Key features and engineering progress of the KSTAR Tokamak (Invited paper, ICOPS 2003)

The Korea superconducting tokamak advanced research (KSTAR), which is under construction at the National Fusion R&D Center, Korea Basic Science Institute, Daejeon, Korea, has the mission to develop a steady-state capable advanced superconducting tokamak to establish the scientific and technological bases for a fusion reactor. After an intensive R&D program, substantial progress of the KSTAR tokamak engineering had been made on major tokamak structures, superconducting magnets, in-vessel components, diagnostic system, heating system, and power supplies with industrial manufacturers by May 2002. The engineering design has been elaborated to the extent necessary to allow a realistic assessment of its feasibility, performance, and cost. Since May 2003, the project has been in the phase of procurement. The fabrication of main tokamak structure such as vacuum vessel, cryostat, and supporting structures is well progressed. The manufacturing work of superconducting coils is also proceeding favorably. The tokamak assembly started in July 2003 after site preparation and assembly jig. The start of commissioning is scheduled for June 2006. This paper describes the key features and engineering progress of the KSTAR tokamak and elaborates the work currently underway.