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Conference Spotlight
2026 Annual Conference
May 31–June 3, 2026
Denver, CO|Sheraton Denver
Standards Program
The Standards Committee is responsible for the development and maintenance of voluntary consensus standards that address the design, analysis, and operation of components, systems, and facilities related to the application of nuclear science and technology. Find out What’s New, check out the Standards Store, or Get Involved today!
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Fusion Science and Technology
November 2025
Latest News
What’s the most difficult question you’ve been asked as a maintenance instructor?
Blye Widmar
"Where are the prints?!"
This was the final question in an onslaught of verbal feedback, comments, and critiques I received from my students back in 2019. I had two years of instructor experience and was teaching a class that had been meticulously rehearsed in preparation for an accreditation visit. I knew the training material well and transferred that knowledge effectively enough for all the students to pass the class. As we wrapped up, I asked the students how they felt about my first big system-level class, and they did not hold back.
“Why was the exam from memory when we don’t work from memory in the plant?” “Why didn’t we refer to the vendor documents?” “Why didn’t we practice more on the mock-up?” And so on.
Kedar Bhope, Mayur Mehta, Samir Khirwadkar, Sunil Belsare, Rajamannar Swamy, Tusharkumar Patel, Premjit singh Kongkham, Srikanta Sahu, Nikunj Patel, Prakash Mokariya
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 81 | Number 7 | October 2025 | Pages 671-690
Research Article | doi.org/10.1080/15361055.2025.2495495
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Plasma-facing components (PFCs) with tungsten armor material are expected to withstand the extreme incident heat flux conditions in a nuclear fusion tokomak. In situ measurements of thermal-mechanical behavior under high heat flux (HHF) conditions are important and essential. With this aim, a novel three-dimensional (3D) (stereo) digital image correlation (DIC) diagnostics with an optical mirror adapter in a single optical view port is established for in situ measurements of a full-field strain and deformation profile on PFCs during heat flux testing in the High Heat Flux Test Facility (HHFTF) at the Institute for Plasma Research. In the present work, the thermally induced field deformations of a reflector divertor mock-up under the heat flux conditions of 200 hHF cycles at 5 MW/m2 and 1000 hHF cycles at 7 MW/m2 are measured using the developed 3D-DIC diagnostics. Calibration and validation qualification tests are conducted on the experimental platform as well as numerical COMSOL simulation to ensure the performance and the accuracy of the 3D-DIC diagnostics system. Because of periodic thermal stress, the thermomechanical behavior cases of bonded and de-bonded W-Cu tile interface are captured in situ by measured strain curves and compared with pre-ultrasonic and post-ultrasonic test analyses. Full-field strain and displacement profiles on the reflector divertor mock-up during heat flux testing are also obtained. The 3D-DIC diagnostics results demonstrate the feasibility and accuracy for in situ strain and displacement measurements of PFCs during HHF tests in HHFTF.
