Neutral transport and helium pumping of ITER

Following the success of the previous years work in modeling the divertor and pump duct of ITER, more 2-D variations of the geometry were introduced. These consisted of reducing the vertical height of the pump duct by 10% and 25%. These changes were folded in to the other geometrical variables. Results show that D/T recycling is basically uneffected by the reduced pump duct size. The He recycling is effected. Less helium is pumped as the pump duct is closed. The helium is still pumped more efficiently than the D/T, but the enhancement factor is reduced. Shifting the profile by 20 cm still produced more pumped helium, but this effect is also lessened as the duct is narrowed

Instabilities in extreme magnetoconvection

Thermal convection in an electrically conducting fluid (for example, a liquid metal) in the presence of a static magnetic field is considered in this chapter. The focus is on the extreme states of the flow, in which both buoyancy and Lorentz forces are very strong. It is argued that the instabilities occurring in such flows are often of unique and counter-intuitive nature due to the action of the magnetic field, which suppresses conventional turbulence and gives preference to two-dimensional instability modes not appearing in more conventional convection systems. Tools of numerical analysis suitable for such flows are discussed

Total scattering cross sections and interatomic potentials for neutral hydrogen and helium on some noble gases

Measurements of energy-dependent scattering cross sections for 30 to 1800 eV D incident on He, Ne, Ar, and Kr, and for 40 to 850 eV He incident on He, Ar, and Kr are presented. They are determined by using the charge-exchange efflux from the Princeton Large Torus tokamak as a source of D or He. These neutrals are passed through a gas-filled scattering cell and detected by a time-of-flight spectrometer. The cross section for scattering greater than the effective angle of the apparatus (approx. =20 mrad) is found by measuring the energy-dependent attenuation of D or He as a function of pressure in the scattering cell. The interatomic potential is extracted from the data

Nanostructuring of Palladium with Low-Temperature Helium Plasma

Impingement of high fluxes of helium ions upon metals at elevated temperatures has given rise to the growth of nanostructured layers on the surface of several metals, such as tungsten and molybdenum. These nanostructured layers grow from the bulk material and have greatly increased surface area over that of a not nanostructured surface. They are also superior to deposited nanostructures due to a lack of worries over adhesion and differences in material properties. Several palladium samples of varying thickness were biased and exposed to a helium helicon plasma. The nanostructures were characterized as a function of the thickness of the palladium layer and of temperature. Bubbles of ~100 nm in diameter appear to be integral to the nanostructuring process. Nanostructured palladium is also shown to have better catalytic activity than not nanostructured palladium

Modeling and analysis of surface roughness effects on sputtering, reflection, and sputtered particle transport

The microstructure of the redeposited surface in tokamaks may affect sputtering and reflection properties and subsequent particle transport. This subject has been studied numerically using coupled models/codes for near-surface plasma particle kinetic transport (WBC code) and rough surface sputtering (fractal-TRIM). The coupled codes provide an overall Monte Carlo calculation of the sputtering cascade resulting from an initial flux of hydrogen ions. Beryllium, carbon, and tungsten surfaces are analyzed for typical high recycling, oblique magnetic field, divertor conditions. Significant variations in computed sputtering rates are found with surface roughness. Beryllium exhibits high D-T and self-sputtering coefficients for the plasma regime studied (T{sub e} = 30-75 eV). Carbon and tungsten sputtering is significantly lower. 9 refs., 6 figs., 1 tab

Performance of the lithium metal infused trenches in the magnum PSI linear plasma simulator

The application of liquid metal, especially liquid lithium, as a plasma facing component (PFC) has the capacity to offer a strong alternative to solid PFCs by reducing damage concerns and enhancing plasma performance. The liquid-metal infused trenches (LiMIT) concept is a liquid metal divertor alternative which employs thermoelectric current from either plasma or external heating in tandem with the toroidal field to self-propel liquid lithium through a series of trenches. LiMIT was tested in the linear plasma simulator, Magnum PSI, at heat fluxes of up to 3 MW m-2. Results of these experiments, including velocity and temperature measurements, as well as power handling considerations are discussed, focusing on the 80 shots performed at Magnum scanning magnetic fields and heat fluxes up to ∼0.3 T and 3 MW m-2. Comparisons to predictions, both analytical and modelled, are made and show good agreement. Concerns over MHD droplet ejection are additionally addressed