Retention of Fast Alpha Particles and Expulsion of Helium Ash by an Internal Disruption in a Tokamak Plasma

An internal disruption is simulated in a large tokamak plasma with monotonic safety factor profile close to unity. The domain and the time scale of the event are set to match observations. The simulation follows passive alpha particles with energies 35 keV-3.5 MeV, whose initial density peak is localized in the disrupting domain. While the 35 keV profile flattens, a synergy of multiple physical factors allows the 3.5 MeV profile to remain peaked, motivating the use of moderate internal disruptions in a fusion reactor to expel helium ash while preserving good confinement of fast alphas.