The Sandia Plasma Materials Test Facility in 2007
Introduction
The Fusion Technology Department of Sandia National Laboratories1 in Albuquerque, NM, operates PMTF (Plasma Materials Test Facility), a US Dept. of Energy (DOE) User Facility. In 2007, we replaced our 30-kW electron beam (e-beam), EBTS [1], with EB60 (Fig. 1) a 60-kW system. The larger EB1200 (Fig. 2) has two beams and 1.2 MW total power. PMTF's auxiliary systems include (1) a high-temperature, high-pressure water cooling loop that supplies high quality (de-ionized and de-mineralized) coolant water at flow rates to 30 l/s, pressures as high as 7 MPa, and inlet temperatures to 280 °C, (2) a closed helium coolant loop for testing of helium-cooled components and heat exchangers coupled to EB60, (3) a liquid metal loop, and (4) a fully equipped computer laboratory for diagnostics, control and analytical support of our experiments.
Most testing in PMTF is on specimens of armor tiles joined to actively cooled heat sinks for plasma facing components (PFCs) for the magnetic fusion program funded by the DOE Office of Fusion Energy Science. Typical heat loads are in the range of 0.5–2 MW/m2 for first wall elements and 10–15 MW/m2 for PFCs with high heat loads such as divertors and limiters. Much higher heat fluxes are also possible. Our collaborations also include applications such as microwave gyrotron cavities and beam dumps. We collaborate with industry, as for example in the development of e-beam physical vapor deposition processes, and testing performed under the Department of Energy Small Business Innovation Research Program to investigate innovative heat transfer technologies for fusion and commercial applications.
Beryllium (Be) is a material of interest for armor tiles in ITER (International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor) and JET (Joint European Torus). Due to the toxicity of airborne particles of Be, special handling and facilities are needed, and PMTF has the capability to test Be-armored targets in both EB60 and EB1200.
Currently most research using PMTF supports the ITER Project. The US will provide 20% of the first wall and will also test first wall mockups for several other ITER Parties [2]. This work continues a tradition of international collaborations that has included the development of PFCs for TEXTOR, Tore Supra, JET and KSTAR [3], [4], [5], [6] as well as work with foreign partners on the development of advanced actively cooled PFCs for future fusion reactors.
Section snippets
Testing in PMTF
Tests in PMTF falls into the seven broad categories below.
EB60
EB60 is a multi-purpose device for studying the surface modification, thermal response and failure modes of high heat flux materials and components. Table 1 lists parameters. The target chamber 0.6 m diameter × 1 m long has various ports for diagnostics and utility connections. A hinged door at one end provides easy access for handling targets up to 0.3 m × 0.6 m. In the gun, a tungsten filament heats a LaB6 button. Two magnetic lenses and a deflection yoke focus, position and raster the beam. We can
The EB1200
EB1200 was built in the late 1980s to test PFCs for ITER and for the Tokamak Physics Experiment. Table 2 lists parameters. The ∼3 m3 D-shaped vacuum chamber has over 50 ports for diagnostics and views of the target and four 3000 l/s commercial cryopumps. Four beam dumps, behind the targets, are designed to survive a heat flux of 20 MW/m2. The meter-wide door on EB1200 has plumbing for multiple targets and feed-throughs for various diagnostics. The examples below show how the independent patterns
PMTF coolant loops
The high-pressure, high-temperature flow loop provides high-quality, high-temperature, pressurized water to targets in EB60 and EB1200 and has all stainless steel piping designed to American National Standards Institute standards for power plants for pressures to 6.9 MPa. A 225 kW in-line electric water heater provides for fast heating of the loop. Using the PMTF computer system, operators have full control of pressure (0.1–7.0 MPa, 15–1000 psi), flow (3–30 l/s, 50–500 gpm) and temperature. Water up
Diagnostics, analysis and control
Extensive diagnostics in PMTF include video and infrared (IR) cameras, optical and IR pyrometers, thermocouples (TCs) embedded in samples, strain gauges when appropriate, and residual gas analyzers. Table 3 lists the diagnostics; where the numbers of channels differ for EB60 and EB1200, these are given in parentheses. We observe and record the video and IR data for all tests in EB60 and EB1200 and use the frame-by-frame playback as needed to evaluate these data. An array of optical and IR
Acknowledgments
The following people helped develop PMTF but are no longer in the Fusion Technology Department: J.B. Whitley, C.D. Croessmann, W.B. Gauster, R.T. McGrath, R.D. Watson, P.D. Rockett, J.A. Hunter and N.B. Gilbertson.
