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Colin Judge: Testing structural materials in Idaho’s newest hot cell facility
Idaho National Laboratory’s newest facility—the Sample Preparation Laboratory (SPL)—sits across the road from the Hot Fuel Examination Facility (HFEF), which started operating in 1975. SPL will host the first new hot cells at INL’s Materials and Fuels Complex (MFC) in 50 years, giving INL researchers and partners new flexibility to test the structural properties of irradiated materials fresh from the Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) or from a partner’s facility.
Materials meant to withstand extreme conditions in fission or fusion power plants must be tested under similar conditions and pushed past their breaking points so performance and limitations can be understood and improved. Once irradiated, materials samples can be cut down to size in SPL and packaged for testing in other facilities at INL or other national laboratories, commercial labs, or universities. But they can also be subjected to extreme thermal or corrosive conditions and mechanical testing right in SPL, explains Colin Judge, who, as INL’s division director for nuclear materials performance, oversees SPL and other facilities at the MFC.
SPL won’t go “hot” until January 2026, but Judge spoke with NN staff writer Susan Gallier about its capabilities as his team was moving instruments into the new facility.
P.H. La Marche, J.L. Anderson, C.A. Gentile, R.J. Hawryluk, J. Hosea, M. Kalish, T. Kozub, H. Murray, A. Nagy, S. Raftopoulos, R.L. Rossmassier, R.A.P. Sissingh, J. Swanson, F. Tulipano, M. Viola, D.R. Voorhees, R.T. Walters, the TFTR Team
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 26 | Number 3 | November 1994 | Pages 427-433
Magnetic Fusion Experiment | Proceedings of the Eleventh Topical Meeting on the Technology of Fusion Energy New Orleans, Louisiana June 19-23, 1994 | doi.org/10.13182/FST94-A40195
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
TFTR performance has surpassed many of the previous tokamak records. This has been made possible by the use of tritium as fuel for DT plasma discharges. Stable operations of tritium systems provide for safe, routine DT operation of TFTR. In the preparation for DT operation, in the commissioning of the tritium systems and in the operation of the Nuclear Facility several key lessons have been learned. They include: the facility must take the lead in interpreting the applicable regulations and orders and then seek regulator approval; the use of ultra high vacuum technology in tritium system design and construction simplifies and enhances operations and maintenance; and central facility control under a single supervisory position is crucial to safely orchestrate operational and maintenance activities.