Simultaneous control of the electron temperature and safety factor profiles in DIII-D using model-based optimal control techniques

Abstract Future tokamak power plants will likely operate using a single, well-defined plasma scenario, either in steady state or for very long pulse lengths. In order to enhance the robustness of the scenario, feedback controllers for a variety of plasma properties will be necessary to counteract any disturbances and ensure safe operation. However, only a limited set of actuators will be available to control many different quantities. Because of this, it is necessary to develop controllers that are able to regulate multiple plasma properties using a limited set of actuators. To this end, a controller has been developed for the simultaneous regulation of both the electron temperature and safety factor profiles in DIII-D. This algorithm uses a linear quadratic integral (LQI) control synthesis approach based on a linearized model of the dynamics of the two profiles. Two neural network surrogate models, NubeamNet and MMMnet, are included to improve the fidelity of the model. The controller has been tested in simulation using COTSIM, and has demonstrated the ability to simultaneously track changes in both the electron temperature and safety factor targets, including changes in both the magnitude and the shape of the profiles.