en.Wedoany.com Reported - ITER magnet cold testing, initiated in 2023 as part of ITER's revised assembly and commissioning approach, has now seen its facility commissioned in Cadarache, France, and completed the cooldown test of the first toroidal field coil. The facility utilizes the building previously used by the European Domestic Agency for manufacturing four of ITER's largest poloidal field coils. Leveraging its scale, lifting equipment, and proximity to the cryoplant, it enables testing of superconducting magnets at their operating temperature of 4 Kelvin before installation, with currents up to full capacity.

The first magnet coil to undergo testing was a 330-tonne toroidal field coil wound with niobium-tin superconductor. Inside the facility's 800-cubic-meter cryostat, the coil was cooled down to 4 Kelvin over 12 days. This milestone was announced on May 21, with members of the ITER Council Management Advisory Committee and technical staff holding a small ceremony in the control room to mark the achievement.

Subsequently, more toroidal field coils from different manufacturers, as well as a ring-shaped poloidal field coil—ITER's smallest PF1 coil—will also be tested. The conductor has now transitioned to the superconducting state, and high-current testing is expected to begin soon, with each test campaign anticipated to last four to six months per coil.

The main objectives of the testing are to verify high-voltage ground insulation at different temperatures, demonstrate critical quench detection capabilities, and validate coil performance at rated currents—68 kA for toroidal field coils and 48 kA for PF1. The program will also test instrumentation links, control logic systems, and key magnet protection functions. Central solenoid modules have already undergone cold testing prior to shipment.

Although the operating conditions inside the ITER device cannot be fully replicated, testing in the Magnet Cold Test Facility will provide critical information on magnet behavior, cryogenic performance, electrical interfaces, instrumentation, and the key joints connecting the layers of wound superconductor within the magnet coils, contributing to risk mitigation and preparation efforts.

ITER Director-General Pietro Barabaschi stated that by repurposing existing infrastructure, leveraging the capabilities of the cryoplant, and mobilizing a multidisciplinary team, the project has created a practical approach to risk reduction prior to integrated commissioning. This is not only important for ITER but also demonstrates how ITER supports the broader fusion ecosystem by generating knowledge, infrastructure, and operational experience.

After completing tests on multiple ITER magnet coils, the Magnet Cold Test Facility will be opened to other fusion stakeholders as part of the ITER Organization's knowledge sharing and engagement program with the private fusion sector.

ITER is an international project aimed at building a tokamak fusion device to demonstrate the feasibility of fusion as a large-scale, carbon-free energy source. Thirty-five nations are collaborating on its construction, with the European Union bearing nearly half of the construction costs, and the other six members (China, India, Japan, South Korea, Russia, and the United States) sharing the remainder equally. ITER's goal is to achieve 500 MW of operation (for at least 400 seconds continuously) with 50 MW of plasma heating power input, potentially requiring an additional 300 MW of electrical input during operation, though ITER itself will not generate electricity. Construction began in 2010, with an initial first plasma target date of 2018, which was postponed by the ITER Council to 2025 in 2016. In June 2024, a revised project plan was announced, aiming for a scientifically and technically robust initial operational phase including deuterium-deuterium fusion operation in 2035, followed by full magnetic energy and plasma current operation.

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