Design of the Test Section for the Experimental Validation of Antipermeation and Corrosion Barriers for WCLL BB

Tritium permeation into the Primary Heat Transfer System (PHTS) of DEMO and ITER reactors is one of the challenging issues to be solved in order to demonstrate the feasibility of nuclear fusion power plants construction. Several technologies were investigated as antipermeation and corrosion barriers...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Marco Utili, Ciro Alberghi, Luigi Candido, Fabio Di Fonzo, Francesca Papa, Alessandro Venturini
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2022-02-01
Series:Applied Sciences
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/12/3/1624
Description
Summary:Tritium permeation into the Primary Heat Transfer System (PHTS) of DEMO and ITER reactors is one of the challenging issues to be solved in order to demonstrate the feasibility of nuclear fusion power plants construction. Several technologies were investigated as antipermeation and corrosion barriers to reduce the tritium permeation flux from the breeder into the PHTS. Within this frame, alumina coating manufactured by Pulsed Laser Deposition (PLD) and Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD) are two of the main candidates for the Water Cooled Lithium Lead (WCLL) Breeder Blanket (BB). In order to validate the performance of the coatings on relevant WCLL BB geometries, a mock-up was designed and will be characterized in an experimental facility operating with flowing lithium-lead, called TRIEX-II. The present work aims to illustrate the preliminary engineering design of a WCLL BB mock-up in order to deeply investigate permeation of hydrogen isotopes through PHTS water pipes. The permeation tests are planned in the temperature range between 330 and 500 °C, with hydrogen and deuterium partial pressure in the range of 1–1000 Pa. The hydrogen isotopes transport analysis carried out for the design and integration of the mock-up in TRIEX-II facility is also shown.
ISSN:2076-3417