The lithium vapor box divertor
Abstract
It has long been recognized that volumetric dissipation of the plasma heat flux from a fusion power system is preferable to its localized impingement on a material surface. Volumetric dissipation mitigates both the anticipated very high heat flux and intense particle-induced damage due to sputtering. Our recent projections to a tokamak demonstration power plant suggest an immense upstream parallel heat flux, of order 20 GW m-2, implying that fully detached operation may be a requirement for the success of fusion power. Building on pioneering work on the use of lithium by Nagayama et al and by Ono et al as well as earlier work on the gas box divertor by Watkins and Rebut, we present here a concept for a lithium vapor box divertor, in which lithium vapor extracts momentum and energy from a fusion-power-plant divertor plasma, using fully volumetric processes. Furthermore, at the high powers and pressures that are projected this requires a high density of lithium vapor, which must be isolated from the main plasma in order to avoid lithium build-up on the chamber walls or in the plasma. Isolation is achieved through a powerful multi-box differential pumping scheme available only for condensable vapors. The preliminary box-wise calculationsmore »
- Authors:
-
[1];
[1]
- Princeton Plasma Physics Lab. (PPPL), Princeton, NJ (United States); Princeton Univ., NJ (United States). Dept. of Astrophysical Sciences
- Princeton Univ., NJ (United States)
- Publication Date:
- Research Org.:
- Princeton Plasma Physics Lab. (PPPL), Princeton, NJ (United States)
- Sponsoring Org.:
- USDOE
- OSTI Identifier:
- 1332555
- Report Number(s):
- 5152
Journal ID: ISSN 0031-8949
- Grant/Contract Number:
- AC02-09CH11466
- Resource Type:
- Accepted Manuscript
- Journal Name:
- Physica Scripta
- Additional Journal Information:
- Journal Volume: T167; Conference: 15th International Conference on Plasma-Facing Materials and Components for Fusion Applications; Journal ID: ISSN 0031-8949
- Publisher:
- IOP Publishing
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
- Subject:
- 70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY
Citation Formats
Goldston, R. J., Myers, R., and Schwartz, J. The lithium vapor box divertor. United States: N. p., 2016.
Web. doi:10.1088/0031-8949/t167/1/014017.
Goldston, R. J., Myers, R., & Schwartz, J. The lithium vapor box divertor. United States. https://doi.org/10.1088/0031-8949/t167/1/014017
Goldston, R. J., Myers, R., and Schwartz, J. Wed .
"The lithium vapor box divertor". United States. https://doi.org/10.1088/0031-8949/t167/1/014017. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1332555.
@article{osti_1332555,
title = {The lithium vapor box divertor},
author = {Goldston, R. J. and Myers, R. and Schwartz, J.},
abstractNote = {It has long been recognized that volumetric dissipation of the plasma heat flux from a fusion power system is preferable to its localized impingement on a material surface. Volumetric dissipation mitigates both the anticipated very high heat flux and intense particle-induced damage due to sputtering. Our recent projections to a tokamak demonstration power plant suggest an immense upstream parallel heat flux, of order 20 GW m-2, implying that fully detached operation may be a requirement for the success of fusion power. Building on pioneering work on the use of lithium by Nagayama et al and by Ono et al as well as earlier work on the gas box divertor by Watkins and Rebut, we present here a concept for a lithium vapor box divertor, in which lithium vapor extracts momentum and energy from a fusion-power-plant divertor plasma, using fully volumetric processes. Furthermore, at the high powers and pressures that are projected this requires a high density of lithium vapor, which must be isolated from the main plasma in order to avoid lithium build-up on the chamber walls or in the plasma. Isolation is achieved through a powerful multi-box differential pumping scheme available only for condensable vapors. The preliminary box-wise calculations are encouraging, but much more work is required in order to demonstrate the practical viability of this scheme, taking into account at least 2D plasma and vapor flows within and between the vapor boxes and out of the vapor boxes to the main plasma.},
doi = {10.1088/0031-8949/t167/1/014017},
journal = {Physica Scripta},
number = ,
volume = T167,
place = {United States},
year = {Wed Jan 13 00:00:00 EST 2016},
month = {Wed Jan 13 00:00:00 EST 2016}
}
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Works referencing / citing this record:
Design and measurement methods for a lithium vapor box similarity experiment
journal, October 2018
- Schwartz, J. A.; Emdee, E. D.; Jaworski, M. A.
- Review of Scientific Instruments, Vol. 89, Issue 10
Critical Exploration of Liquid Metal Plasma-Facing Components in a Fusion Nuclear Science Facility
journal, June 2019
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Reactor plasma facing component designs based on liquid metal concepts supported in porous systems
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Self-consistent modelling of a liquid metal box-type divertor with application to the divertor tokamak test facility: Li versus Sn
journal, May 2019
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Progress in the design of the DEMO-FNS hybrid facility
journal, May 2019
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- Nuclear Fusion, Vol. 59, Issue 7
Experiments on the Frascati Tokamak Upgrade with a liquid tin limiter
journal, July 2019
- Mazzitelli, G.; Apicella, M. L.; Iafrati, M.
- Nuclear Fusion, Vol. 59, Issue 9