Driven Current Tokamak (DCT) Scoping Study

The present Department of Energy (DOE) plan calls for the construction of an Engineering Test Reactor (ETR) that is to be the last major experimental fusion device prior to the commercialization of fusion power. The plasma driver of the ETR is to be either a long-pulse tokamak or a tandem mirror machine. The possibility of using the Tokamak Fusion Test Reactor (TFTR) facility to consolidate the physics and technology database for the tokamak version of the ETR has been considered. This paper addresses two of the options being considered: (1) a superconducting toroidal field (TF) coil-hydrogen plasma alternative and (2) a superconducting or hybrid TF coil-high Q alternative. Both options assume essentially steady-state operation through the application of rf current drive. The options are evaluated on the basis of performance and cost determined by application of the Fusion Engineering Design Center (FEDC) Tokamak System Code.