572 research outputs found

    Corporate governance and stock market performance in Central and Eastern Europe: a study of nine countries, 1994-2001

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    This paper offers analysis of corporate governance issues behind the stock market performance (stock returns and activity) in nine Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries: the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia. Over the period June 1994 - June 2001, on average the CEE stock markets have had lower returns and higher risk than developed markets. This is explained by the negative influence of the two crisis years (1995 and 1998), the 'flight to quality' effect. Among other reasons, there are cases when prices have been artificially kept down by the controlling owners in order to abuse the minority shareholders. The evidence shows that the enforcement of law matters more than the quality of law on the books, which is in line with previous research (Pistor et al, 2000). I find that the effectiveness (enforcement) of financial regulations has the highest explanatory power of stock market returns in the sample countries. The protection of minority shareholders (Legal index) has a significant impact on market activity, measured by market turnover to market capitalization ratio

    Structure, tritium depth profile and desorption from 'plasma-facing' beryllium materials of ITER-Like-Wall at JET

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    Tritium depth profile and its temperature programmed desorption rate were determined for selected samples cut out of beryllium tiles removed from the Joint European Torus vacuum vessel during the 2012 shut down. A beryllium dissolution method under controlled conditions was used to determine the tritium depth profile in the samples, whereas temperature programmed desorption experiments were performed to assess tritium release pattern. Released tritium was measured using a proportional gas flow detector. Prior to desorption and dissolution experiments, the plasma-facing surfaces of the samples were studied by scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. Experimental results revealed that > 95% of the tritium was localized in the top 30 –45 μm of the ‘plasma-facing’ surface, however, possible tritium presence up to 100 μm cannot be excluded. During tem- perature programmed desorption at 4.8 K/min in the flow of purge gas He + 0.1% H 2 the tritium release started below 475 K, the most intense release occurred at 725 –915 K and the degree of detritiation of > 91% can be obtained upon reaching 1075 K. The total tritium activity in the samples was in range of 2 –32 kilo Becquerel per square centimetre of the plasma-facing surface area.EURATOM 63305

    Tritium in plasma-facing components of JET with the ITER-Like-Wall

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    Publisher Copyright: © 2021 Institute of Physics Publishing. All rights reserved.The ITER-Like-Wall project has been carried out at the Joint European Torus (JET) to test plasma facing materials relevant to ITER. Materials being tested include both bulk metals (Be andW) and coatings. Tritium accumulation mechanisms and release properties depend both on the wall components, their location in the vacuum vessel, conditions of exposure to plasma and to the material itself. In this study, bulk beryllium limiter tiles, plasma-facing beryllium coated Inconel components from the main chamber, bulk tungsten and tungsten coated carbon fibre composite divertor tiles were analysed. A range of methods have been developed and applied in order to obtain a comprehensive overview on tritium retention and behaviour in different materials of plasma facing components (PFCs). Tritium content and chemical state were studied by the means of chemical or electrochemical dissolution methods and thermal desorption spectroscopy. Tritium distribution in the vacuum vessel and factors affecting its accumulation have been assessed and discussed.publishersversionPeer reviewe

    Beryllium melting and erosion on the upper dump plates in JET during three ITER-like wall campaigns

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    Data on erosion and melting of beryllium upper limiter tiles, so-called dump plates (DP), are presented for all three campaigns in the JET tokamak with the ITER-like wall. High-resolution images of the upper wall of JET show clear signs of flash melting on the ridge of the roofshaped tiles. The melt layers move in the poloidal direction from the inboard to the outboard tile, ending on the last DP tile with an upward going waterfall-like melt structure. Melting was caused mainly by unmitigated plasma disruptions. During three ILW campaigns, around 15% of all 12376 plasma pulses were catalogued as disruptions. Thermocouple data from the upper dump plates tiles showed a reduction in energy delivered by disruptions with fewer extreme events in the third campaign, ILW-3, in comparison to ILW-1 and ILW-2. The total Be erosion assessed via precision weighing of tiles retrieved from JET during shutdowns indicated the increasing mass loss across campaigns of up to 0.6 g from a single tile. The mass of splashed melted Be on the upper walls was also estimated using the high-resolution images of wall components taken after each campaign. The results agree with the total material loss estimated by tile weighing (similar to 130 g). Morphological and structural analysis performed on Be melt layers revealed a multilayer structure of re-solidified material composed mainly of Be and BeO with some heavy metal impurities Ni, Fe, W. IBA analysis performed across the affected tile ridge in both poloidal and toroidal direction revealed a low D concentration, in the range 1-4 x 10(17) D atoms cm(-2).Peer reviewe

