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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.
S. Suzuki, Y. Ueda, K. Tokunaga, K. Sato, M. Akiba
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 44 | Number 1 | July 2003 | Pages 41-48
Technical Paper | Fusion Energy - Fusion Plenary and Overview | doi.org/10.13182/FST03-A308
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
This paper is a review of the present status of research activities on the divertor and the first wall for fusion power plants in Japan. There are several key issues as follows; 1) plasma facing materials, 2) fabrication techniques, 3) thermal hydraulics, and 4) component design. It can be said that solid surface plasma facing components are the present reference design of fusion power plants in Japan. Based on plasma conditions, it turns out that sputtering erosion of plasma facing materials could not be negligible, and some armor would be necessary. From this view point, tungsten is one of the most promising materials. This paper reviews the present engineering status on tungsten as a plasma facing material for fusion power plants.