Jane Edwards
General Atomics has fused approximately 240,000 pounds of superconductor to build the first module of the core of a tokamak facility designed to generate fusion energy.
The initial module will be part of the Central Solenoid, an electromagnetic structure composed of six modules that will serve as the central part of the ITER magnetic fusion facility being established in France, General Atomics said Wednesday.
The company will subject the Central Solenoid’s first module, which is approximately 40 percent complete, to a heat treatment process at a temperature of 1,200 degrees Fahrenheit in March.
John Smith, a program manager at General Atomics, said the firm will start fabrication work on the second module following the heat treatment process.
ITER is a research and development project of 35 countries designed to produce 500 megawatts of fusion power and demonstrate integrated technology platforms for a fusion power plant.
More than 500 companies, universities and laboratories in the U.S. collaborate on the country’s ITER project with support from the Energy Department’s offices of science and fusion energy sciences.
