Active toroidal field ripple reduction system in FAST

The fusion advanced studies torus (FAST) has been proposed as a flexible and cost effective machine that is able to support the development of ITER and DEMO operating scenarios exploiting some innovative technology solutions and to investigate the physics of high-performance plasmas in a dimensionless parameter range close to ITER. The FAST magnet consists of 18 coils, spaced by 20° in the toroidal angle, each made up of 14 copper plates, suitably arranged in order to realise 3 turns in the radial direction, with 89.2 kA per coil (in the H-mode plasma scenario 6.5 MA at 7.5 T). The finite number and toroidal extension of the toroidal field coils (TFCs) cause a periodic variation of the toroidal field from its nominal value called toroidal field ripple (TFR). An active ripple reduction system has been comprehensively investigated, by using proper 3D finite elements models, to provide an efficient and flexible system able to minimize the TFR in the region of interest. An optimization study of position and size of the coils required to reduce to an acceptable level for the operations the maximum ripple on the plasma (well below 0.3%), feeding them with currents sustainable during the whole scenario (∼1/10 of the current flowing in TFCs), is presented in this paper.