A new ultra-high voltage system has been installed to protect MITICA, the prototype of the ITER neutral beam injector under construction in Padua
Padua, June 30, 2025
MITICA has a new ally for safety: an additional high-voltage LCR-type protection system (consisting of an inductance L in parallel with a resistor R and capacitors C).
Unique of its kind worldwide, it has been designed to be connected in series between the insulating transformer and the 1 MV Faraday cage (HVD1), the components that supply power to the MITICA source.
The system is intended to protect the insulating transformer and its high-voltage bushing from impulse overvoltages generated during electrical discharge events (Break-Down – BD).
The LCR protection will ensure system operation under both normal operating conditions (discharges between acceleration grids) and in the event of a fault (discharges in the plant).
The high voltages involved (1 MV) required careful evaluation of where to install the protection system. Adequate insulation distance had to be ensured from the walls and ceiling of the HVH (High Voltage Hall) building and from other high-voltage components.
The device, with a total height of 13 meters, is supported by five insulators mounted on a 5 m x 4 m base, each about 6 meters high.
See the progress of the work in the image gallery.
The project was made possible thanks to close collaboration between Consorzio RFX, QST, and HITACHI.
With the installation of the isolation transformer now complete, combined acceptance tests will follow shortly.