Plasma disruption modeling and simulation
Disruptions in tokamak reactors are considered a limiting factor to successful operation and a reliable design. The behavior of plasma-facing components during a disruption is critical to the overall integrity of the reactor. Erosion of plasma facing-material (PFM) surfaces due to thermal energy dump during the disruption can severely limit the lifetime of these components and thus diminish the economic feasibility of the reactor.Initially, the incident plasma particles will deposit their energy directly on the PFM surface, heating it to a very high temperature where ablation occurs. Models for plasma-material interactions have been developed and used to predict material thermal evolution during the disruption. Within a few microseconds after the start of the disruption, enough material is vaporized to intercept most of the incoming plasma particles. Models for plasma-vapor interactions are necessary to predict vapor cloud expansion and hydrodynamics. Continuous heating of the vapor cloud above the material surface by the incident plasma particles will excite, ionize, and cause vapor atoms to emit thermal radiation. Accurate models for radiation transport in the vapor are essential for calculating the net radiated flux to the material surface which determines the final erosion thickness and consequently component lifetime. A comprehensive model that takes into account various stages of plasma-material interaction has been developed and used to predict erosion rates during reactor disruption, as well during induced disruption in laboratory experiments. Differences between various simulation experiments and reactor conditions are discussed. A two-dimensional radiation transport model has been developed to particularly simulate the effect of small test samples used in laboratory disruption experiments.
- Research Organization:
- Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- W-31109-ENG-38
- OSTI ID:
- 10167465
- Report Number(s):
- ANL/TD/CP-82096; CONF-940630-34; ON: DE94015095; TRN: 94:014633
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: 11. topical meeting on the technology of fusion energy,New Orleans, LA (United States),19-24 Jun 1994; Other Information: PBD: Jul 1994
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
PLASMA DISRUPTION
PLASMA SIMULATION
TOKAMAK TYPE REACTORS
THERMONUCLEAR REACTOR MATERIALS
EROSION
ENERGY DEPOSITION
EVAPORATION
RADIATION TRANSPORT
CARBON
BERYLLIUM
ABLATION
THEORETICAL DATA
700310
700480
PLASMA CONFINEMENT
COMPONENT DEVELOPMENT
MATERIALS STUDIES