The control and data acquisition system of the DTT experiment

Abstract

DTT, Divertor Tokamak Test facility, is currently under construction at the Frascati ENEA Research Center. Its main aim is to explore alternative solutions for the extraction of the heat generated by the fusion process. Its Control and Data Acquisition System (CODAS) will (1) orchestrate and synchronize all the DTT systems during Plasma operation and maintenance; (2) acquire data from the experiment diagnostics and plant systems and store it in an experimental database to be used for on-line and off-line analysis; (3) provide real-time Plasma control. The expected duration of the plasma discharge in DTT is in the order of some tens of seconds and therefore DTT can be considered a long-lasting experiment, involving data streaming technologies for data communication and storage. The main DTT CODAS design is based on three principles: (1) Taking inspiration from other similar experiments currently under development, namely ITER CODAC, (2) relying on proven solutions already adopted in running experiments with similar constraints and (3) taking advantage from practices widely adopted in fusion and, more in general, in industry. Despite using components already adopted in other fusion experiments, DTT CODAS is the first system that seamlessly integrates all of them.