DC busbars for the ITER power supply system: Features and challenges

In ITER, water-cooled aluminum DC busbars will be used to connect the power supplies (AC/DC thyristor converters) to switching networks (used at every pulse for plasma initiation), fast discharge units (which protect the superconducting coils in case of quench) and finally to the magnets. The combination of stringent requirements (both electrical and mechanical), size and weight, make the design, installation, integration and maintenance of such a busbar network a challenging task. These aspects will be presented and discussed in the paper. ITER is a Nuclear Facility (INB-174).