ITER R&D: Executive summary: R&D overview

Several research and development projects for the international thermonuclear experimental reactor (ITER) are described. These projects involve the development and verification of manufacturing techniques and quality assurance with most of fabrication process demonstrated at full scale. Some of these projects are the CS model coil and TF model coil projects, which aim to develop the superconducting magnet technology to a level that will allow the various ITER magnets to be built with confidence. Another is the vacuum vessel sector project, which aims to produce a full-scale sector of the ITER vacuum vessel including the equatorial extension port to establish the tolerances and to undertake initial testing of mechanical and hydraulic performance.