Simulation of plasma transport in MPS-LD linear plasma device by using BOUT plus

A linear plasma device (LPD) module based on the 2D transport module under the BOUT++ framework is developed in this paper to simulate plasma transport in the LPD. The LPD module includes three parts, i.e. magnetic field calculation, simulation mesh generation and plasma transport setup. The magnetic field is calculated with the circular current loop using the location and current information of each coil. The mesh generation code can produce a simulation mesh for LPD by employing the magnetic field. The plasma transport model is based on the reduced Braginskii equations, which consist of the continuity equation, momentum equation, and energy equation. The fluid neutral model is applied for neutral particle simulation. Deuterium (D) and helium (He) ions and atoms can be simulated by the model. The first attempt to simulate plasma transport in the new LPD, called multiple plasma simulation linear plasma device (MPS-LD), is presented using the developed model. The D plasma transport in the MPS-LD is simulated and benchmarked against the two-point model, showing the validation of the BOUT++ simulation. The effects of radial transport on the heat load to the target are studied, which illustrates the significant impact of the radial diffusivities D-perpendicular to and chi(perpendicular to i,e) e on the plasma. Moreover, the He impurity injection process during the discharge is studied with emphasis on plasma-impurity interactions. The simulation results show that He injection can reduce the plasma energy load to the target significantly, and the efficiency depends on the He source density and injection velocity. The present work provides an alternative and flexible simulation tool for plasma transport in LPDs.

Automated summary

In this paper, a linear plasma device (LPD) module based on the 2D transport module under the BOUT++ framework is developed to simulate plasma transport in the LPD. The module includes magnetic field calculation, simulation mesh generation, and plasma transport setup. The developed model is used to simulate plasma transport in the LPD, and the results are validated against a two-point model. The effects of radial transport on heat load and He impurity injection process are also investigated.