Table of contents

As is already known, most of the plasma literature is occupied with the plasma instabilities and the inevitable plasma waves, which remain major obstacles to the thermonuclear fusion process. Many experimental data on the plasma waves (growth or damping) and their accompanied theoretical interpretations have been published during the last five decades; lots of them have been identified and justified as well, some not yet. One of these is our previous research on plasma waves, which originated in the early 80's at the Plasma Physics Laboratory of the NCSR "Demokritos". As the wave rising is defined by the growth rate (or the damping on the extinguishment), these important wavy quantities will be studied in detail in the present paper. Three examples are taken from our previous theoretical results, and the first observation reveals that the involved quantities are complicated enough to be studied by themselves. So, the use of suitable approach models, which may interpret the experimental wavy quantities, is the central idea of the present attempt. Furthermore, calculations with a little change of the initial conditions have been repeated in order to determine whether the plasma behaves as a chaotic medium.

An experimental advanced superconducting tokamak (EAST) operation window with the lower hybrid current drive (LHCD) in H-mode is estimated by using a core-SOL-divertor (C-S-D) model validated by the present EAST divertor experiments. The operation window consists of four limits including two usual limits, one of which is the maximum allowable heat load onto the divertor plate, and two additional limits associated with the LHCD. The predictive EAST operation window is not qualified to fulfill its mission for high input power. To extend the operation window, gas puffing and impurity seeding are presented as two effective methods. In addition, the effect of the LHCD current on the operation window is also discussed. Our numerical analysis results provide a reference for the safe operation of EAST experiments with LHCD in future.

A new pellet injection system was installed on the EAST tokamak and preliminary experiments were performed during the 2012 run campaign. Typical phenomena associated with deuterium pellet injection into a plasma discharge have been observed including sudden increases of the electron density and H_α/D_α emission intensity as well as a significant decrease in plasma electron temperature. Profiles have been studied in order to understand the influence of pellet fuelling on EAST discharges. Even though the injector was specifically designed for plasma fuelling, ELM triggering using the pellet injection has also been tested. In order to find appropriate parameters for triggering ELMs in H-mode plasmas, scanning of the pellet injection speed was employed for pellets injected from both the high field side and low field side of the plasma column. It has been observed that low-speed pellets injected into H-mode plasma from the low-field side could trigger an ELM followed by a number of smaller induced ELMs at about 300 Hz.

The process of ion heating by a monochromatic obliquely propagating low-frequency Alfven wave is investigated. This process can be roughly divided into three stages: at first, the ions are picked up by the Alfven wave in several gyro-periods and a bulk velocity in the transverse direction is achieved; then, the ions are scattered in the transverse direction by the wave, which produces phase differences between the ions and leads to ion heating, especially in the perpendicular direction; and finally, the ions are stochastically heated due to the sub-cyclotron resonance. In this paper, with a test particle method, the efficiency and time scale of the ion stochastic heating by a monochromatic obliquely propagating low-frequency Alfven wave are studied. The results show that with the increase of the amplitude, frequency, and propagation angle of the Alfven wave, the efficiency of the ion stochastic heating increases, while the time scale of the ion stochastic heating decreases. With the increase of the plasma beta β, the ions are stochastically heated with less efficiency, and the time scale increases. We also investigate the heating of heavy ion species (He²⁺ and O⁵⁺), which can be heated with a higher efficiency by the oblique Alfven wave.

In atmospheric radio-frequency (rf) discharges, the plasma parameters, such as electron density, sheath thickness and sheath voltage, are not easy to be probed experimentally, while the electrical characteristics, such as impedance, resistance and reactance, are relatively convenient to be measured. In this paper we presented a simple theoretical model derived from the fluid description of generated plasmas without considering the circuit model, to investigate the relationship between the plasma impedance and plasma parameters. By introducing a relaxation frequency, the plasma impedance could be predicted by formulas presented in this study, and the mean electron density and sheath thickness can also be calculated from the measured or simulated impedance and reactance, respectively.

Numerical simulations of 10 kW and 110 kW inductively coupled plasma (ICP) wind tunnels were carried out to study physical properties of the flow inside the ICP torch and vacuum chamber with air as the working gas. Two-dimensional compressible axisymmetric Navier-Stokes (N-S) equations that took into account 11 species and 49 chemical reactions of air, were solved. A heat source model was used to describe the heating phenomenon instead of solving the electromagnetic equations. In the vacuum chamber, a four-temperature model was coupled with N-S equations. Numerical results for the 10 kW ICP wind tunnel are presented and discussed in detail as a representative case. It was found that the plasma flow in the vacuum chamber tended to be in local thermochemical equilibrium. To study the influence of operation conditions on the flow field, simulations were carried out for different chamber pressures and/or input powers. The computational results for the above two ICP wind tunnels were compared with corresponding experimental data. The computational and experimental results agree well, therefore the flow fields of ICP wind tunnels can be clearly understood.

