The test facility for the ITER TF model coil

The TF model coil (TFMC) is one of the seven large R&D projects for the ITER EDA. The TFMC will include most of the technical features and manufacturing approaches foreseen for the full size TF coils and it will be tested in a most relevant manner. This testing will take place 1998/99 in the TOSKA facility of FZK, which is upgraded for that purpose in several steps, each one accompanied by own test purposes, qualifying the facility thereby too. The test arrangement will consist of the TFMC in parallel to the existing EURATOM LCT coil. The availability of this LCT coil with full performance has been reconfirmed by operating it in 1996, even with extended performance at 1.8 K. The major parts of the TOSKA facility are a vacuum vessel with nitrogen shield and a useable volume of 4.30 m diameter and 6.6 m height, a cryogenic supply system with a 2 kW and a 500 W helium refrigerator and cold pumps to circulate helium, two electric power supplies for 30 kA and 50 kA, respectively (they can also be operated in parallel to 80 kA), a further power supply for 20 kA, fast dump circuits with power breakers, the required busbar and current leads and a well suited control and data acquisition system. The status of TOSKA is reviewed, giving details of the components and the qualification tests so far, as the poloidal coil experiment POLO and the LCT coil tests at 1.8 K. A further qualification test will be 1997; the tests of the W 7-X stellarator prototype coil in an arrangement similar to the ITER TF model coil testing.