Recent Progress in the Numerical Simulation Reactor Research Project

Abstract

Fusion plasmas are complex systems which involve a variety of physical processes interacting with each other across wide ranges of spatiotemporal scales. In the National Institute for Fusion Science (NIFS), we are utilizing the full capability of the supercomputer (Plasma Simulator) and propelling domestic and international collaborations in order to conduct the Numerical Simulation Reactor Research Project (NSRP). Understanding physical mechanisms of complex plasma phenomena for the systematization of fusion science, NSRP aims at realization of the Numerical Helical Test Reactor, which is an integrated system of simulation codes to predict behaviors of fusion plasmas over the whole machine range. In NSRP, eight task groups are organized to cover a wide range of fusion simulation subjects: plasma fluid equilibrium stability, energetic-particle physics, integrated transport simulation, neoclassical and turbulent transport simulation, peripheral plasma transport, plasma-wall interaction, multi-hierarchy physics, and simulation science basis. Verification and validation researches are in progress in these task groups collaborating with each other as well as with experimental and engineering groups. Successful examples of validations of large-scale simulations of energetic particle driven instabilities and neoclassical and turbulent transport against experimental results from tokamaks and helical systems are highlighted. In addition, recent achievements in advanced simulation studies on ion heating processes and plasma-wall interactions, as well as those in the application of Virtual-Reality (VR) technology to fusion engineering, are presented.