Saurin Majumdar

Radial-hydride Embrittlement of High-burnup Zircaloy-4 Fuel Cladding

Prestorage drying operations of high-burnup fuel may make Zircaloy-4 (Zry-4) fuel cladding more susceptible to failure, especially during fuel handling, transport, and post-storage retrieval. In particular, hydride precipitates may reorient from the circumferential to the radial direction of the cladding during drying operations if a threshold level of hoop stress at or above a corresponding threshold temperature is exceeded. This study indicates that the threshold stress is approximately 75–80 MPa for both nonirradiated and high-burnup stress-relieved Zry-4 fuel cladding cooled from 400°C and, under ring compression at both room temperature and 150°C, that radial-hydride precipitation embrittles Zry-4. Specifically, the plastic tensile hoop strain needed to initiate unstable crack propagation along radial hydrides decreases dramatically from >8% to lt;1% as radial-hydride fraction increases. Lower hydrogen contents (lr;300wppm) appear to be more susceptible to radial-hydride embrittlement compared to higher contents (>600 wppm), like that found in high-burnup Zry-4.

Prediction of structural integrity of steam generator tubes under severe accident conditions

Available models for predicting failure of flawed and unflawed steam generator tubes under normal operating and design-basis accident conditions are reviewed. These rate-independent flow stress models are inadequate for predicting failure of steam generator tubes under severe accident conditions because the temperature of the tubes during such accidents can reach as high as 800°C where creep effects become important. Therefore, a creep rupture model for predicting failure was developed and validated by tests on unflawed and flawed specimens containing axial and circumferential flaws and loaded by constant as well as ramped temperature and pressure loadings. Finally, tests were conducted using pressure and temperature histories that are calculated to occur during postulated severe accidents. In all cases, the creep rupture model predicted the failure temperature and time more accurately than the flow stress models.

High power density self-cooled lithium-vanadium blanket

A self-cooled lithium-vanadium blanket concept capable of operating with 2 MW/m{sup 2} surface heat flux and 10 MW/m{sup 2} neutron wall loading has been developed. The blanket has liquid lithium as the tritium breeder and the coolant to alleviate issues of coolant breeder compatibility and reactivity. Vanadium alloy (V-4Cr-4Ti) is used as the structural material because it can accommodate high heat loads. Also, it has good mechanical properties at high temperatures, high neutron fluence capability, low degradation under neutron irradiation, good compatibility with the blanket materials, low decay heat, low waste disposal rating, and adequate strength to accommodate the electromagnetic loads during plasma disruption events. Self-healing electrical insulator (CaO) is utilized to reduce the MHD pressure drop. A poloidal coolant flow with high velocity at the first wall is used to reduce the peak temperature of the vanadium structure and to accommodate high surface heat flux. The blanket has a simple blanket configuration and low coolant pressure to reduce the fabrication cost, to improve the blanket reliability, and to increase confidence in the blanket performance. Spectral shifter, moderator, and reflector are utilized to improve the blanket shielding capability and energy multiplication, and to reduce the radial blanket thickness. Natural lithium is used to avoid extra cost related to the lithium enrichment process.

Assessment of First Wall and Blanket Options with the Use of Liquid Breeder

Abstract As candidate blanket concepts for a U.S. advanced reactor power plant design, with consideration of the time frame for ITER development, we assessed first wall and blanket design concepts based on the use of reduced activation ferritic steel as structural material and liquid breeder as the coolant and tritium breeder. The liquid breeder choice includes the conventional molten salt Li2BeF4 and the low melting point molten salts such as LiBeF3 and LiNaBeF4 (FLiNaBe). Both self-cooled and dual coolant molten salt options were evaluated. We have also included the dual coolant leadeutectic Pb-17Li design in our assessment. We take advantage of the molten salt low electrical and thermal conductivity to minimize impacts from the MHD effect and the heat losses from the breeder to the actively cooled steel structure. For the Pb-17Li breeder we employ flow channel inserts of SiCf/SiC composite with low electrical and thermal conductivity to perform respective insulation functions. We performed preliminary assessments of these design options in the areas of neutronics, thermal-hydraulics, safety, and power conversion system. Status of the R&D items of selected high performance blanket concepts is reported. Results from this study will form the technical basis for the formulation of the U.S. ITER test module program and corresponding test plan.

