Air Liquide: ITER cryoplant now operational
- Air Liquide delivered three helium refrigerators with a combined cooling capacity of 75 kW at 4.5 K.
- The company supplied 1.6 km of cryogenic transfer lines for ITER’s magnets and cryopumps.
- A liquid nitrogen plant built by Air Liquide provides precooling and cold gas for ITER’s thermal shields under a Fusion for Energy contract.
- The helium refrigeration and liquid nitrogen plants were commissioned in 2025 and 2026 respectively.
Project context
ITER’s tokamak must contain plasma at about 150 million °C using superconducting magnets that require cooling near absolute zero. Meeting this thermal contrast requires a large, centralized cryogenic installation.
Helium refrigeration
Air Liquide designed and manufactured three large helium refrigerators operating with supercritical helium at 4.5 K (−269 °C). The units deliver a record combined cooling capacity of 75 kW at 4.5 K and support cooling for roughly 10,000 tonnes of superconducting magnets and the reactor’s cryopumps.
Cryogenic distribution and nitrogen precooling
The company supplied about 1.6 km of specialized cryogenic lines to transfer fluids across the site. A large liquid nitrogen plant, built under a Fusion for Energy contract as part of Europe’s contribution, provides precooling for the helium refrigerators and cold gas for the reactor’s thermal shields.
Commissioning and scale
Teams commissioned the helium refrigeration plant and the liquid nitrogen plant in 2025 and 2026. The facility, described as the size of a football field, is the largest centralized refrigeration system ever built for the ITER project.
Source: Air Liquide