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Chapter 2: Plasma confinement and transport

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Published under licence by IOP Publishing Ltd
, , Citation ITER Physics Expert Group on Confinement and Transport et al 1999 Nucl. Fusion 39 2175 DOI 10.1088/0029-5515/39/12/302

This article is corrected by 2008 Nucl. Fusion 48 099801

0029-5515/39/12/2175

Abstract

Physics knowledge in plasma confinement and transport relevant to design of a reactor-scale tokamak is reviewed and methodologies for projecting confinement properties to ITER are provided. Theoretical approaches to describing a turbulent plasma transport in a tokamak are outlined and phenomenology of major energy confinement regimes observed in tokamaks, including those with edge and internal transport barriers, is described. The chapter is focused on the energy confinement in the high confinement regime (H-mode) with the edge localized MHD modes, the basic operational regime of ITER. Three approaches are being pursued: (i) derivation of empirical global scaling laws; (ii) non-dimensionally similar studies; and (iii) one dimensional transport modelling codes, with the first approach recommended as the most robust at the present time. Special attention is paid to analysis of uncertainties in confinement predictions. Empirical scaling relations for projecting the L-mode to H-mode power threshold based on regression analysis of an extensive database are discussed. Particle and toroidal momentum confinement and their relation to energy confinement are reviewed.

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10.1088/0029-5515/39/12/302