25 May (NucNet): The last of 70 radial plates manufactured in Europe for the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (Iter) has been completed. These massive steel rings form the skeleton of the 18 toroidal field coils required to confine the plasma within the Iter vacuum. CNIM of France and its Italian partner SIMIC have manufactured 35 of the 70 radial plates which will form the heart of the Iter. The €150m ($168m) contract, signed between VNIM, SIMIC and Fusion for Energy (F4E), the organisation responsible for managing Europe’s contribution to Iter, was completed “in line with the tight schedule and budget”, F4E said. On 23 May 2017 the D-shape component, which measures, 13 metres by nine metres and weighs approximately 10 tonnes, was shipped from the port of La Seyne-Sur-Mer in France to the European toroidal field coil winding line at ASG in La Spezia, Italy. At ASG it will be fitted into the toroidal coil, a giant magnet used to generate the intense magnetic field required for the functioning of Iter.
