June 20, 2001

The weekly NCSX project meeting was held on June 20.  Four items were discussed:

Scott Larson had asked if there were any small ERWM-related projects that NCSX would like to have initiated this year.  Jim Chrzanowski, who is responsible for NCSX site preparation, indicated that there were a number of candidates, including removing the lead from the PBX test cell, draining the hydraulic systems and clearing the computer room.  Chrzanowski agreed to contact Larson to discuss these projects.

Tom Brown presented a new concept for the vacuum vessel.  In this concept, the top and bottom sections are blended into horizontal runs.  The outboard section is blended into a vertical run.  The port extension for tangential NB access is separately fabricated and then attached.  This concept has the potential to simplify fabrication and reduce cost.  Three concerns were raised:

To address the first concern, the Ukrainian team that performed the VV manufacturing study will be contacted for their "first impression" (Georgiyevskiy).  2D drawings of various radial cuts comparing the reference and alternate concepts will be prepared (Brown).  NCSX will determine if a small, funded study should be performed to more carefully assess the impact on feasibility and cost of manufacturing (Neilson, Nelson, Reiersen).

Since (1) the geometry of the vacuum vessel is not changing in the inboard regions where clearances are tight and (2) the radii of curvature and locations of the vertical/horizontal surfaces could be modified to avoid interferences, there is no apparent need to do assembly and access studies at this time.  There is a need to assess the impact on the structural design, but since those areas modified could be readily reinforced, the structural design assessment will be postponed until FY02 when more resources become available.

At the recent NCSX project meeting, it was suggested that access might be improved by aligning the TF coils in the "plane" of the modular coils, i.e. rotating them toroidal by half a click (1 click = 360º/21).  David Williamson reported on progress developing a conformal TF set in this location.  Coil shapes have been defined and field/force calculations have been completed.  The next step is to determine the largest possible openings in the structural shell.

Phil Heitzenroeder reported on plans to conduct an information meeting this summer.  The purpose of the information meeting is to gain information on potential vendors and to solicit proposals for manufacturing studies to be conducted prior to the CDR.  The information meeting is planned for August 15.

The next meeting will be conducted next week at our regular time (Wednesday at 1:30pm).  The PPPL phone bridge (x2822, access code 6789) will again be used.

Please forward any comments to reiersen@pppl.gov

(last edited on 09/25/2001 03:47 PM )