    Comparison of the structure of the plasma-facing surface and tritium accumulation in beryllium tiles from JET ILW campaigns 2011-2012 and 2013-2014

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    In this study, beryllium tiles from Joint European Torus (JET) vacuum vessel wall were analysed and compared regarding their position in the vacuum vessel and differences in the exploitation conditions during two campaigns of ITER-Like-Wall (ILW) in 2011-2012 (ILW1) and 2013-2014 (ILW2) Tritium content in beryllium samples were assessed. Two methods were used to measure tritium content in the samples - dissolution under controlled conditions and tritium thermal desorption. Prior to desorption and dissolution experiments, scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy were used to study structure and chemical composition of plasma-facing-surfaces of the beryllium samples. Experimental results revealed that tritium content in the samples is in range of 2.10(11)-2.10(13) tritium atoms per square centimetre of the surface area with its highest content in the samples from the outer wall of the vacuum vessel (up to 1.9.10(13) atoms/cm(2) in ILW1 campaign and 2.4.10(13) atoms/cm(2) in ILW2). The lowest content of tritium was found in the upper part of the vacuum vessel (2.0.10(12) atoms/cm(2) and 2.0.10(11) atoms/cm(2) in ILW1 and ILW2, respectively). Results obtained from scanning electron microscopy has shown that surface morphology is different within single tile, however if to compare two campaigns main tendencies remains similar.Peer reviewe

    Modelling of the effect of ELMs on fuel retention at the bulk W divertor of JET

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    Effect of ELMs on fuel retention at the bulk W target of JET ITER-Like Wall was studied with multi-scale calculations. Plasma input parameters were taken from ELMy H-mode plasma experiment. The energetic intra-ELM fuel particles get implanted and create near-surface defects up to depths of few tens of nm, which act as the main fuel trapping sites during ELMs. Clustering of implantation-induced vacancies were found to take place. The incoming flux of inter-ELM plasma particles increases the different filling levels of trapped fuel in defects. The temperature increase of the W target during the pulse increases the fuel detrapping rate. The inter-ELM fuel particle flux refills the partially emptied trapping sites and fills new sites. This leads to a competing effect on the retention and release rates of the implanted particles. At high temperatures the main retention appeared in larger vacancy clusters due to increased clustering rate

    Comparison of the structure of the plasma-facing surface and tritium accumulation in beryllium tiles from JET ILW campaigns 2011-2012 and 2013-2014

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    In this study, beryllium tiles from Joint European Torus (JET) vacuum vessel wall were analysed and compared regarding their position in the vacuum vessel and differences in the exploitation conditions during two campaigns of ITER-Like-Wall (ILW) in 2011–2012 (ILW1) and 2013–2014 (ILW2) Tritium content in beryllium samples were assessed. Two methods were used to measure tritium content in the samples – dissolution under controlled conditions and tritium thermal desorption. Prior to desorption and dissolution experiments, scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy were used to study structure and chemical composition of plasma-facing-surfaces of the beryllium samples. Experimental results revealed that tritium content in the samples is in range of 2·1011^{11}–2·1013^{13} tritium atoms per square centimetre of the surface area with its highest content in the samples from the outer wall of the vacuum vessel (up to 1.9·1013^{13} atoms/cm2^{2} in ILW1 campaign and 2.4·1013^{13} atoms/cm2^{2} in ILW2). The lowest content of tritium was found in the upper part of the vacuum vessel (2.0·1012^{12} atoms/cm2^{2} and 2.0·1011^{11} atoms/cm2^{2} in ILW1 and ILW2, respectively). Results obtained from scanning electron microscopy has shown that surface morphology is different within single tile, however if to compare two campaigns main tendencies remains similar

    Overview of the JET ITER-like wall divertor

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    On the mechanisms governing gas penetration into a tokamak plasma during a massive gas injection

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    A new 1D radial fluid code, IMAGINE, is used to simulate the penetration of gas into a tokamak plasma during a massive gas injection (MGI). The main result is that the gas is in general strongly braked as it reaches the plasma, due to mechanisms related to charge exchange and (to a smaller extent) recombination. As a result, only a fraction of the gas penetrates into the plasma. Also, a shock wave is created in the gas which propagates away from the plasma, braking and compressing the incoming gas. Simulation results are quantitatively consistent, at least in terms of orders of magnitude, with experimental data for a D 2 MGI into a JET Ohmic plasma. Simulations of MGI into the background plasma surrounding a runaway electron beam show that if the background electron density is too high, the gas may not penetrate, suggesting a possible explanation for the recent results of Reux et al in JET (2015 Nucl. Fusion 55 093013)
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