Nuclear performances of the water-cooled lithium lead DEMO reactor: Neutronic analysis on a fully heterogeneous model

Abstract The development of a conceptual design for the Demonstration Fusion Power Reactor (DEMO) is a key issue within the EUROfusion roadmap. The DEMO reactor is designed to produce a fusion power of about 2 GW and generate a substantial amount of electricity, relying on a closed tritium fuel cycle: it implies that the breeding blanket (BB) shall guarantee a suitable tritium production to enable a continuous operation without any external supply. The Water-Cooled Lithium Lead (WCLL) concept is a candidate for the DEMO BB: it uses liquid Lithium Lead as breeder and neutron multiplier and water in PWR condition as coolant. The neutronics analyses carried out in the past have been performed using a semi-heterogeneous representation of the BB, since the complexity of its structure makes the generation of a detailed MCNP model a very demanding and challenging task. Results highlighted good performances for the WCLL BB, both in terms of shielding effectiveness and tritium self-sufficiency. A recently updated assessment of the tritium breeding ratio (TBR) requirement for DEMO, considering margins for calculation uncertainties and incomplete models of the whole machine, led to the definition of a tentative 1.15 value for the TBR. Moreover, the implementation of an accurate BB neutronics model, consistent with the engineering design, is recommended for the evaluation of the tritium self-sufficiency. In order to tackle these issues, an MCNP model of the DEMO tokamak, integrating a fully heterogeneous WCLL BB has been developed for the first time, including an accurate description of the FW water channels, as well as a comprehensive definition of the breeding zone inner structure. A complete assessment of the WCLL BB nuclear performances, through 3D neutron and gamma transport simulations, has been carried out by means the MCNP Monte Carlo code and JEFF nuclear libraries.