Europe’s first ITER Divertor Cassettes ready

The ITER plasma will reach up to 150 million ºC to sustain the fusion reaction. As this process unfolds, high-energy particles will hit the surrounding in-vessel components. Fusion for Energy (F4E) is collaborating with companies from all over Europe to produce a large share of the components that will be exposed to these blazing temperatures.

One of them is the cassette bodies, which will form the backbone of the divertor, a massive “ashtray” where the plasma impurities will fall. Three plasma-facing components will be mounted onto this structure, forming an eight-tonne full cassette. In total, F4E will provide 54 cassette bodies, plus four spares.

In Camerana (Italy), F4E and SIMIC have completed Europe’s first four divertor cassette bodies. After thorough tests and inspections, the teams are ready to ship them and conclude a contract signed in 2018. Last week, representatives from F4E, SIMIC and the ITER Organization gathered at the SIMIC workshop to celebrate this achievement in the presence of Italian authorities. The ceremony honoured the teams’ perseverance and a strong industrial partnership that does not end there. In fact, 15 more units are already underway at SIMIC under a new contract.

For the fabrication of the bodies, some of the most difficult questions lie in the demanding tolerances and geometry. F4E and SIMIC found the answers through rigorous project management and high-precision skills, plus extensive dimensional inspections.

What made the difference, according to F4E Programme Manager Laurent Guerrini, was the trust between the teams: “We stayed close to the supplier, actively listening and responding to the challenges that emerged. We did a good job applying the lessons from the workshop floor to the higher project level. By adjusting some requirements, we ensured a smoother production,” he said.

The experience paid off in terms of know-how. Vassilis Stamos, F4E Project Manager, looks at the next units with optimism: “From the first prototypes produced over a decade ago, we have learnt a lot. We improved the manufacturing process and have put in place an efficient workflow that guarantees the required accuracy,” he explains.

The first-ever cassette bodies were the central piece of the ceremony at SIMIC. Next to them, F4E Director Marc Lachaise reflected on the significance of their delivery: “The good planning, talent and expertise of the F4E, SIMIC and ITER Organization teams brought us to this important milestone for ITER, showing the capacity of our fusion supply chain. These components are a symbol of excellence in mastering a strategic technology, made by Europe and produced in Italy by SIMIC,” he asserted.

For SIMIC, a family-owned business with a solid track record in manufacturing, the project is another step consolidating them as first-class supplier in fusion. To date, the company has signed a total of 10 contracts with F4E, for roughly 725 million EUR.  “The completion of the first four divertor cassette bodies confirms SIMIC among the leading European industrial partners of the ITER project and reflects a long-standing collaboration with F4E and ITER Organization. The award of a new contract for 15 new units is a recognition of the expertise, reliability, and manufacturing excellence developed by the company,” stated Marianna Ginola, Head of Nuclear & Big Science at SIMIC.