Measurements of electromagnetic properties of LCT [Large Coil Task] coils in IFSMTF [International Fusion Superconducting Magnet Test Facility]

Participants in the international Large Coil Task (LCT) have designed, built, and tested six different toroidal field coils. Each coil has a 2.5- by 3.5-m, D-shaped bore and a current between 10 and 18 kA and is designed to demonstrate stable operation at 8 T, with a superimposed averaged pulsed field of 0.14 T in 1.0 s and simulated nuclear heating. Testing of the full six-coil toroidal array began early in 1986 and was successfully completed on September 3, 1987, in the International Fusion Superconducting Magnet Test Facility (IFSMTF) at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). This paper summarizes electromagnetic properties of LCT coils measured in different modes of energization and fast dump. Effects of mutual coupling and induced eddy currents are analyzed and discussed. Measurements of the ac loss caused by the superimposed pulsed fields are summarized. Finally, the interpretation of the test results and their relevance to practical fusion are presented. 11 refs., 10 figs., 4 tab