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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.
S. Sandri, G. M. Contessa, M. Guardati, M. Guarracino, R. Villari
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 75 | Number 5 | July 2019 | Pages 345-351
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.1080/15361055.2019.1608097
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
An experimental nuclear fusion device could be seen as a step toward the development of the future nuclear fusion power plant. If compared with other possible solutions to the energy problem, nuclear fusion has advantages that ensure sustainability and security. In particular, considering the radioactivity and the radioactive waste produced in a nuclear fusion plant, the component materials for the plant could be selected in order to limit the decay period, making recycling possible in a new reactor after about 100 yr from the beginning of decommissioning. To achieve this and other pertinent goals, many experimental machines have been developed and operated worldwide in the last decades, underlining that radiation protection and worker exposure are critical aspects of these facilities due to the high-flux, high-energy neutrons produced in the fusion reactions. Direct radiation, material activation, tritium diffusion, and other related issues pose a real challenge to demonstrating that these devices are safer than nuclear fission facilities. In Italy, for the past 30 yr, a limited number of fusion facilities have been constructed and operated, mainly at the ENEA Frascati Center, where a new one, the Italian Divertor Tokamak Test Facility (DTT), is now under development. The radiation protection approach, addressed by national licensing requirements, shows that respecting the constraints for worker exposure to ionizing radiation is not always straightforward. In the current analysis the main radiation protection issues encountered in the Italian fusion facilities are considered and discussed, and the technical and legal requirements are described. The licensing process for this kind of device is outlined and compared with that of other European countries.
The following aspects are considered throughout the current study: description of the installation, plant, and systems; suitability of the area; buildings and structures; radioprotection structures and organization; exposure of personnel; accident analysis and relevant radiological consequences; and radioactive waste assessment and management.
In conclusion, the analysis points out the need for special attention to the radiological exposure of workers in order to demonstrate at least the same level of safety as that reached at nuclear fission facilities.
