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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.
Yoshiyuki Asaoka, Kunihiko Okano, Tomoaki Yoshida, Ryouji Hiwatari, Koji Tokimatsu
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 39 | Number 2 | March 2001 | Pages 518-522
Fusion Economic Studies | doi.org/10.13182/FST01-A11963288
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Maximum implementation capacity of commercial fusion reactors based on breeding and supply of tritium has been investigated. The implementation capacity of fusion power reactors depends upon the net tritium breeding gain and a requirement of the initial supply of tritium for a steady commercial operation. In the reference case, the maximum implementation capacity is 7 GWe in 10 years after the year of fusion introduction, 118 GWe in 20 years and 488 GWe in 25 years. It is mainly limited by the industrial construction capacity after 25 years. The maximum implementation capacity is largely depends on the preparation interval of operation as well as the tritium breeding performance. It means that subsequent reactors must start operation as soon as possible not to leave produced tritium. The requirement to the tritium breeding for a satisfactory implementation of fusion power plants is also discussed. In the case that fusion implementation is similar to the increase of fission reactors in last 40 years, tritium breeding ratio of 1.08 will be required for the early plants. On the other hand, tritium breeding ratio of 1.02 is sufficient when fusion plants are widely deployed.