Self-cooled blanket concepts using Pb7Li as liquid breeder and coolant

Abstract

A blanket design concept using Pb17Li eutectic alloy as both breeder material and coolant is described. Such a self-cooled blanket for the boundary conditions of a DEMO-reactor is under development at the Kernforschungszentrum Karlsruhe (KfK) in the frame of the European blanket development program. Results of investigations in the areas of design, neutroncs, magneto-hydrodynamics, thermo-mechanics, ancillary loop systems, and safety are reported. Based on recent progress, it can be concluded that the boundary conditions of a DEMO-reactor can be met, tritium self-sufficiency can be obtained without using beryllium as an additional neutron multiplier, and tritium inventory and permeation are acceptably low. However, to completely judge the feasibility of the proposed concept, further studies are necessary to obtain a better understanding of the magneto-hydrodynamic phenomena and their effects on the thermal-hydraulic performance of a fusion reactor blanket.