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Fusion energy: Progress, partnerships, and the path to deployment
Over the past decade, fusion energy has moved decisively from scientific aspiration toward a credible pathway to a new energy technology. Thanks to long-term federal support, we have significantly advanced our fundamental understanding of plasma physics—the behavior of the superheated gases at the heart of fusion devices. This knowledge will enable the creation and control of fusion fuel under conditions required for future power plants. Our progress is exemplified by breakthroughs at the National Ignition Facility and the Joint European Torus.
S. Suyambazhahan, T. Sundararajan, Sarit K. Das
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 197 | Number 3 | March 2023 | Pages 413-427
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.1080/00295639.2022.2116380
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Thermal striping is associated with random fluctuations of temperature that occur at the nonisothermal jet stream interface or across thermally stratified fluid layers due to the high heat transfer coefficient of liquid sodium flow. The temperature fluctuations in the jet mixing or stratified layer regions are transmitted to the adjoining structures after minimal attenuation in a Liquid Metal Fast Breeder Reactor (LMFBR). In turn, the adjoining structure may experience high cycle fatigue and catastrophic failure caused by crack propagation. Investigations have been carried out in detail numerically, and frequency and amplitude of temperature fluctuations in 500-MW(electric) pool-type fast reactor [Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor (PFBR)] structures for practical applications have been observed. The investigations consist of numerical simulations at two levels. First, a published benchmark experiment is analyzed, and then, a suitable computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model is identified for simulating the thermal striping phenomenon numerically. After that, detailed flow and temperature fluctuations are predicted in the reactor structures by analysis carried out based on the CFD model. The values of the temperature fluctuations predicted are found to be within acceptable limits, as required by structural mechanics considerations in the study.