Create confinement time class by chris-ashe · Pull Request #4121 · ukaea/PROCESS

chris-ashe · 2026-03-05T10:51:39Z

This pull request refactors how confinement time models are accessed and labeled throughout the codebase. The main improvement is the centralization of confinement time calculations and model labels into the PlasmaConfinementTime and ConfinementTimeModel classes, which increases code maintainability and clarity. Additionally, hardcoded label lists have been removed, and references to confinement time models are now made through well-defined class properties.

Key changes:

Refactoring confinement time model access:

All calls to confinement time scaling functions in plot_proc.py are now accessed via the PlasmaConfinementTime class, replacing the previous use of the confine module. This change standardizes how these models are instantiated and used.

Centralizing and improving model labeling:

The hardcoded LABELS_CONFINEMENT_SCALINGS list has been removed from physics_variables.py, and references to confinement time model labels in plot_proc.py are now made through the ConfinementTimeModel class's full_name property. This ensures label consistency and reduces duplication.

Initialization and dependency injection improvements:

The PlasmaConfinementTime class is now instantiated and injected as a dependency into the Physics class in main.py, making it easier to manage and test.

API updates for downstream usage:

The calculate_confinement_time method in the stellarator model is now accessed via self.physics.confinement, reflecting the new structure for confinement time calculations.

Documentation and cleanup:

The docstring for i_confinement_time in physics_variables.py has been updated to remove references to the deleted label list, reflecting the new approach to model labeling.## Description

Checklist

I confirm that I have completed the following checks:

My changes follow the PROCESS style guide
I have justified any large differences in the regression tests caused by this pull request in the comments.
I have added new tests where appropriate for the changes I have made.
If I have had to change any existing unit or integration tests, I have justified this change in the pull request comments.
If I have made documentation changes, I have checked they render correctly.
I have added documentation for my change, if appropriate.

codecov-commenter · 2026-03-05T11:05:08Z

Codecov Report

❌ Patch coverage is 69.23077% with 4 lines in your changes missing coverage. Please review.
✅ Project coverage is 47.74%. Comparing base (67340b1) to head (b135bef).
⚠️ Report is 3 commits behind head on main.

Files with missing lines	Patch %	Lines
process/models/physics/physics.py	66.66%	2 Missing ⚠️
process/core/io/plot_proc.py	66.66%	1 Missing ⚠️
process/models/stellarator/stellarator.py	0.00%	1 Missing ⚠️

Additional details and impacted files

@@            Coverage Diff             @@
##             main    #4121      +/-   ##
==========================================
+ Coverage   47.51%   47.74%   +0.23%     
==========================================
  Files         141      141              
  Lines       29487    29682     +195     
==========================================
+ Hits        14010    14172     +162     
- Misses      15477    15510      +33

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…sics class

- Updated test_confinement_time.py to replace direct function calls from the confinement_time module with method calls from the PlasmaConfinementTime class. - Adjusted the parameterized tests to reflect the new method structure. - Modified test_physics.py to call the confinement time calculation method from the confinement attribute of the physics object.

…in PlasmaConfinementTime

…Time logic for model handling

…in Physics and Stellarator classes

… class

…d remove LABELS_CONFINEMENT_SCALINGS

…rison and find_other_h_factors methods to PlasmaConfinementTime class

…onfinement_time_info method in PlasmaConfinementTime class

…ndling in PlasmaConfinementTime class

…ormatting improvements

timothy-nunn · 2026-03-06T15:53:46Z

tests/unit/test_confinement_time.py

Could you update this test to conform to the pattern we use for models in test: the model is instantiated via a fixture, not in the test body.

timothy-nunn · 2026-03-17T09:21:59Z

process/core/io/plot_proc.py


    # Calculate confinement times using the scan data
-    iter_89p = confine.iter_89p_confinement_time(
+    iter_89p = PlasmaConfinementTime().iter_89p_confinement_time(


Can we create the model once at the start, its just a bit cleaner:

confine = PlasmaConfinementTime() ... iter_89p = confine.iter_89p_confinement_time(...) iter_89_0 = PlasmaConfinementTime().iter_89_0_confinement_time(...)

timothy-nunn · 2026-03-17T09:28:27Z

process/models/stellarator/stellarator.py

Your new self.confinement.calculate_double_and_triple_product needs to be added in here now because the Stellarator tests are failing

026-03-17T09:09:29.5035153Z FAILED tests/regression/test_process_input_files.py::test_input_file[helias_5b] - AssertionError: �[0;32m 2 differences: the reference MFile contains different values for some of the variables. See the warnings for a breakdown of the differences.�[0m 2026-03-17T09:09:29.5035230Z assert 2 == 0 2026-03-17T09:09:29.5035922Z + where 2 = len([MFileVariableDifference(name='nttau', ref=3.492800394738822e+21, new=0.0, percentage_change=-100.00000000000001), MFileVariableDifference(name='ntau', ref=4.894472472548276e+20, new=0.0, percentage_change=-100.0)])

timothy-nunn · 2026-03-17T09:29:41Z

tests/unit/test_physics.py

-            expected_ntau=2.5515877210566689e20,
-            expected_nTtau=3.253e21,


