Helium-cooled, FLiBe-breeder, beryllium-multiplier blanket for MINIMARS

Conference · Sun Jun 01 00:00:00 EDT 1986

OSTI ID:5489138

Moir, R W; Lee, J D

We adapted the helium-cooled, FLiBe-breeder blanket to the commercial tandem-mirror fusion-reactor design, MINIMARS. Vanadium was used to achieve high performance from the high-energy-release neutron-capture reactions and from the high-temperature operation permitted by the refractory property of the material, which increases the conversion efficiency and decreases the helium-pumping power. Although this blanket had the highest performance among the MINIMARS blankets designs, measured by Mn/sub th/ (blanket energy multiplication times thermal conversion efficiency), it had a cost of electricity (COE) 18% higher than the University of Wisconsin (UW) blanket design (42.5 vs 35.9 mills/kW.h). This increased cost was due to using higher-cost blanket materials (beryllium and vanadium) and a thicker blanket, which resulted in higher-cost central-cell magnets and the need for more blanket materials. Apparently, the high efficiency does not substantially affect the COE. Therefore, in the future, we recommend lowering the helium temperature so that ferritic steel can be used. This will result in a lower-cost blanket, which may compensate for the lower performance resulting from lower efficiency.

• Research Organization: Lawrence Livermore National Lab., CA (USA)
• DOE Contract Number: W-7405-ENG-48
• OSTI ID: 5489138
• Report Number(s): UCRL-94084; CONF-860652-16; ON: DE86013898
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY
700201* -- Fusion Power Plant Technology-- Blanket Engineering
ALKALINE EARTH METALS
ALLOYS
BERYLLIUM
BREEDING BLANKETS
COST
DESIGN
ELECTRICITY
ELEMENTS
FERRITIC STEELS
FLIBE
IRON ALLOYS
IRON BASE ALLOYS
MAGNETIC MIRROR TYPE REACTORS
METALS
MINIMARS REACTOR
MOLTEN SALTS
REACTOR COMPONENTS
SALTS
STEELS
THERMONUCLEAR REACTORS
VANADIUM ALLOYS
VANADIUM BASE ALLOYS