Progress of mock-up trials for ITER TF coil procurement in Japan

The Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) is responsible for the procurement of 9 TF coils as the Japanese Domestic Agency in the ITER project. Small- and full-scale trials are being performed to demonstrate and optimize fabrication procedures before starting production of the TF coils. JAEA is carrying out the conductor winding and insulation/impregnation trials in advance of the other trials because they represent key processes in TF coil manufacture. Mechanical tests of the conductors are performed to ascertain their bending behavior during winding. The commissioning of tooling for the one-third scale winding already is complete. The winding test was conducted using a specially developed winding head which resulted, based on mechanical test results, in achieving a curvature of the bent conductor in line with expectations. Impregnation trials using the acrylic and metallic model were performed to demonstrate the impregnation procedure and the applicability of bonded glass–polyimide tape, which is expected to facilitate the winding of the insulation tape around the conductor. Results demonstrate the suitability of the bonded glass–polyimide tape for the impregnation procedure.