Nuclear fusion research relies on superconducting facilities like Korea Superconducting Tokamak Advanced Research (KSTAR), commissioned in 2008. Operating this Superconducting fusion device requires an Helium Refrigeration System (HRS) to cool it to liquid helium temperatures. This large cryogenic plant, 9kW@4.5K equivalent, consumes about 3.5MW. Given this substantial electrical consumption, improving the energy efficiency of the KSTAR HRS is a priority. This presentation details the results of a collaborative study with the Air Liquide Advanced Technologies Cryogenic team, including tests and implementations, and suggests future work.

Keywords
KSTAR|Optimisation|energy efficiency