The electron drift velocity, electron energy distribution function (EEDF), density-normalized effective ionization coefficient and density-normalized longitudinal diffusion velocity are calculated in SF₆-O₂ and SF₆-Air mixtures. The experimental results from a pulsed Townsend discharge are plotted for comparison with the numerical results. The reduced field strength varies from 40 Td to 500 Td (1 Townsend=10⁻¹⁷ V·cm²) and the SF₆ concentration ranges from 10% to 100%. A Boltzmann equation associated with the two-term spherical harmonic expansion approximation is utilized to gain the swarm parameters in steady-state Townsend. Results show that the accuracy of the Boltzmann solution with a two-term expansion in calculating the electron drift velocity, electron energy distribution function, and density-normalized effective ionization coefficient is acceptable. The effective ionization coefficient presents a distinct relationship with the SF₆ content in the mixtures. Moreover, the E/N_cr values in SF₆-Air mixtures are higher than those in SF₆-O₂ mixtures and the calculated value E/N_cr in SF₆-O₂ and SF₆-Air mixtures is lower than the measured value in SF₆-N₂. Parametric studies conducted on these parameters using the Boltzmann analysis offer substantial insight into the plasma physics, as well as a basis to explore the ozone generation process.

Electrical wire explosion is a promising method for the preparation of metal nanopowder, but the properties of metal nanopowder are affected by the second discharge process of electrical wire explosion. The second discharge characteristics of aluminum wire electrical explosion under variant argon pressures were studied in a RLC discharge circuit. The results show that the curve of the second discharge voltages versus the pressure presents a U-shape. To clarify the roles of aluminum vapor and argon in the process of the second discharge, a spectrograph and a high speed framing camera were used to study the radiation spectrum and spatial distribution of the electrical explosion plasma. It is observed that argon participates in the second discharge process under low pressure. A discharge channel develops along the surface of the aluminum vapor. Under higher pressure, a second discharge takes place in the aluminum vapor and the discharge channel is inside the aluminum vapor.

The effect of radio-frequency (RF) or low-frequency (LF) bias voltage on the formation of amorphous hydrogenated carbon (a-C:H) films was studied on silicon substrates with a low methane (CH₄) concentration (2–10 vol.%) in CH₄+Ar mixtures. The bias substrate was applied either by RF (13.56 MHz) or by LF (150 kHz) power supply. The highest hardness values (∼18–22 GPa) with lower hydrogen content in the films (∼20 at.%) deposited at 10 vol.% CH₄, was achieved by using the RF bias. However, the films deposited using the LF bias, under similar RF plasma generation power and CH₄ concentration (50 W and 10 vol.%, respectively), displayed lower hardness (∼6–12 GPa) with high hydrogen content (∼40 at.%). The structures analyzed by Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) and Raman scattering measurements provide an indication of trans-polyacetylene structure formation. However, its excessive formation in the films deposited by the LF bias method is consistent with its higher bonded hydrogen concentration and low level of hardness, as compared to the film prepared by the RF bias method. It was found that the effect of RF bias on the film structure and properties is stronger than the effect of the low-frequency (LF) bias under identical radio-frequency (RF) powered electrode and identical PECVD (plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition) system configuration.

The significant role of ion beam flux during nitriding 304 austenitic stainless steel has been investigated by using a radio frequency inductively-coupled plasma reactor into which a sample with negative bias voltage was inserted. A milliammeter is used to detect the current of ions which collide with the sample and optical emission spectroscopy is used to discern the reactive species included in the nitrogen plasma. The nitriding efficiency is indicated by X-ray diffraction and the microhardness test. The reported data reveal that the ion beam flux density as well as the deposition pressure, bias voltage and time can strongly affect the nitriding of stainless steel via the expanded multiphase microstructure inside the nitrided layer. The increase in the density of ion flux results in an ascent in the intensity of the expanded peak and a simultaneous decline in the intensity of the γ austenite peak. The evolution trend of ion beam flux density is described as a function of the operating pressure and the bias voltage. The maximum ion flux density has been achieved at 10 Pa pressure and −500 V bias voltage. A reasonable nitriding region has been, consequently, suggested after comparing this work with previously reported results.

