H. Viebke

Progress in the Design, Manufacture and Testing of the W7-X Superconducting Magnets

The W7-X machine is a low-shear stellarator of the Wendelstein line being assembled in Greifswald, Germany. The manufacture of its superconducting magnets is in a well advanced phase. After the acceptance tests in the factory, the magnets are tested in cold conditions in a dedicated facility at CEA Saclay. This paper gives an overview of the status of the manufacture of the W7-X coils, including the production of the superconductor, the windings and casings for the magnets, the final assembly and in-factory test procedures. Several design changes and re-work have been implemented in the course of the manufacture due to more detailed engineering analyses or weaknesses and quality problems found in some components. The status of the cold tests of the coils will also be presented

Stability Test of a Superconducting W7-X Coil With Respect to Mechanical Disturbances

The superconducting magnet system of the Wendelstein 7-X (W7-X) stellarator experiment consists of 50 non-planar and 20 planar coils which are supported by the central support structure and inter-coil structure elements. This highly loaded support system is prone to mechanical disturbances like stick-slip effects. On the other hand, the coils are built up from cable-in-conduit-conductors (CICC) whose strands are highly compressed by Lorentz forces during operation. Residual elastic energy release within a cable can be triggered by shock waves and corresponding frictional heat generation may occur. The released energy might come into the order of the conductor stability limit and possibly cause a quench. An experiment was performed to simulate the impact of such mechanical disturbances on W7-X coils with stability margins corresponding to different operation conditions. A non-planar coil installed within the magnet test facility was energized and then hit by a pendulum via a stainless steel transfer rod. The test has shown that mechanical disturbances expected in W7-X are not able to induce a quench in any of the foreseen W7-X operation scenarios.

Lessons learned from the manufacture of the W7-X planar coils

WENDELSTEIN 7-X (W7-X) is a superconducting stellarator. The planar coils are in charge to modify the magnetic filed configuration of the W7-X. The major challenges during manufacturing were the fabrication of the cable-in-conduit conductor, the accuracy of the coil cases after welding and machining and the development of electrical joints with a resistance below 1 nΩ. Leaks were detected during repetitive in the case cooling system, which were caused by stress corrosion cracking. High voltage tests in a reduced vacuum environment (Paschen conditions) revealed that the insulation had to be reinforced and the quench detection wires had to be exchanged. This paper gives an overview about the main technical challenges of the planar coils and the lessons learned during production.

Accuracy of the construction of the superconducting coils for WENDELSTEIN 7-X

WENDELSTEIN 7-X, a superconducting fusion experiment, is presently under construction at the Greifswald branch of the Max-Planck-Institut fur Plasmaphysik (IPP). The magnetic confinement of the plasma is achieved by 70 coils. The accuracy of the magnet system plays an important role in order to achieve the technical and scientific goals. The accuracy of the coil system is determined by the accuracy of the shape of the winding packs, the accuracy of the final machining of the casings and the accuracy of the assembly of the stellarator. The contribution gives an overview about the accuracy requirements for the coils and presents a strategy to control the geometrical shape of the winding packs as well as of the casings. The achieved accuracy of the winding packs is in full agreement to the requirements. It can be postulated that the complicated shape of the nonplanar coils does not lead to an insufficient accuracy.

Test of Superconducting Coils for the Wendelstein 7-X Stellarator Experiment

Wendelstein 7-X (W7-X) is a superconducting stellarator under construction at the Max-Planck-Institute for Plasma Physics in Greifswald, Germany. The magnet system consists of 70 superconducting coils providing magnetic confinement-fields. Before assembly every coil had to pass an acceptance test at the French partner-institute CEA, Saclay, to examine its performance on leak tightness, high voltage strength, ampacity, and hydraulic flow at cryogenic conditions. The testing procedure was mandatory, as access for maintenance or repair after installation will not be viable. Testing followed a well specified routine including tests in warm conditions, during cool down, in cold conditions, during warm up and at last in warm conditions. Measurement was obtained firstly by the facilitys instrumentation and secondly by the coil-casings instrumentation. The received data was transmitted to different ASCII-files for each gauge. To record testing in detail, a meta-document was edited, which follows in its structure the routine mentioned above. Accordingly, the main distinctive functions of the coil during testing are recorded in so called test reports, while deviations from given thresholds and parameters are described in non conformity reports. During testing, organizational and technical challenges had to be mastered and the test program was regularly updated to meet technical improvements, manufacturing requirements and revised assembly schedules. This paper will present the acceptance test program, its development and the gained experiences.