ANS is committed to advancing, fostering, and promoting the development and application of nuclear sciences and technologies to benefit society.
Explore the many uses for nuclear science and its impact on energy, the environment, healthcare, food, and more.
Explore membership for yourself or for your organization.
Conference Spotlight
2026 Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
August 24–27, 2026
Dallas, TX|Hilton Anatole
Latest Magazine Issues
Jun 2026
Jan 2026
2026
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
July 2026
Nuclear Technology
June 2026
Fusion Science and Technology
May 2026
Latest News
North American construction is back—smaller and faster—at OPG’s Darlington
“The nuclear renaissance is real here,” said Ontario Power Generation’s Subo Sinnathamby on May 8, one year to the day after OPG secured a final investment decision to build the first of four planned BWRX-300 reactors at its Darlington nuclear power plant, and shortly after the new reactor’s foundation was lifted into place. “We got our license to construct in April and our [final investment decision] in May, and we’ve been off to the races since.”
Jeffrey N. Brooks
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 18 | Number 2 | September 1990 | Pages 239-250
Technical Paper | Divertor System | doi.org/10.13182/FST90-A29296
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Sputtering erosion of the proposed International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) divertor has been analyzed using the REDEP computer code. A carbon-coated plate, as well as beryllium and tungsten plates, have been examined at medium and low plasma edge temperatures. Peak net erosion rates for carbon and beryllium are very high (∼20 to 80 cm/burn · yr) though an order of magnitude less than the gross rates. Tritium buildup rates in co-deposited carbon surface layers may also be high (∼50 to 250 kg/burn · yr). Plasma contamination from divertor sputtering, however, is low (≲0.5%), Operation with low-Z divertor plates at high duty factors, therefore, appears unacceptable due to erosion, but may work for low duty factor (∼2%) “physics phase” operation. Sweeping of the poloidal field lines at the divertor can reduce erosion, typically by factors of ∼2 to 8. A tungsten-coated plate works well, from the erosion standpoint, for plasma plate temperatures of ∼40 eV or less.