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ITER Tokamak Reactor

Why in the News?

Scientists working on the world’s largest nuclear fusion project ITER has completed its main magnet system with India playing a key role in building critical infrastructure.

About ITER (International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor):

  • ITER is the world’s largest nuclear fusion research project, aimed at demonstrating that nuclear fusion can be a safe, carbon-free, and sustainable energy source.
  • It involves 35 nations, including the EU, US, China, India, Japan, South Korea, and Russia.
  • It uses deuterium and tritium (hydrogen isotopes) to undergo fusion at temperatures over 150 million °C, 10 times hotter than the sun’s core, producing large amounts of energy.
  • Its goal is to achieve a fusion gain (Q) of 10, producing 500 megawatts of fusion power from just 50 megawatts of input heating power, a 10x gain.
  • Launched in 1985 and officially founded in 2006, the project began construction in 2007 and is expected to start its operations in 2033.
  • The tokamak is a doughnut-shaped magnetic fusion device used to contain the hot plasma required for nuclear fusion.
  • It uses powerful superconducting magnets to confine plasma and prevent it from touching the reactor walls.

India’s Role in ITER/Tokamak:

  • India has been a full partner in ITER since 2005, contributing expertise and technology to key aspects of the project.
  • It has designed and manufactured the cryostat, a 30-meter-high, 30-meter-diameter vacuum shell made of stainless steel that houses the ITER tokamak and maintains the ultra-cold environment needed for superconducting magnets.
  • It has developed in-wall shielding to protect ITER’s components from heat generated during fusion reactions.
  • It provides cryogenic systems to cool the superconducting magnets and RF heating systems to heat the plasma to fusion temperatures.
  • It has contributed to developing the superconducting magnets, which are essential for plasma confinement inside the tokamak.

Note:

  • India manages ITER-India, a project under the Institute for Plasma Research (IPR), overseeing key contributions, including diagnostics, power supplies, and other infrastructure.
  • It is also working on the development of a tritium breeding module for future fusion reactors, ensuring self-sufficiency in this critical fuel.

 

[UPSC 2016] India is an important member of the ‘International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor’. If this experiment succeeds, what is the immediate advantage for India?

Options: (a) It can use thorium in place of uranium for power generation (b) It attain a global role in satellite-navigation (c) It can drastically improve the efficiency of its fission reactors in power generation (d) It can build fusion reactors for power generation*

 

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