Some Nonlinear Controls for Nonlinear Processes in the DIII-D Tokamak

M.L. Walker, D.A. Humphreys and E. Schuster

42nd IEEE Conference on Decision and Control

Maui, Hawaii, USA, December 2003

Abstract

In the past few years, much work has been done at various institutions on application of multivariable linear controllers for tokamak shape control, including several design studies and some experimental implementations. A great deal has been learned about tokamak plasma shape control through these studies. Now some of the practical constraints imposed by working tokamaks must be addressed in order to make the benefits of multivariable control available to working experimental devices. In this paper, we will discuss several of the nonlinear processes and constraints at DIII-D which must be dealt with as part of the implementation of a routine operational controller.