Design and comparison study of steam generator concepts and power conversion cycles for fusion reactors

摘要

While the viability of fusion energy would be demonstrated by the ITER operation, the power extraction from the fusion reactors also needs attention in parallel as it presents its own challenges due to the specific features of tokamaks. A detailed comparison study on different steam generators being used in fission reactors and their viability in fusion reactors has been addressed with the primary and secondary fluids being considered as helium and water respectively. Based on the comparison, the shell & tube heat exchanger (STHE) and the printed circuit heat exchangers (PCHE) have been considered as the potential candidates, assuming 500 MWTh power. The comparative investigations of Brayton and Rankine power cycle along with their efficiencies are also discussed. The Rankine cycle gives 36 % and 38 % efficiency for the STHE and PCHE cases, respectively, whereas that of Brayton gas cycle efficiency is 42 % for PCHE.