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Divertor

The divertor provides a means of removing plasma reaching the scrape-off layer. The principal outputs from the code are the divertor heat load, used to determine its lifetime, and its peak temperature. The divertor is cooled either by gaseous helium or by pressurised water.

Switch snull controls the overall plasma configuration. Setting snull = 0 corresponds to an up-down symmetric, double null configuration, while snull = 1 (the default) assumes a single null plasma with the divertor at the bottom of the machine. The vertical build and PF coil current scaling algorithms take the value of this switch into account, although not the plasma geometry at present.

The Harrison-Kukushkin-Hotston divertor model1 developed for ITER is available, but is unlikely to be relevant for a reactor.

The divertor heat flux hldiv can be calculated or it can be input by the user. Options are selected using the switch i_hldiv:

i_hldiv Description
0 the user inputs the value for hldiv
1 the chamber model (divtart) is called to calculate hldiv
2 the Wade heat flux model (divwade) is called to calculate hldiv

Chamber model

i_hldiv == 1

The tight aspect ratio tokamak divertor model (divtart) calculates the divertor heat flux by assuming that the power is evenly spread around the divertor chamber by the action of a gaseous target. Each divertor is assumed to be approximately triangular in the R,Z plane.

Wade Heat Flux Model

i_hldiv == 2

A divertor heat flux model is provided in Appendix A.II. of 2. This uses the Eich scaling 3 and S-factor 4 to calculate the SOL width at the outboard divertor, mapped to the midplane:

\lambda_{int} = \lambda_{q,Eich} + 1.64S

where

\lambda_{q,Eich} = 1.35 \, P_{\mathrm{SOL}}^{-0.02} \, R_{o}^{0.04} \, B_{p}^{-0.92} \, \epsilon^{0.42}
S = 0.12(n_{e,mid}/10^{19})^{-0.02} \, P_{\mathrm{SOL}}^{-0.21} \, R_{o}^{0.71} \, B_{p}^{-0.82}.

This is then used to calculate the wetted area in the divertor

A_{wetted} = 2\pi N_{div} R \lambda_{int} F_{exp} \sin(\theta_{div})

where N_{div} is the number of divertors (1 or 2), F_{exp} is the relevant flux expansion, and \theta_{div} is the tilt of the separatrix relative to the target in the poloidal plane, and has the form

\theta_{div} = \sin^{-1} [(1+1/\alpha_{div}^{2})\sin\beta_{div}],

where

\alpha_{div} = F_{exp}\alpha_{mid}
\alpha_{mid} = \tan^{-1}\frac{B_{p,mid}}{B_{T,mid}}

where B_{p,mid} and B_{T,mid} are the poloidal and toroidal fields on the outer midplane. The parameter \beta_{div} is the angle of incidence between the field line and the target.

The divertor heat flux in \mathrm{MW}/\mathrm{m^{2}} is then

q_{div} = P_{\mathrm{SOL}}(1-f_{rad,div})/A_{wetted}

where f_{rad,div} is the SOL radiative fraction.

For the purposes of this model, the following are inputs:

  • Flux expansion F_{exp} (flux_exp, default = 2)
  • Field line angle with respect to divertor target plate (degrees) \beta_{div} (beta_div), also available as an iteration variable (170)
  • SOL radiative fraction, f_{rad,div} (rad_fraction_sol).

  1. N.A. Uckan and ITER Physics Group, 'ITER Physics Design Guidelines: 1989', ITER Documentation Series, No. 10, IAEA/ITER/DS/10 (1990) 

  2. M.R. Wade & J.A. Leuer, 'Cost Drivers for a Tokamak-Based Compact Pilot Plant, Fusion Science and Technology, 77:2, 119-143 (2021) 

  3. T. Eich et al, 'Scaling of the tokamak near the scrape-off layer H-mode power width and implications for ITER', Nucl. Fusion 53 093031 (2013) 

  4. A. Scarabosio et al, 'Scaling of the divertor power spreading (S-factor) in open and closed divertor operation in JET and ASDEX Upgrade, Journal of Nuclear Materials, Vol. 463, 49-54 (2015)