Neutronics analysis for aqueous self-cooled fusion reactor blankets.

摘要

The tritium breeding performance of several Aqueous Self-Cooled Blanket (ASCB) configurations for fusion reactors has been evaluated. The ASCB concept employs small amounts of lithium compound dissolved in light or heavy water to serve as both coolant and breeding medium. The inherent simplicity of this concept allows the development of blankets with minimal technological risk. The tritium breeding performance of the ASCB concept is a critical issue for this family of blankets. Contrary to conventional blanket designs there will be a significant contribution to the tritium breeding ratio (TBR) in the water coolant/breeder of duct shields, and the 3-D TBR will therefore be similar to the 1-D TBR. The tritium breeding performance of an ASCB for a MARS-like-tandem reactor and an ASCB based breeding-shield for the Next European Torus (NET) are assessed. Two design options for the MARS-like blanket are discussed. One design employs a vanadium first wall, and zircaloy for the structural material. The trade-offs between light water and heavy water cooling options for this zircaloy blanket are discussed. The second design option for MARS relies on the use of a vanadium alloy as the stuctural material, and heavy water as the coolant. It is demonstrated that both design options lead to low-activation blankets that allow class C burial. The breeder-shield for NET consists of a water-cooled stainless steel shield. (Atomindex citation 20:050465)