Can you make a new test for calculate_double_and_triple_product that uses this data

timothy-nunn

Sorry a couple more comments to add to my first review

timothy-nunn · 2026-03-18T10:52:41Z

process/models/physics/confinement_time.py

+
+        else:
+            raise ProcessValueError(
+                "Illegal value for model",


Can this error message be made a bit more explicit

Actually, I suspect that this is redundant since once of the early try except blocks will catch this

timothy-nunn · 2026-03-18T10:55:16Z

process/models/physics/confinement_time.py

+        except ValueError:
+            raise ProcessValueError(
+                "Illegal value of i_rad_loss",
+                i_rad_loss=physics_variables.i_rad_loss,
+            ) from None


Suggested change

except ValueError:

raise ProcessValueError(

"Illegal value of i_rad_loss",

i_rad_loss=physics_variables.i_rad_loss,

) from None

except ValueError as e:

raise ProcessValueError(

"Illegal value of i_rad_loss",

i_rad_loss=physics_variables.i_rad_loss,

) from e

timothy-nunn · 2026-03-18T10:55:37Z

process/models/physics/confinement_time.py

+        except ValueError:
+            raise ProcessValueError(
+                "Illegal value for i_confinement_time",
+                i_confinement_time=i_confinement_time,
+            ) from None


Suggested change

except ValueError:

raise ProcessValueError(

"Illegal value for i_confinement_time",

i_confinement_time=i_confinement_time,

) from None

except ValueError as e:

raise ProcessValueError(

"Illegal value for i_confinement_time",

i_confinement_time=i_confinement_time,

) from e

timothy-nunn

Just one tiny thing

tests/unit/test_confinement_time.py

chris-ashe added Confinement time Plasma energy or particle confinement times Refactor labels Mar 5, 2026

chris-ashe force-pushed the create_confinement_class branch from 50b103f to c5b7ace Compare March 5, 2026 11:52

chris-ashe added 7 commits March 5, 2026 14:56

Add ConfinementTimeModel and integrate PlasmaConfinementTime into Phy…

b961d1a

…sics class

Add ConfinementRadiationLossModel and update radiation loss handling …

8f19ff2

…in PlasmaConfinementTime

Reorder ConfinementTimeModel enum values and update PlasmaConfinement…

ef646dc

…Time logic for model handling

Refactor confinement time calculations to use the confinement module …

396287b

…in Physics and Stellarator classes

Move the double and triple product into a new function in confinement…

611c549

… class

Refactor confinement time handling to utilize ConfinementTimeModel an…

a90a9c5

…d remove LABELS_CONFINEMENT_SCALINGS

chris-ashe force-pushed the create_confinement_class branch from d7153bb to a90a9c5 Compare March 5, 2026 14:56

chris-ashe added 4 commits March 5, 2026 15:12

Post rebase conflict fix

8999282

Refactor confinement time handling by moving output_confinement_compa…

b7f4452

…rison and find_other_h_factors methods to PlasmaConfinementTime class

Refactor confinement time output handling by moving logic to output_c…

96e07b2

…onfinement_time_info method in PlasmaConfinementTime class

Enhance ConfinementRadiationLossModel with descriptions and update ha…

b4c08c9

…ndling in PlasmaConfinementTime class

chris-ashe marked this pull request as ready for review March 5, 2026 15:45

chris-ashe requested a review from a team as a code owner March 5, 2026 15:45

chris-ashe changed the title ~~Create confinement class~~ :clock: Create confinement time class Mar 5, 2026

chris-ashe changed the title ~~:clock: Create confinement time class~~ Create confinement time class Mar 5, 2026

📝 Update plasma confinement documentation with model references and f…

07e7a7b

…ormatting improvements

timothy-nunn self-assigned this Mar 18, 2026

timothy-nunn requested changes Mar 18, 2026

View reviewed changes

timothy-nunn mentioned this pull request Mar 18, 2026

Follow-up from "Resolve "convert stellarator.f90 to Python"" #1841

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timothy-nunn reviewed Mar 18, 2026

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tests/unit/test_confinement_time.py Outdated Show resolved Hide resolved

Make confinement time calculations static/class methods

b135bef

timothy-nunn approved these changes Mar 19, 2026

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timothy-nunn merged commit e8f83ff into main Mar 19, 2026
8 of 10 checks passed

timothy-nunn deleted the create_confinement_class branch March 19, 2026 10:53

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Create confinement time class#4121

Create confinement time class#4121
timothy-nunn merged 14 commits intomainfrom
create_confinement_class

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		expected_ntau=2.5515877210566689e20,
		expected_nTtau=3.253e21,

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chris-ashe commented Mar 5, 2026 •

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