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Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
WIPP: Lessons in transportation safety
As part of a future consent-based approach by the federal government to site new deep geologic repositories for nuclear waste, local communities and states that are considering hosting such facilities are sure to have many questions. Currently, the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant in New Mexico is the only example of such a repository in operation, and it offers the opportunity for state and local officials to visit and judge for themselves the risks and benefits of hosting a similar facility. But its history can also provide lessons for these officials, particularly the political process leading up to the opening of WIPP, the safety of WIPP operations and transportation of waste from generator facilities to the site, and the economic impacts the project has had on the local area of Carlsbad, as well as the rest of the state of New Mexico.
Hong Ran, Binbin Song, Jilai Hou, Dangshen Zhang, Yuncong Huang, Le Tang, Qinwei Yang, Zen Cao, Xiaoqiang Wu
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 77 | Number 7 | October-November 2021 | Pages 549-556
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.1080/15361055.2021.1884490
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The HL-2M tokamak is an upgraded device of the HL-2A tokamak. As one of the main components of the HL-2M, the vacuum vessel (VV) is required to have a reliable structure and be manufactured with well-established methods. The HL-2M VV is designed with a D-shaped cross section, double-thin-wall structure that consists of the inner shell, outer shell, ribs, and ports. The whole torus is welded with 20 sectors. Inconel 625 has been selected as the main material of the VV because of its good mechanical properties and high resistivity. The structural analysis is performed using ANSYS. The results show that the VV can meet the design requirements. The manufacturing process of the VV is described in detail. The VV was completed in March 2019, and the HL-2M device achieved its first plasma discharge in December 2020.
