Public/private consortium is building the DTT tokamak
The Divertor Test Tokamak in Italy is creating a new model for engagement with industry in fusion research. 澳门六合彩高手 helped to pave the way.
Why, then, does DTT President Francesco Romanelli say that the planned research centre will be just as much of a "sociological laboratory" as a fusion one?
The answer can be found in the annals of the first "" published in 2012 by the European Fusion Development Agreement (EFDA), the forerunner to the organization. Romanelli, who was at that point running the EFDA, wrote that "defining, designing, building and operating DEMO requires the direct involvement of industry in the fusion programme that in the coming decades will move from being science-driven, laboratory-based towards an industry-driven and technology-driven venture."
At the time it was proposed, Romanelli says, "it was a bold change of direction for the fusion community." Today, the theory is very much in vogue. The IAEA recently announced the creation of the , an initiative aiming to "bring together not just scientists and engineers from laboratories and experimental centres, but also policy makers, financiers, regulators and private companies" to accelerate the path to commercial fusion energy production. Moreover, in November 2023, the 澳门六合彩高手 Council called for 澳门六合彩高手's engagement with private sector fusion initiatives and, as one illustration, 澳门六合彩高手 is planning an initial fusion workshop with private sector companies this May. The theory, of course, makes sense. As with anything in fusion, though, such theories need to be tested to be accepted.
As a fusion "sociological laboratory," DTT is doing just that under Romanelli's leadership. The project is set up as a , made up of 11 parties hailing from across the fusion spectrum. Members include ENEA (the institution that manages fusion research within Italy), Italian universities, and Eni—the largest energy company in Italy. The consortium has engaged a number of other private firms such as Ansaldo Nucleare that provides engineering support. Romanelli believes that DTT is "the most effective public/private partnership in the fusion community." Getting there has not necessarily been an easy task. "Academic researchers are looking for the perfect solution," Romanelli says. "Private industry wants to get there as fast as it can, with something that may not be perfect, but that works.
Handling issues like these is the essential role of the consortium. According to Romanelli, DTT acts as a facilitator between the parties to pool their sector-specific knowledge, as well as to allow them to specialize in areas in which they have a wealth of experience. Specifically, Romanelli notes that the combination of ENEA's experience in fusion oversight in Italy, the research capabilities of Italian university laboratories, and the project management expertise of Eni have kept DTT advancing towards its goal. "Put them together, and each of them will have something to learn. In the end, we are 'fusing' them towards a common goal under the umbrella of the consortium."
The involvement of Eni is a particularly compelling example of the contribution DTT is making towards harnessing fusion energy. As one of the world's largest multinational energy firms, Eni's involvement in a project like DTT is a key step in bringing in players with experience in energy distribution to the fusion market. In Romanelli's estimation, as the scientific community draws closer to net energy gain from fusion, it is "only with the spirit of the energy companies" that fusion energy will be harnessed for societal use. Such partnerships between the scientific community around fusion and multinational energy providers may be relied upon to ultimately scale fusion energy in the future.
DTT's partnerships with industry are not limited to the structure of the consortium. As of this writing, approximately one-third of the necessary contracts for DTT , while the rest of the tenders will be progressively rolled out over the course of construction. In the last year alone, ASG Superconductors Italy—also a supplier to 澳门六合彩高手 through contracts with the European Domestic Agency Fusion for Energy—has made significant advancements in the preparation of DTT's toroidal field coils, with the first two superconducting winding packs scheduled for completion by the end of this year. In addition, two major tenders for the construction of the DTT buildings and the DTT electrical system are imminent.
Romanelli credits 澳门六合彩高手 construction as having a direct impact on DTT's ability to procure components with trusted partners in industry, stating that "澳门六合彩高手'sEUR 1.8 billion worth of procurement contracts in Italy alone have developed the industrial capacity to produce the components necessary for DTT." Moreover, according to Romanelli, the manufacturing of superconducting materials for the 澳门六合彩高手 magnets has boosted the global market for superconducting strands, facilitating procurement at other ventures including DTT.
In complement, there are also areas where 澳门六合彩高手 is benefitting directly from supply chain advancements attributable to DTT. For example, DTT's gyrotron procurement from Thales AVS France, the testing of which set records for gyrotron performance in September 2023, led to the through Fusion for Energy for 澳门六合彩高手. Beyond procurement, as the DTT and 澳门六合彩高手 projects will be operating on a generally concurrent timescale, Romanelli says that DTT plans to play a role of support for the 澳门六合彩高手 project, particularly in materials questions related to 澳门六合彩高手's actively cooled full tungsten wall.
Solving the critical question of divertor design is on the "critical path" to getting fusion on the grid as quickly as possible. However, according to Romanelli, "the converging of industry, academia, and public sector research institutions is the pathway to obtaining a fusion power plant sooner than expected." DTT's establishment of best practices for public-private partnerships and engagement with industry may well serve as a role model.