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Going Nuclear: Notes from the officially unofficial book tour
I work in the analytical labs at one of Europe’s oldest and largest nuclear sites: Sellafield, in northwestern England. I spend my days at the fume hood front, pipette in one hand and radiation probe in the other (and dosimeter pinned to my chest, of course). Outside the lab, I have a second job: I moonlight as a writer and public speaker. My new popular science book—Going Nuclear: How the Atom Will Save the World—came out last summer, and it feels like my life has been running at full power ever since.
K. Takahashi et al.
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 63 | Number 1 | May 2013 | Pages 156-159
doi.org/10.13182/FST13-A16894
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Nuclear analysis of the ITER equatorial EC launcher consisting of an unique blanket shield structure and a port plug installing millimeter (mm) wave components, neutron shields, cooling water lines, etc. has been carried out. The analysis results are used to determine heat and/or particle loads on its components and to evaluate the possibility of “hands-on maintainability” (personnel accessibility) to the launcher back-end. A significant radiation leak at the gaps between the port walls and port plug frame of the launcher was revealed. Another significant neutron leakage is through the port wall consisting of only stainless steel but without light isotopes such as water. The shut down dose rates was estimated at the port interspace behind the launcher at the same level of the required value of 100 Sv/h. This analysis offers the potential to modify the launchers shielding layout to minimize the above leakage and further reduce the shut down dose rates in the regions of personnel access.