Drift kinetic theory of alpha transport by tokamak perturbations

TL;DR

This paper develops a drift kinetic theory to analyze alpha particle transport caused by tokamak perturbations, considering various modes and their impact on alpha confinement and heating.

Contribution

It introduces a novel drift kinetic framework that accounts for finite orbit effects, resonant collisions, and arbitrary perturbation frequencies, advancing understanding of alpha transport mechanisms.

Findings

Ripple perturbations cause negligible alpha heat flux.

Toroidal Alfvén eigenmodes can induce significant alpha transport.

Constraints on mode amplitude are derived to prevent excessive alpha depletion.

Abstract

Upcoming tokamak experiments fueled with deuterium and tritium are expected to have large alpha particle populations. Such experiments motivate new attention to the theory of alpha particle confinement and transport. A key topic is the interaction of alphas with perturbations to the tokamak fields, including those from ripple and magnetohydrodynamic modes like Alfv\'{e}n eigenmodes. These perturbations can transport alphas, leading to changed localization of alpha heating, loss of alpha power, and damage to device walls. Alpha interaction with these perturbations is often studied with single particle theory. In contrast, we derive a drift kinetic theory to calculate the alpha heat flux resulting from arbitrary perturbation frequency and periodicity (provided these can be studied drift kinetically). Novel features of the theory include the retention of a large effective collision frequency resulting from the resonant alpha collisional boundary layer, correlated interactions over many poloidal transits, and finite orbit effects. Heat fluxes are considered for the example cases of ripple and the toroidal Alfv\'{e}n eigenmode (TAE). The ripple heat flux is small. The TAE heat flux is significant and scales with the square of the perturbation amplitude, allowing the derivation of constraints on mode amplitude for avoidance of significant alpha depletion. A simple saturation condition suggests that TAEs in one upcoming experiment will not cause significant alpha transport via the mechanisms in this theory. However, saturation above the level suggested by the simple condition, but within numerical and experimental experience, which could be accompanied by the onset of stochasticity, could cause significant transport.