TBM/MTM for HTS-FNSF: An Innovative Testing Strategy to Qualify/Validate Fusion Technologies for U.S. DEMO
Open Access
Abstract
The qualification and validation of nuclear technologies are daunting tasks for fusion demonstration (DEMO) and power plants. This is particularly true for advanced designs that involve harsh radiation environment with 14 MeV neutrons and high-temperature operating regimes. This paper outlines the unique qualification and validation processes developed in the U.S., offering the only access to the complete fusion environment, focusing on the most prominent U.S. blanket concept (the dual cooled PbLi (DCLL)) along with testing new generations of structural and functional materials in dedicated test modules. The venue for such activities is the proposed Fusion Nuclear Science Facility (FNSF), which is viewed as an essential element of the U.S. fusion roadmap. A staged blanket testing strategy has been developed to test and enhance the DCLL blanket performance during each phase of FNSF D-T operation. A materials testing module (MTM) is critically important to include in the FNSF as well to test a broad range of specimens of future, more advanced generations of materials in a relevant fusion environment. The most important attributes for MTM are the relevant He/dpa ratio (10–15) and the much larger specimen volumes compared to the 10–500 mL range available in the International Fusion Materials Irradiation Facility (IFMIF) and European DEMO-Oriented Neutron Source (DONES).Keywords
Funding Information
- Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (US DOE Contract #DE-AC02-09CH11466)
This publication has 30 references indexed in Scilit:
- The Fusion Nuclear Science Facility, the Critical Step in the Pathway to Fusion EnergyFusion Science and Technology, 2015
- The accomplishment of the Engineering Design Activities of IFMIF/EVEDA: The European–Japanese project towards a Li(d,xn) fusion relevant neutron sourceNuclear Fusion, 2015
- Overview of EU DEMO design and R&D activitiesFusion Engineering and Design, 2014
- A Stepped Approach from IFMIF/EVEDA Toward IFMIFFusion Science and Technology, 2014
- A preliminary conceptual design study for Korean fusion DEMO reactorFusion Engineering and Design, 2013
- Multimodal options for materials research to advance the basis for fusion energy in the ITER eraNuclear Fusion, 2013
- Prospects for pilot plants based on the tokamak, spherical tokamak and stellaratorNuclear Fusion, 2011
- Fusion Nuclear Science Facility (FNSF) before Upgrade to Component Test Facility (CTF)Fusion Science and Technology, 2011
- Fusion Nuclear Science Facility CandidatesFusion Science and Technology, 2011
- Impurity effects on reduced-activation ferritic steels developed for fusion applicationsJournal of Nuclear Materials, 2000