36,265 research outputs found
EU DEMO Remote Maintenance System development during the Pre-Concept Design Phase
During the EU DEMO Pre-Concept Design Phase, the remote maintenance team developed maintenance strategies and systems to meet the evolving plant maintenance requirements. These were constrained by the proposed tokamak architecture and the challenging environments but considered a range of port layouts and handling system designs. The design-driving requirements were to have short maintenance durations and to demonstrate power plant relevant technologies. Work concentrated on the in-vessel maintenance systems, where the design constraints are the most challenging and the potential impact on the plant design is highest. A robust blanket handling system design was not identified during the Pre-Concept Design Phase. Novel enabling technologies were identified and, where these were critical to the maintenance strategy and not being pursued elsewhere, proof-of-principle designs were developed and tested. Technology development focused on pipe joining systems such as laser bore cutting and welding, pipe alignment, and on the control systems for handling massive blankets. Maintenance studies were also conducted on the ex-vessel plant to identify the additional transport volumes required to support the plant layout. The strategic implications of using vessel casks, and of using containment cells with cell casks, was explored. This was motivated by the costs associated with the storage of casks, one of several ex-vessel systems that can drive the overall plant layout.
This paper introduces the remote maintenance system designs, describes the main developments and achievements, and presents conclusions, lessons learned and recommendations for future work
Diagnostic systems in DEMO: engineering design issues
The diagnostic systems of DEMO that are mounted on or near the torus, whether
intended for the monitoring and control functions of the engineering aspects or
the physics behaviour of the machine, will have to be designed to suit the
hostile nuclear environment. This will be necessary not just for their survival
and correct functioning but also to satisfy the pertinent regulatory bodies,
especially where any of them relate to machine protection or the prevention or
mitigation of accidents foreseen in the safety case. This paper aims to
indicate the more important of the reactor design considerations that are
likely to apply to diagnostics for DEMO, drawn from experience on JET, the
provisions in hand for ITER and modelling results for the wall erosion and
neutron damage effects in DEMO.Comment: 8 page
Electrical Loads and Power Systems for the DEMO Nuclear Fusion Project
EU-DEMO is a European project, having the ambitious goal to be the first demonstrative
power plant based on nuclear fusion. The electrical power that is expected to be produced is in the
order of 700–800 MW, to be delivered via a connection to the European High Voltage electrical grid.
The initiation and control of fusion processes, besides the problems related to the nuclear physics,
need very complex electrical systems. Moreover, also the conversion of the output power is not
trivial, especially because of the inherent discontinuity in the EU-DEMO operations. The present
article concerns preliminary studies for the feasibility and realization of the nuclear fusion power
plant EU-DEMO, with a special focus on the power electrical systems. In particular, the first stage of
the study deals with the survey and analysis of the electrical loads, starting from the steady-state
loads. Their impact is so relevant that could jeopardy the efficiency and the convenience of the plant
itself. Afterwards, the loads are inserted into a preliminary internal distribution grid, sizing the main
electrical components to carry out the power flow analysis, which is based on simulation models
implemented in the DIgSILENT PowerFactory software
IFE Plant Technology Overview and contribution to HiPER proposal
HiPER is the European Project for Laser Fusion that has been able to join 26 institutions and signed under formal government agreement by 6 countries inside the ESFRI Program of the European Union (EU). The project is already extended by EU for two years more (until 2013) after its first preparatory phase from 2008. A large work has been developed in different areas to arrive to a design of repetitive operation of Laser Fusion Reactor, and decisions are envisioned in the next phase of Technology Development or Risk Reduction for Engineering or Power Plant facilities (or both). Chamber design has been very much completed for Engineering phase and starting of preliminary options for Reactor Power Plant have been established and review here
Commercial objectives, technology transfer, and systems analysis for fusion power development
Fusion is an inexhaustible source of energy that has the potential for economic commercial applications with excellent safety and environmental characteristics. The primary focus for the fusion energy development program is the generation of central station electricity. Fusion has the potential, however, for many other applications. The fact that a large fraction of the energy released in a DT fusion reaction is carried by high energy neutrons suggests potentially unique applications. In addition, fusion R and D will lead to new products and new markets. Each fusion application must meet certain standards of economic and safety and environmental attractiveness. For this reason, economics on the one hand, and safety and environment and licensing on the other, are the two primary criteria for setting long range commercial fusion objectives. A major function of systems analysis is to evaluate the potential of fusion against these objectives and to help guide the fusion R and D program toward practical applications. The transfer of fusion technology and skills from the national labs and universities to industry is the key to achieving the long range objective of commercial fusion applications
Laser cutting and welding tools for use in-bore on EU-DEMO service pipes
Replacement of blanket modules and divertor cassettes in the EU-DEMO will require rapid removal of hundreds of service pipes during maintenance downtime. Duration analysis of conventional joining processes, estimates cutting and welding would account for ∼60% of EU-DEMO remote maintenance. To minimize duration, laser cutting and welding tools have been developed for use within these pipes. The tools consist of a mechanical system to position the tool and the pipe correctly, and a miniaturized laser optics package to apply the process around the entire pipe circumference. Prototypes of the optics for the cutting and welding tools were produced, and the laser processing performances were assessed. Here, we will present the concept and prototype designs of the laser cutting and welding tools, the results of the prototype tool trials, and how the tools fit within the overall remote maintenance strategy for EU-DEMO, these results highlight the duration reduction of a laser process compared to conventional techniques, and the feasibility of a such a design for further development
Conceptual design study for heat exhaust management in the ARC fusion pilot plant
The ARC pilot plant conceptual design study has been extended beyond its
initial scope [B. N. Sorbom et al., FED 100 (2015) 378] to explore options for
managing ~525 MW of fusion power generated in a compact, high field (B_0 = 9.2
T) tokamak that is approximately the size of JET (R_0 = 3.3 m). Taking
advantage of ARC's novel design - demountable high temperature superconductor
toroidal field (TF) magnets, poloidal magnetic field coils located inside the
TF, and vacuum vessel (VV) immersed in molten salt FLiBe blanket - this
follow-on study has identified innovative and potentially robust power exhaust
management solutions.Comment: Accepted by Fusion Engineering and Desig
Conceptual design of the EU-DEMO dual coolant lithium lead equatorial module
© 20xx IEEE. Personal use of this material is permitted. Permission from IEEE must be obtained for all other uses, in any current or future media, including reprinting/republishing this material for advertising or promotional purposes, creating new collective works, for resale or redistribution to servers or lists, or reuse of any copyrighted component of this work in other works.Within the framework of EUROfusion Program, the Dual Coolant Lithium Lead (DCLL) is one of the four EU breeder blanket concepts that are being investigated as candidates for DEMO. DCLL uses PbLi as the main coolant, tritium breeder, tritium carrier, and neutron multiplier. The main structures, including the first wall, are cooled with helium. The EU program proposed for the next years will consider a DCLL version limited to 550 °C in order to allow the use of conventional materials and technologies. During the first year of EUROfusion activities, a draft design of the DCLL has been proposed. The main blanket performances were adapted to the new specifications and the CAD model of DEMO. The breeder zone has been toroidally divided into four parallel PbLi circuits, separated through stiffening grid radial walls. The PbLi flow routing has been designed to maximize the amount of thermal power extracted by flowing PbLi and to avoid the occurrence of reverse flows due to volumetric heating. Thermal hydraulics, magnetohydrodynamic and neutronics calculations have been performed for the first draft design. The new DCLL design employs Eurofer-alumina-Eurofer sandwich as flow channel insert (FCI).Postprint (published version
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