Charge and Mass Considerations for Plasma Velocity Measurements in Rotating Plasmas

Velocity of hydrogen plasmas rotating due to imposed E × B fields at the Maryland Centrifugal Experiment (MCX) (Ellis et al., Phys Plasmas 12:055704, 2005), where E is the electric field in the radial direction and B the magnetic field in the axial direction of a cylindrical configuration, has traditionally been measured using Doppler shifts of atomic spectra from impurity elements such as carbon. Ideally, the gyrocenter of trace particles rotates at the bulk plasma velocity, regardless of the charged state or trace particle mass. However, for sufficiently large applied |E/B| (or equivalently, a sufficiently large ratio of bulk plasma rotation frequency and particle gyrofrequency), charged particles may have gyroradii that depart significantly from quasi-circular orbits drifting about the B field axis. This effect is investigated numerically with a single particle code that includes scattering, as well as experimentally at MCX. Numerical findings are compared to experimentally measured Doppler shifts of singly inonized helium and oxygen, and doubly ionized carbon atoms.     

Modelling the erosion of beryllium carbide surfaces

Redeposition of beryllium eroded from main chamber plasma facing components of ITER onto the divertor material carbon creates a mixed material, beryllium carbide Be₂C, whose interaction with the plasma is not well known. In this study, we have investigated the erosion of Be₂C by deuterium using molecular dynamics simulations and ERO impurity modelling. We found that beryllium sputters preferentially over carbon and identified the sputtering mechanism in the ion energy range 10-100 eV to be both physical and swift chemical sputtering. In addition to single atoms, different types of small molecules/clusters were sputtered, the most frequently occurring molecules being BeD, Be₂D, and CD. The sputtering threshold was found to lie between 10 and 15 eV. The MD sputtering yields were used in plasma impurity simulations, serving as a replacement for input data obtained with TRIM. This changes the accumulation rate of impurity Be in the divertor region compared to previous estimates.     

Effect of transient heating loads on beryllium

Beryllium will be used as a plasma facing material for ITER first wall. It is expected that erosion of beryllium under transient plasma loads such as the edge-localized modes (ELMs) and disruptions will mainly determine a lifetime of ITER first wall. The results of recent experiments with the Russian beryllium of TGP-56FW ITER grade on QSPA-Be plasma gun facility are presented. The Be/CuCrZr mock-ups were exposed to upto 100 shots by deuterium plasma streams with pulse duration of 0.5 ms at ∼250 °C and average heat loads of 0.5 and 1 MJ/m². Experiments were performed at 250 °C. The evolution of surface microstructure and cracks morphology as well as beryllium mass loss are investigated under erosion process.     

Radio Frequency Induction Plasma Spraying of Molybdenum

Radio frequency (RF) induction plasma was used to make free-standing deposition of molybdenum (Mo). The phenomena of particle melting, flattening, and stacking were investigated. The effect of process parameters such as plasma power, chamber pressure, and spray distance on the phenomena mentioned above was studied. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to analyze the plasma-processed powder, splats formed, and deposits obtained. Experimental results show that less Mo particles are spheroidized when compared to the number of spheroidized tungsten (W) particles at the same powder feed rate under the same plasma spray condition. Molten Mo particles can be suf[iciently flattened on substrate. The influence of the process parameters on the flattening behavior is not significant. Mo deposit is not as dense as W deposit, due to the splash and low impact of molten Mo particles. Oxidation of the Mo powder with a large particle size is not evident under the low pressure plasma spray.     

Effect of Fuelling Depth on the Fusion Performance and Particle Confinement of a Fusion Reactor

The fusion performance and particle confinement of an international thermonuclear experimental reactor(ITER)-like fusion device have been modeled by numerically solving the energy transport equation and the particle transport equation. The effect of fuelling depth has been investigated. The plasma is primarily heated by the fusion produced alpha particles and the loss process of particles and energy in the scrape-off layer has been taken into account. To study the effect of fuelling depth on fusion performance, the ITERH-98P(y,2) scaling law has been used to evaluate the transport coefficients. It is shown that the particle confinement and fusion performance are significantly dependent on the fuelling depth. Deviation of 10% of the minor radius on fuelling depth can make the particle confinement change by ~ 61% and the fusion performance change by ~ 108%. The enhancement of fusion performance is due to the better particle confinement induced by deeper particle fuelling.     

PIC-EDDY Simulation of Different Impurities Deposition in Gaps of Carbon Tiles

A 3D Monte Carlo （MC） code PIC- EDDY, based on EDDY （erosion and deposition dynamic simulation） code, was used to investigate the redeposition of different impurities in the gaps of C tiles. By incorporating the rate coefficients of beryllium （Be） and tungsten （W） into the code, we obtain deposition profiles of hydrocarbon, beryllium and tungsten particles in the toroidal and poloidal gaps, respectively. The redeposition rate of tungsten was found to be higher than those of other impurities in the gaps, except at the bottom, due to its easier local deposition within one gyroradius. Due to the effect of reflection coefficients of hydrocarbon fragments on graphite, fewer hydrocarbons were resided at the entrance while more were deposited on the sides of the gap. At elevated plasma temperatures （such as 30 eV）, asymmetric deposition distributions were observed between the toroidal and poloidal gaps due to the dominant ionized particles. Ions were mainly deposited within 1 mm depth inside gaps, and the bottom deposition particles were almost all neutrals.     

