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On Tue 20 Oct 2009, researchers, staff, and students from TINT, Thammasat University, and Sirindhorn International Institute of Technology had a privilege of meeting Dr. Prachai Norajitra, a tokamak material scientist from Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Campus North (KIT-CN), Germany.
Dr. Prachai's expertise is in tokamak divertor design and testing. He is currently working on the blankets and divertors for the DEMO machine, among other things. DEMO must be developed alongside ITER, Dr. Prachai said. There are three fusion research institutes in Germany: IPP (Garching), FZJ (Julich), and KIT-CN. All three are working on ITER technology, whereas KIT-CN and IPP are responsible for the technology for DEMO. There are intensive collaborations with other EU labs as well. Research topics at KIT-CN include energy, nano- and micro-technology, structure of matter, and atmosphere. The fusion program has 230 employees. Majority work on ITER and DEMO technologies, while smaller groups work on stellarator and physics.
In this meeting after we presented an overview of the ongoing collaboration between TINT, SIIT, and TU, Dr. Prachai gave us a presentation on EU fusion research structure, the future plan for tokamak development, as well as his own research in blankets and divertors. Power handling is still a challenging issue for future large tokamaks. Divertors should help in removing particles and heat. Particles include reaction ash (alphas), unburnt fuel, and eroded particles. 15% of thermal energy will be removed by the divertors. Divertors also serve as shields for the magnetic coils. Three types of divertors are being studied: water-cooled, helium-cooled, and liquid metal-cooled.
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Participants: Dr. Prachai Norajitra (KIT), Dr. Somporn Chongkam (TINT), Kanchalika Dechates (TINT), Dr. Roppon Picha (TINT), Dr. Thawatchai Onjun (SIIT), Dr. Nopporn Poolyarat (TU), Dr. Sujin Suwanna (SIIT), and students from Plasma Fusion Research Unit (PFRU): Boonyarit Chatthong, Yutthapong Pianroj, Wannapa Buangam, Phanlada Leekhaphan, Apichart Siriwitpreecha, and Kamonnat Kongkan.
Roppon Picha
Research and Development Group
Thailand Institute of Nuclear Technology
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