MHD thermohydraulics analysis and supporting R&D for DCLL blanket in the FNSF

Abstract A Fusion Nuclear Science Facility (FNSF) has been recognized in the fusion community as a necessary facility to resolve the critical technology issues of in-vessel components prior to the construction of a DEMO reactor (Abdou et al., 1996) [1] . Among these components, development of a reliable, low-cost and safe blanket system that provides self-sufficient tritium breeding and efficient conversion of the extracted fusion energy to electricity, while meeting all material, design and configuration limitations is among the most important but still challenging goals. In the recent FNSF study in the US (Kesel et al., 2015) [2], a Dual-Coolant Lead-Lithium (DCLL) blanket has been selected as the main breeding blanket concept. This paper summarizes the most important details of the proposed DCLL blanket design, presents the MHD thermohydraulic analysis for the PbLi flows in the blanket conduits and introduces supporting R&D studies, which are presently ongoing at UCLA. We also discuss the required pre-FNSF R&D in the area of MHD Thermofluids to support the further work on the DCLL blanket design & analysis and its integration into the fusion facility.

[1]  S. Zheng,et al.  Preliminary neutronics design of the dual-cooled lithium lead blanket for FDS-II , 2005 .

[2]  Mark S. Tillack,et al.  High performance PbLi blanket , 1997, 17th IEEE/NPSS Symposium Fusion Engineering (Cat. No.97CH36131).

[3]  Mohamed A. Abdou,et al.  EXPERIMENTAL STUDY OF MHD FLOWS IN A PROTOTYPIC INLET MANIFOLD SECTION OF THE DCLL TEST BLANKET MODULE , 2009 .

[4]  I. Palermo,et al.  Conceptual Design of the EU-DEMO Dual Coolant Lithium Lead Equatorial Module , 2016, IEEE Transactions on Plasma Science.

[5]  Neil B. Morley,et al.  Numerical analysis of MHD flow and heat transfer in a poloidal channel of the DCLL blanket with a SiCf/SiC flow channel insert , 2006 .

[6]  Steven J. Zinkle,et al.  An overview of dual coolant Pb–17Li breeder first wall and blanket concept development for the US ITER-TBM design , 2006 .

[7]  David Ward,et al.  Conceptual design of the dual-coolant blanket within the framework of the EU power plant conceptual study (TW2-TRP-PPCS12). Final report , 2003 .

[8]  George S. Dulikravich,et al.  Magnetofluiddynamics in Channels and Containers , 2001 .

[9]  Sergey Smolentsev,et al.  Development Status of a SiC-Foam Based Flow Channel Insert for a U.S.-ITER DCLL TBM , 2009 .

[10]  Neil B. Morley,et al.  The Fusion Nuclear Science Facility, the Critical Step in the Pathway to Fusion Energy , 2015 .

[11]  Yunqing Bai,et al.  Preliminary thermal-hydraulics design of the dual-cooled lithium lead blanket for FDS-II , 2005 .

[12]  T. Sketchley,et al.  Construction and initial operation of MHD PbLi facility at UCLA , 2013 .

[13]  U. Fischer,et al.  Conceptual design of the dual-coolant blanket in the frame of the EU power plant conceptual study , 2003 .

[14]  Alice Ying,et al.  Blanket/first wall challenges and required R&D on the pathway to DEMO , 2015 .

[15]  Neil B. Morley,et al.  Dual-coolant lead–lithium (DCLL) blanket status and R&D needs , 2015 .

[16]  Mark S. Tillack,et al.  Design and material issues for high performance SiCf/SiC-based fusion power cores , 2001 .

[17]  Qunying Huang,et al.  An approach to verification and validation of MHD codes for fusion applications , 2015 .

[18]  Alice Ying,et al.  Results of an International Study on a High-Volume Plasma-Based Neutron Source for Fusion Blanket Development , 1996 .

[19]  Neil B. Morley,et al.  MHD and heat transfer considerations for the US DCLL blanket for DEMO and ITER TBM , 2008 .

[20]  Neil B. Morley,et al.  Code development for analysis of MHD pressure drop reduction in a liquid metal blanket using insulation technique based on a fully developed flow model , 2005 .

[21]  Mohamed A. Abdou,et al.  MHD considerations for the DCLL inboard blanket and access ducts , 2010 .

[22]  Ramakanth Munipalli,et al.  Review of recent MHD activities for liquid metal blankets in the US , 2017 .

[23]  A. R. Raffray,et al.  Engineering Design and Analysis of the ARIES-CS Power Plant , 2008 .

[24]  Yican Wu,et al.  Design status and development strategy of China liquid lithium-lead blankets and related material technology , 2007 .

[25]  S. Malang,et al.  R&D Needs and Approach to Measure Progress for Liquid Metal Blankets and Systems on the Pathway from Present Experimental Facilities to FNSF , 2015 .

[26]  Mark S. Tillack,et al.  Fusion power core engineering for the ARIES-ST power plant , 2003 .

[27]  Mark S. Tillack,et al.  Multiphysics modeling of the FW/Blanket of the U.S. fusion nuclear science facility (FNSF) , 2017, Fusion engineering and design.

[28]  Mohamed A. Abdou,et al.  Effect of a magnetic field on stability and transitions in liquid breeder flows in a blanket , 2013 .

[29]  Mark S. Tillack,et al.  Development of the Lead Lithium (DCLL) Blanket Concept , 2011 .

[30]  Arkady Tsinober,et al.  Turbulent transport of momentum and heat in magnetohydrodynamic rectangular duct flow with strong sidewall jets , 2000, Journal of Fluid Mechanics.

[31]  Alice Ying,et al.  An overview of the US DCLL ITER-TBM program , 2010 .