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Cited by (13)
Conceptual design of a high heat flux testing facility in support of CFETR
2019, Fusion Engineering and DesignCitation Excerpt :The JUDITH II was constructed in Germany and the purpose of the facility is to perform larger components tests or ITER relevant tests [5]. PMTF at Sandia National Laboratories was the first major facility, which started in 1978 with a 30 kW electron beam and an ion beam and then operated until 2011 with a 60 kW e-beam and a test stand with dual 600 kW e-beams [6]. The IDTF was designed and constructed for testing the prototype of the inner/outer vertical targets and domes of the ITER divertor in Russia [7].
Bonding techniques and performance qualification of plasma facing components for Korean fusion research
2018, Fusion Engineering and DesignCitation Excerpt :Also these mockups were tested by using KoHLT-EB for high heat flux testing to evaluate a thermal life-time. Also, several facilities equipped with an electron beam gun were constructed to test the PFCs in the EU, Russia and US [3–8]. Especially, many facilities of EU were operated for the cyclic heat flux testing, such as FZJ [3,4], Czech [5].
High heat flux performance of brazed tungsten macro-brush test mock-up for divertors
2013, Journal of Nuclear MaterialsCitation Excerpt :Heat sink of mock-up was connected to active water cooling system of HHF test facility. During the experiment, Inlet and outlet water pressure, temperature and flow rate were maintained at 1.1 MPa, 0.93 MPa, 100 °C and 1.08 kg/s respectively [18,19]. Screening tests were carried out initially to evaluate the limit of sustainable thermal loads by mock-up.
Korean high heat flux test facility by using electron beam system for ITER first wall semi-prototype
2012, Fusion Engineering and DesignCitation Excerpt :In 2009, through the contracts between the ITER Organization and all parties, each party has fabricated the first wall qualification mockups for the heat flux test in the US and EU. The US test facility is an EB-1200 of the Sandia National Laboratory [2], and the EU facility is JUDITH-2 [3] in the Forschungszentrum Juelich of Germany. For preparing the qualification program and more, obtaining the procurement eligibility and fabrication methods for the FW has been developed in Korea [5,6]; the various joining methods were investigated for an improvement of the bonding performances between Be tile and Cu alloy, and Cu alloy and the SS block, respectively and, finally, a Hot Isostatic Pressing (HIP) bonding method was chosen considering the complex geometry of the FW.
Heat flux tests of the ITER first Wall qualification mockups at KoHLT-1
2011, Fusion Engineering and DesignCitation Excerpt :The ITER (International Thermonuclear Experiment Reactor) first wall blankets will be procured by six parties: China, EU, Japan, Korea, RF, and USA. The ITER Organization (IO) requires that all parties must fabricate two first wall qualification mockup (FWQMs) [1] and pass qualification thermal fatigue testing [2] at the EB-1200 (SNL) [3] in the US and at the BESTH [4]/JUDITH-2 [5] in the EU to validate a joining process of the Be tile to the CuCrZr heat sink. The nominal cycle numbers and heat fluxes are 12,000 cycles at 0.625 MW/m2 and 1000 cycles at 1.75 MW/m2 [2].
Overview of Korea heat load test facilities for plasma facing components
2010, Fusion Engineering and Design