Treatment of irradiation effects in structural design criteria for fusion reactors

From the standpoint of design criteria for fusion reactors, the most significant issues stem from the irradiation-induced changes in material properties, specifically the reduction of ductility, strain hardening capability, and fracture toughness with neutron irradiation. Recently, Draft 5 of the interim ITER structural design criteria (ISDC), which provide new rules for guarding against such problems, was released for trial use by the ITER designers. To account for irradiation effects under monotonic loading, the ISDC contains several new rules which provide primary and secondary stress limits as functions of uniform elongation and ductility. These new rules were derived from a simple model based on the concept of an elastic follow up factor which has been used extensively by the Japanese and French designers for analyzing creep-fatigue problems in fission reactors. Detailed analytical and finite-element analyses were conducted and the results were compared with available test data to determine the limitation of the rules as they relate to the loss of a materials ductility and strain hardening capability.

EVOLVE—an advanced first wall/blanket system

A new concept for an advanced fusion first wall and blanket has been identified. The key feature of the concept is the use of the heat of vaporization of lithium (about 10 times higher than water) as the primary means for capturing and removing the fusion power. A reasonable range of boiling temperatures of this alkali metal is 1200 to 1400 C, corresponding with a saturation pressure of 0.035 to 0.2 MPa. Calculations indicate that a evaporative system with Li at {approximately}1200 C can remove a first wall surface heat flux of >2 MW/m2 with an accompanying neutron wall load of >10 MW/m2. Work to date shows that the system provides adequate tritium breeding and shielding, very high thermal conversion efficiency, and low system pressure. Tungsten is used as the structural material, and it is expected to operate at a surface wall load of 2 MW/m2 at temperatures above 1200 C.

Failure and leakage through circumferential cracks in steam generator tubing during accident conditions

This paper derives analytical expressions for the burst pressure and crack opening area for PWR steam generator tubes with a single throughwall circumferential crack when extensive plastic deformation occurs at the crack section. The rest of the tube is assumed to respond either elastically or as an elastic-plastic material obeying power-law hardening. The tubes are assumed to be subjected to internal pressure loading only. Limited elastic-plastic finite-element analyses were conducted to validate the results.

Design standard issues for ITER in-vessel components

Abstract Design loadings and potential mechanical damage in ITER in-vessel components are enumerated. Design by analysis requirements for ITER blanket and divertor are discussed in the light of the decreasing ductility of the structural material as a function of the neutron fluence. The applicability and limitations of the ASME Boilers and Pressure Vessels Code, Section III to ITER components are discussed. The design rules from fission reactor core components are reviewed for potential application to ITER.

ITER breeding blanket design for the enhanced performance phase

Abstract The International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) breeding blanket is designed to breed the necessary tritium for ITER operation during the enhanced performance phase by replacing the shielding blanket of the basic performance phase. Similar to the shielding blanket, it has to remove the majority of the fusion power generated by the plasma and to protect the vacuum vessel and the toroidal field coils from excessive nuclear heating and radiation damage. It has to produce a net tritium breeding ratio of more than 0.8 to satisfy the technical objectives of the enhanced performance phase. For compatibility with the ITER design and to satisfy the blanket functional requirements, a water-cooled modular solid breeder blanket with a beryllium neutron multiplier has been selected. Lithium zirconate is the reference breeder material based on the current database. Enriched lithium is used to enhance the tritium breeding capability, to reduce the radial blanket thickness, to decrease the breeder material volume, to lower the breeder thermal stresses, and to enhance the shielding capability. Similar to the shielding blanket, the breeding blanket uses Type 316LN-IG austenitic steel structural material. Both forms of beryllium material, porous and pebbles, are used at different blanket locations based on design requirements. This paper is concerned with the design analyses and design selections, including beryllium form, breeder material, tritium breeding, and heat transfer across the beryllium–steel interface. Also, the required research and development tasks for the ITER breeding blanket are summarized.

Tokamak burn cycle study: a data base for comparing long pulse and steady-state power reactors

Several distinct operating modes (conventional ohmic, noninductive steady state, internal transformer, etc.) have been proposed for tokamaks. Our study focuses on capital costs and lifetime limitations of reactor subsystems in an attempt to quantify sensitivity to pulsed operation. Major problem areas considered include: thermal fatigue on first wall, limiter/divertor; thermal energy storage; fatigue and eddy current heating in toroidal field coils; electric power supply costs; and noninductive driver costs. We assume a high availability and low cost of energy will be mandatory for a commercial fusion reactor, and we characterize improvements in physics (current drive efficiency) and engineering (superior materials) which will help achieve these goals for different burn cycles.