LNF:Development of critical diagnostics for the operation of the IFMIF-DONES Lithium target (DONES-LIDIA)

LNF - Nationally funded project

Title: LNF: Development of critical diagnostics for the operation of the IFMIF-DONES Lithium target (DONES-LIDIA, DONES LIthium DIAgnostics)

Reference: PID2021-125334OB-I00

Programme and date: Proyectos de Generación de Conocimiento 2021

Programme type (Modalidad de proyecto): Proyectos investigación orientada

Area/subarea (Área temática / subárea): Energía y Transporte/Energía

Principal Investigator(s): David Jiménez-Rey [1]; Cristina de la Morena [2]

Project type: Proyecto individual

Start-end dates: 01/09/2022 - 31/08/2026

Financing granted (direct costs): 126.000 €

Description of the project

The DONES lithium target is one of the most critical parts of the facility, where a high power (5 MW) deuteron beam will impinge on a Li jet flowing at 15 m/s with a temperature of 300 ºC. The interaction between deuteron beam and Li will produce large amount of neutrons (and gamma radiation) with a fusion-like spectrum, which will irradiate the materials under study. The beam power absorption can be performed in a safe way whenever the Li thickness is kept constant during operation in 25 ± 1 mm. This prevents the beam power from impacting in the back plate, which would entail an irreparable damage and the facility shutdown.

The lithium target behavior was studied during the IFMIF-EVEDA phase in 2015 by means of the Li circuit prototype at Orai (Japan). However, the environmental conditions in this experiment were far from DONES ones, as there was no radiation and the diagnostics(based on fast visible camera and laser) were placed in the same position of the beam accelerators in DONES. Therefore, the diagnostics used in this prototype would not be feasible for DONES. Since 2015 and under Eurofusion WPENS Project, different research institutes have studied how to adapt the diagnostics used in the IFMIF-EVEDA phase to the real operation conditions of DONES: laser diagnostic, contact probes, or visible cameras. Due to the extreme environment conditions in the Li target area, at this moment there is not a planned Li target diagnostic with the robustness and fast response time required for the safe operation of DONES, being a high risk for the facility.

The use of metallic millimeter wave antennas may entail a compact and resistant solution for the harsh environmental conditions. The objective of this project is to define and design a novel and essential diagnostic instrumentation for the DONES Li target based on radiofrequency (RF) with the following functionalities: (1) Li thickness diagnostic: monitoring of the Li thickness variation in the beam impact area, in communication with the DONES facility, (2) Machine Protection System (MPS) for fast emergency stop, and (3) Surface scanning of the beam impact area for instabilities detection and study of homogeneity and perturbations in the liquid Li flow.

With this purpose, several studies and calculations will be performed to define the compatibility of the equipment under DONES radiation and working conditions: nuclear calculations and radiation-induced accuracy degradation, thermomechanical analysis, and studies of remote handing studies and safety. Finally, a demonstrator will be designed and developed in order to validate the technology and its viability in IFMIF-DONES and extrapolate the results to future fusion reactors.

References

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2. Ibarra et al., “The IFMIF-DONES project: preliminary engineering design”, Nucl. Fusion, vol. 58 105002, 2018.
3. J. Knaster et al., “Overview of the IFMIF/EVEDA project”, Nuclear Fusion, vol. 57, iss. 10, 2017.
4. P. Arena, et al., “The design of the DONES lithium target system”, Fusion Engineering and Design, vol. 146, Part A, 2019, pp. 1135-1139, ISSN 0920-3796.
5. T. Dézsi, et al., “Overview of the Current Status of IFMIF-DONES Secondary Heat Removal System Design,” Fusion Engineering and Design, vol. 146, Part A, 2019, pp. 430-432, ISSN 0920-3796.
6. K. Kondo et al., “Validation of the linear IFMIF prototype accelerator (LIPAc) in Rokkasho,” Fusion Eng. Des. 153, 111503 (2020).
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16. F. Arranz et al., "Remote Handling in the Accelerator Systems of DONES," in IEEE Tran. on Plasma Science, vol. 48, no. 6, pp. 1743-1747, June 2020, doi: 10.1109/TPS.2020.2969262.
17. G. Miccichè, et al., “The remote handling system of IFMIF-DONES”, Fusion Engineering and Design, vol. 146, Part B, 2019, pp. 2786-2790.
18. Q. Xu, et al., “Electrical resistivity measurement of Fe-0.6%Cu alloy irradiated by neutrons at 14- 19 K”, Journal of Nuclear Materials, 481, (2016) 176-180.
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20. C. de la Morena, et al., "Fully Digital and White Rabbit-Synchronized Low-Level RF System for LIPAc," IEEE Trans. on Nuclear Science. vol. 65, no. 1, pp. 514 - 522. Jan. 2018.

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