General Atomics Helps Modernize DOE Fusion Research Facility

A team of General Atomics professionals and participating institutions has concluded an 11-month modernization project at a Department of Energy laborator for energy and nuclear fusion studies.

The DIII-D National Fusion Facility, owned by DOE’s Office of Science, has been offline since May of last year and is scheduled to resume operations next month to accommodate the work of over 650 U.S. and international researchers in subject areas such as plasma fusion and energy sources, General Atomics said Thursday.

The company’s team of engineers and technicians, together with partner organizations, installed systems designed to support tokamak functions and induce an electrical current in the plasma.

“It is my expectation that these upgrades will place DIII-D experimental time in high demand in the coming years, as researchers seek to capitalize on these new capabilities,” said Mickey Wade, deputy director for magnetic fusion energy at General Atomics.

The DII-D National Fusion Program received more than 500 proposals for fusion experiments that will use the updated equipment at the lab upon reopening.