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Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
Playing the “bad guy” to enhance next-generation safety
Sometimes, cops and robbers is more than just a kid’s game. At the Department of Energy’s national laboratories, researchers are channeling their inner saboteurs to discover vulnerabilities in next-generation nuclear reactors, making sure that they’re as safe as possible before they’re even constructed.
Robert C. Cook, Stephan A. Letts, Steven R. Buckley, Evelyn Fearon
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 49 | Number 4 | May 2006 | Pages 802-808
Technical Paper | Target Fabrication | doi.org/10.13182/FST06-A1204
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
An engineering model is presented for the removal of the plastic mandrel from the inside of a sputtered Be shell. The removal is accomplished by forcing heated air in and out of the 4 to 5 m laser drilled fill hole in the capsule wall by cycling the external pressure between 2 and 5 atm. The plastic is combusted to CO2 and H2O by this exposure, thus removing the mandrel. Calculations are presented to evaluate the various parameters in the approach. Experimental confirmation of the effectiveness of the removal is shown.