A power-balance model, with radiation losses from impurities and neutrals, gives a unified description of the density limit (DL) of the stellarator, the L-mode tokamak, and the reversed field pinch (RFP). The model predicts a Sudo-like scaling for the stellarator, a Greenwald-like scaling, , for the RFP and the ohmic tokamak, a mixed scaling, , for the additionally heated L-mode tokamak. In a previous paper (Zanca et al 2017 Nucl. Fusion 57 056010) the model was compared with ohmic tokamak, RFP and stellarator experiments. Here, we address the issue of the DL dependence on heating power in the L-mode tokamak. Experimental data from high-density disrupted L-mode discharges performed at JET, as well as in other machines, are taken as a term of comparison. The model fits the observed maximum densities better than the pure Greenwald limit.

The ITER baseline scenario, with 500 MW of DT fusion power and Q = 10, will rely on a Type I ELMy H-mode, with ∆W = 0.7 MJ mitigated ELMs. Tungsten (W) is the material now decided for the divertor plasma-facing components from the start of plasma operations. W atoms sputtered from divertor targets during ELMs are expected to be the dominant source under the partially detached divertor conditions required for safe ITER operation. W impurity concentration in the plasma core can dramatically degrade its performance and lead to potentially damaging disruptions. Understanding the physics of plasma-wall interaction during ELMs is important and a primary input for this is the energy of incoming ions during an ELM event. In this paper, coupled Infrared thermography and Langmuir Probe (LP) measurements in JET-ITER-Like-Wall unseeded H-mode experiments with ITER relevant ELM energy drop have been used to estimate the impact energy of deuterium ions (D +) on the divertor target. This analysis gives an ion energy of several keV during ELMs, which makes D + responsible for most of the W sputtering in unseeded H-mode discharges. These LP measurements were possible because of the low electron temperature (T e) during ELMs which allowed saturation of the ion current. Although at first sight surprising, the observation of low T e at the divertor target during ELMs is consistent with the "Free-Streaming" kinetic model which predicts a near-complete transfer of parallel energy from electrons to ions in order to maintain quasi-neutrality of the ELM filaments while they are transported to the divertor targets.

The 2014–2016 JET results are reviewed in the light of their significance for optimising the ITER research plan for the active and non-active operation. More than 60 h of plasma operation with ITER first wall materials successfully took place since its installation in 2011. New multi-machine scaling of the type I-ELM divertor energy flux density to ITER is supported by first principle modelling. ITER relevant disruption experiments and first principle modelling are reported with a set of three disruption mitigation valves mimicking the ITER setup. Insights of the L–H power threshold in Deuterium and Hydrogen are given, stressing the importance of the magnetic configurations and the recent measurements of fine-scale structures in the edge radial electric. Dimensionless scans of the core and pedestal confinement provide new information to elucidate the importance of the first wall material on the fusion performance. H-mode plasmas at ITER triangularity (H  =  1 at βN ~ 1.8 and n/nGW ~ 0.6) have been sustained at 2 MA during 5 s. The ITER neutronics codes have been validated on high performance experiments. Prospects for the coming D–T campaign and 14 MeV neutron calibration strategy are reviewed.

This contribution aims to improve existing scalings of the L-mode power decay length λ q o m p , especially for plasma configurations with strike points at the ITER-relevant location—closed vertical divertor targets. We propose 13 new λ q o m p scalings based on data from the tokamaks JET, EAST, MAST, Alcator C-mod and COMPASS, and validate them against the output of the 2D turbulence code HESEL. The analysis covers 500 divertor heat flux profiles (obtained by probes or IR cameras), measured in L-mode discharges with varying 12 global plasma parameters (all well predictable). We find that the two previously published scalings (Eich 2013 J. Nucl. Mat. 438 S72) and (Scarabosio 2013 J. Nucl. Mat. 438 S426), which were based on outer target data from AUG and JET, describe the JET, C-mod and COMPASS profiles well. This holds not only at the outer horizontal and vertical targets, but surprisingly also at the inner vertical targets. In contrast, EAST, HESEL and especially MAST data are poorly described by these two scalings. We therefore derive 13 new scalings, which account for 85–92 % of the measured λ q o m p variability across all five tokamaks. Although each of the scalings is based on a different parameter combination, their predictions for the ITER and COMPASS-Upgrade tokamaks are very similar. Just before the L-H transition in the ITER baseline scenario, the presented scalings predict values λ q o m p = 3.0 ± 0.5 mm. For the COMPASS-Upgrade tokamak, all the scalings predict λ q o m p = 2.1 ± 0.5 mm with a single exception of the scaling based on the stored plasma energy which predicts only 1.2 mm for both tokamaks. We encourage the reader to use as many of these scalings as possible, depending on available data. In attached plasma and using significant assumptions, our results imply steady-state surface-perpendicular heat flux around 10 MW/m2 for ITER, and 20 MW/m2 for COMPASS-Upgrade.