th) mockups of the tungsten monoblocks mounted around cooling channels. As a follow-up step, pre-qualified manufacturers were invited to produce full-scale prototypes—half-tonne, 1.5-metre-long components that are made of a massive curved steel support structure armoured with 1,104 tungsten monoblocks actively cooled by pressurized water."This scale-one prototype demonstrates industry's ability to manufacture such a demanding piece—fulfilling the ITER requirements on line with nuclear standards, in particular in terms of welding techniques," says Frédéric Escourbiac, leader of the Divertor Section. "On top of this, the prototype respects the stringent tolerances imposed by the need to align the components in the machine perfectly. It's a great first step; we need now together with our Domestic Agency partners to deploy the effort to ensure a similar level of performance during series production.Ansaldo Nucleare (Italy) is the first supplier to complete its prototype, in collaboration with its main subcontractors Ansaldo Energia, ENEA and Walter Tosto. The prototype will now be shipped to the Efremov Institute in Saint Petersburg for a series of thermal tests.