Contribution of activation products to fusion accident risk: part 1. A preliminary investigation

Journal Article · Thu Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1981 · Nucl. Technol./Fusion; (United States)

OSTI ID:5463947

Holdren, J P

Release of neutron-activation products in severe hypothetical fusion-reactor accidents may constitute a larger health hazard than that of the tritium released at the same time. Significant escape of activation products could result from lithium fires hot enough to melt and partly vaporize activated first-wall materials, or from other accident sequences that bring air into contact with activated structure hot enough to cause the formation of volatile metal oxides. Analysis of three combinations of structural materials and severe accident scenarios has been undertaken for an early conceptual tokamak reactor, using a simple consequence model based on that of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's Reactor Safety Study (the Rasmussen report) to determine conceivable radiation doses near the plant boundary. No attempt was made to estimate probabilities for such severe events. In the cases of stainless-steel and molybdenum structures subject to massive lithium fires, the boundary doses far exceed those that would be produced by release of the entire plant inventory of tritium and are comparable to the doses similarly calculated for ''worst case'' light water reactor accidents. The case of niobium fusion reactor structure is more favorable. These results, based on an early fusion-reactor design not optimized with respect to safety characteristics, may well portray a worst case picture of fusion accident consequences. They suggest, however, that the large potential safety advantages of fusion compared to fission are not necessarily inherent for all designs and choices of materials, and they motivate attention to the several available strategies for greatly reducing the potential for activation-product release from fusion reactors.

• Research Organization: University of California, Berkeley Energy and Resources Program, Berkeley, California 94720
• OSTI ID: 5463947
• Journal Information: Nucl. Technol./Fusion; (United States), Journal Name: Nucl. Technol./Fusion; (United States) Vol. 1:1; ISSN NTFUD
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY
700200* -- Fusion Energy-- Fusion Power Plant Technology
ACCIDENTS
ACTIVATION ANALYSIS
ALKALI METALS
ALLOYS
BARYON REACTIONS
CHEMICAL ANALYSIS
CHROMIUM ALLOYS
CORROSION RESISTANT ALLOYS
DOSES
ELEMENTS
FIRES
FIRST WALL
FUSION REACTIONS
HADRON REACTIONS
HAZARDS
IRON ALLOYS
IRON BASE ALLOYS
LITHIUM
MATERIALS TESTING
METALS
MOLYBDENUM
NEUTRON REACTIONS
NIOBIUM
NUCLEAR REACTIONS
NUCLEON REACTIONS
RADIATION DOSES
RECOVERY
STAINLESS STEELS
STEELS
TESTING
THERMONUCLEAR REACTOR WALLS
THERMONUCLEAR REACTORS
TOKAMAK TYPE REACTORS
TRANSITION ELEMENTS
TRITIUM RECOVERY