Demonstrating electromagnetic control of free-surface, liquid-metal flows relevant to fusion reactors

Hvasta, M G; Kolemen, E; Fisher, A E; Ji, H

doi:10.11578/1561998

Title: Demonstrating electromagnetic control of free-surface, liquid-metal flows relevant to fusion reactors

Abstract

Plasma-facing components (PFC's) made from solid materials may not be able to withstand the large heat and particle fluxes that will be produced within next-generation fusion reactors. To address the shortcomings of solid PFC's, a variety of liquid-metal (LM) PFC concepts have been proposed. Many of the suggested LM-PFC designs rely on electromagnetic restraint (Lorentz force) to keep free-surface, liquid-metal flows adhered to the interior surfaces of a fusion reactor. However, there is very little, if any, experimental data demonstrating that free-surface, LM-PFC's can actually be electromagnetically controlled. Therefore, in this study, electrical currents were injected into a free-surface liquid-metal that was flowing through a uniform magnetic field. The resultant Lorentz force generated within the liquid-metal affected the velocity and depth of the flow in a controllable manner that closely matched theoretical predictions. These results show the promise of electromagnetic control for LM-PFC's and suggest that electromagnetic control could be further developed to adjust liquid-metal nozzle output, prevent splashing within a tokamak, and alter heat transfer properties for a wide-range of liquid-metal systems.

Authors:: Hvasta, M G; Kolemen, E; Fisher, A E; Ji, H

Publication Date:: 2018-01-01

DOE Contract Number:: AC02-09CH11466

Research Org.:: Princeton Plasma Physics Lab. (PPPL), Princeton, NJ (United States)

Sponsoring Org.:: U. S. Department of Energy

Keywords:: Plasma-Facing Component

OSTI Identifier:: 1561998

DOI:: https://doi.org/10.11578/1561998

Citation Formats


                    Hvasta, M G, Kolemen, E, Fisher, A E, and Ji, H. Demonstrating electromagnetic control of free-surface, liquid-metal flows relevant to fusion reactors.  United States: N. p., 2018. 
        Web.  doi:10.11578/1561998.

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                    Hvasta, M G, Kolemen, E, Fisher, A E, & Ji, H. Demonstrating electromagnetic control of free-surface, liquid-metal flows relevant to fusion reactors.  United States.  doi:https://doi.org/10.11578/1561998

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                    Hvasta, M G, Kolemen, E, Fisher, A E, and Ji, H. 2018.  
"Demonstrating electromagnetic control of free-surface, liquid-metal flows relevant to fusion reactors".  United States.  doi:https://doi.org/10.11578/1561998.  https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1561998. Pub date:Mon Jan 01 00:00:00 EST 2018

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@article{osti_1561998,

  title        = {Demonstrating electromagnetic control of free-surface, liquid-metal flows relevant to fusion reactors},

  author       = {Hvasta, M G and Kolemen, E and Fisher, A E and Ji, H},

  abstractNote = {Plasma-facing components (PFC's) made from solid materials may not be able to withstand the large heat and particle fluxes that will be produced within next-generation fusion reactors. To address the shortcomings of solid PFC's, a variety of liquid-metal (LM) PFC concepts have been proposed. Many of the suggested LM-PFC designs rely on electromagnetic restraint (Lorentz force) to keep free-surface, liquid-metal flows adhered to the interior surfaces of a fusion reactor. However, there is very little, if any, experimental data demonstrating that free-surface, LM-PFC's can actually be electromagnetically controlled. Therefore, in this study, electrical currents were injected into a free-surface liquid-metal that was flowing through a uniform magnetic field. The resultant Lorentz force generated within the liquid-metal affected the velocity and depth of the flow in a controllable manner that closely matched theoretical predictions. These results show the promise of electromagnetic control for LM-PFC's and suggest that electromagnetic control could be further developed to adjust liquid-metal nozzle output, prevent splashing within a tokamak, and alter heat transfer properties for a wide-range of liquid-metal systems.},

  doi          = {10.11578/1561998},

  journal      = {},

  number       = ,

  volume       = ,

  place        = {United States},

  year         = {2018},

  month        = {1}

}

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