LOCA Study for a Helium-Cooled Solid Breeder Design for ITER

Abstract

The analysis of thermal processes after a loss-of-coolant accident (LOCA) in a solid breeder blanket is important because of the first wall and solid breeder maximum allowable temperature constraints. The objective is to design for a LOCA so that following a LOCA, the maximum solid breeder and structure temperatures are less than the limit beyond which irreversible damage is done, which would lead to loss of investment. The temporal temperature profiles for the solid breeder and first wall regions of a helium-cooled solid breeder design for ITER were calculated based on afterheat values for adiabatic and non-adiabatic conditions and the results are presented in this paper. It is found that, for this design, even when excluding radiation to the cooled inboard, a LOCA can be accommodated by energy removal through a flowing purge with a reasonable flow rate.