To overcome the problem of interlaminar delamination of thermoplastic polyurethane laminated glass, silicate glass was etched with hydrofluoric acid and thermoplastic polyurethane was then treated with cold plasma. Compared with the untreated samples, the interlaminar shear strength of acid etching samples, cold plasma-treated samples and acid etching combined with cold plasma-treated samples increased by 97%, 84% and 341%, respectively. Acid etching combined with cold plasma-treated samples exhibited a higher flexural strength and strain as compared with the untreated samples. The impact energy of acid etching samples, cold plasma-treated samples and acid etching combined with cold plasma-treated samples increased by 8.7%, 8.1% and 11.6%, respectively, in comparison with the untreated samples. FT-IR analysis showed that a large number of –C=O, –CO–N and –CO–O–C– groups appeared on the surface of cold plasma-treated thermoplastic polyurethane, which resulted in the formation of hydrogen bonds. SEM results showed that some pittings formed on the surface of the silicate glass treated by acid etching, which resulted in the formation of a three-dimensional interface structure between the silicate glass and polyurethane. Hydrogen bonds combined with the three-dimensional interface between silicate glass and polyurethanes co-improved the mechanical properties of thermoplastic polyurethanes laminated glass.

CrTiAlN/TiAlN composite coatings were deposited on cemented carbide by using a home-made industrial scale multi-arc ion plating system. The samples were studied by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), microhardness and ball-on-disk testing. The properties of the CrTiAlN/TiAlN coatings were significantly influenced by the microstructure and the deposition time ratio of TiAlN over CrTiAlN layers. With the increase of deposition time ratio, the microhardness of CrTiAlN/TiAlN increased from 28.6 GPa to 37.5 GPa, much higher than that of CrTiAlN coatings. The friction coefficients of the CrTiAlN/TiAlN coatings were higher than those of CrTiAlN coatings against a cemented carbide ball. The microhardness of the CrTiAlN/TiAlN coatings was changed after annealing at 800°C, and the friction coefficients of the annealed coatings were increased against the cemented carbide ball.

A real time system used to detect phase difference between two sinusoidal signals is proposed in this paper. The system is designed to process the phase signal of the far-infrared (FIR) hydrogen cyanide (HCN) interferometer on J-TEXT. It is based on zero-crossing detection and makes use of the digital circuit. Compared with a traditional zero-crossing phase detector, it doesn't need to sacrifice the time resolution to expand the phase range. The phase difference is divided into two parts, the integer part and the fraction part. In each detecting cycle, they are detected separately. It outputs digital signals that are more stable for transmission. A prototype was built on J-TEXT using discrete components. A practical method is proposed to deal with the counting error caused by the deviation of electronic components in manufacture. Reasonable results were obtained on the prototype. The phase resolution reaches 2π/64 in test, and can still be improved by raising the clock frequency.

ITER edge localized mode (ELM) coils are important components of the in-vessel coils (IVCs) and they are designed for mitigating or suppressing ELMs. The coils located on the vacuum vessel (VV) and behind the blanket are subjected to high temperature due to the nuclear heat from the plasma, the Ohmic heat induced by the working current and the thermal radiation from the environment. The water serves as coolant to remove the heat deposited into the coils. Based on the results of nuclear analysis, the thermal-hydraulic analysis is performed for the preliminary design of upper ELM coils using a rapid evaluation method based on 1D treatment. The thermal-hydraulic design and operating parameters including the water flow velocity are optimized. It is found that the rapid evaluation method based on 1D treatment is feasible and reliable. According to the rapid analysis method, the thermal hydraulic parameters of two water flow schemes are computed and proved similar to each other, providing an effective basis for the coil design. Finally, considering jointly the pressure drop requirement and the cooling capacity, the flow velocity is optimized to 5 m/s.

One of the most important project missions of neutral beam injectors is the implementation of 100 s neutral beam injection (NBI) with high power energy to the plasma of the EAST superconducting tokamak. Correspondingly, it's necessary to construct a high-speed and reliable computer data processing system for processing experimental data, such as data acquisition, data compression and storage, data decompression and query, as well as data analysis. The implementation of computer data processing application software (CDPS) for EAST NBI is presented in this paper in terms of its functional structure and system realization. The set of software is programmed in C language and runs on Linux operating system based on TCP network protocol and multi-threading technology. The hardware mainly includes industrial control computer (IPC), data server, PXI DAQ cards and so on. Now this software has been applied to EAST NBI system, and experimental results show that the CDPS can serve EAST NBI very well.

The thermal boundary condition has very important effects on the accuracy of thermal stress calculation of a water-cooled W/Cu divertor. In this paper, phase-change heat transfer was simulated based on the Euler homogeneous phase model, and local differences of liquid physical properties were considered under one-sided high heating conditions. The steady-state temperature field and thermal stress field under nonuniform thermal boundary conditions were obtained through numerical calculation. By comparison with the case of traditional uniform thermal boundary conditions, the results show that the distribution of thermal stress under nonuniform thermal boundary conditions exhibits the same trend as that under uniform thermal boundary conditions, but is larger in value. The maximum difference of maximum von Mises stress is up to 42% under the highest heating conditions. These results provide a valuable reference for the thermal stress calculation of water-cooled W/Cu divertors.