Fabrication of particle dispersed inert matrix fuel based on liquid phase sintered SiC

In the present work, liquid phase sintered SiC (LPS-SiC) was proposed as an inert matrix for the particle dispersed inert matrix fuel (IMF). The fuel particles containing plutonium and minor actinides were substituted with pure yttria stabilized zirconia beads. The LPS-SiC matrix was produced from the initial mixtures prepared using submicron sized α-SiC powder and oxide additives Al₂O₃, Y₂O₃ in the amount of 10 wt.% with the molar ratio 1Y₂O₃/1Al₂O₃. Powder mixtures were sintered using two sintering methods; namely conventional high temperature sintering and novel spark plasma sintering at different temperatures depending on the method applied in order to obtain dense samples. The phase reaction products were identified using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and microstructures were investigated using light microscopy and scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM/EDX) techniques. The influence of powder mixing methods, sintering temperatures, pressures applied and holding time on the density of the obtained pellets was investigated. The samples sintered by slow conventional sintering show lower relative density and more pronounced interaction between the fuel particles and matrix in comparison with those obtained with the fast spark plasma sintering method.     

A preliminary assessment of beryllium dust oxidation during a wet bypass accident in a fusion reactor

A beryllium dust oxidation model has been developed at the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) by the Fusion Safety Program (FSP) for the MELCOR safety computer code. The purpose of this model is to investigate hydrogen production from beryllium dust layers on hot surfaces inside a fusion reactor vacuum vessel (VV) during in-vessel loss-of-cooling accidents (LOCAs). This beryllium dust oxidation model accounts for the diffusion of steam into a beryllium dust layer, the oxidation of the dust particles inside this layer based on the beryllium–steam oxidation equations developed at the INL, and the effective thermal conductivity of this beryllium dust layer. This paper details this oxidation model and presents the results of the application of this model to a wet bypass accident scenario in the ITER device.     

Analyses of Passive Plasma Shutdown during Ex-vessel Loss of Coolant Accident in the First Wall/Shield Blanket of Fusion Reactor

An ex-vessel loss of coolant accident (LOCA) in the first wall/shield blanket of a fusion reactor has been analyzed by a hybrid code consisting of plasma dynamics and heat transfer analysis of in-vessel components. We investigated possibility of passive plasma shutdown scenario during the accident in International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER). The safety analysis code which we developed can treat impurity concentration from the first wall and the divertor with a transport probability into the main plasma and a time delay given as input. It was found that the plasma is passively shutdown by a density limit disruption due to beryllium release from heated first wall surfaces about 168 seconds after the LOCA, when the transport probability of beryllium from the first wall into the plasma and the time delay were assumed to be 10^?2 and the energy confinement time, respectively. At that time, the surface temperature of the outboard center (plasma facing component (PFC) with beryllium) and the temperature of the coolant tube in the first wall (stainless steel 316) reach about 1,120°C and about 1,080°C, respectively. Although the coolant tube does not melt, the copper heat sink between the PFC and the coolant tube melts before the passive shutdown. The heat sink of copper in the outboard baffle also melts before the passive shutdown, though the PFC surface of tungsten does not melt. Consequently, we have a possibility of passive plasma shutdown before the cooling tubes melt during the ex-LOCA of the first walllshield blanket in ITER, however, further studies are needed on the effects on plasma burn control, impurity release and emission of implanted D-T fuel.     

Influence of the bias voltage on the formation of beryllium films by a thermionic vacuum arc method

Beryllium is intended to be used as suggested material for the first wall in the thermonuclear power plants. Some tiles of the first wall will be of inconel coated by a beryllium layer that must be adherent to the substrate and have a compact structure in order to resist as much as possible the dramatic interaction with the high energetic plasma particles, ions, electrons and neutrons. Applying bias voltages (−200 to + 700 V) on the substrates, the morphology of the prepared Be layers using the original thermionic vacuum arc method developed at NILPRP was controlled in order to obtain smooth surfaces, free of holes and lamellar structures. The prepared films were studied and characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Auger spectroscopy (AES). The films prepared using negative bias voltages were found to be more compact and smooth with an average roughness (R_ms) of 7 nm.     

Effect of indirect non-thermal plasma on particle size distribution and composition of diesel engine particles

To explore the effect of the gas source flow rate on the actual diesel exhaust particulate matter (PM),a test bench for diesel engine exhaust purification was constructed,using indirect nonthermal plasma technology.The effects of different gas source flow rotes on the quantity concentration,composition,and apparent activation energy of PM were investigated,using an engine exhaust particle sizer and a thermo-gravimetric analyzer.The results show that when the gas source flow rate was large,not only the maximum peak quantity concentrations of particles had a large drop,but also the peak quantity concentrations shifted to smaller particle sizes from 100 nm to 80nm.When the gas source flow rate was 10 Lmin-1,the total quantity concentration greatly decreased where the removal rate of particles was 79.2％,and the variation of the different mode particle proportion was obvious.Non-thermal plasma (NTP) improved the oxidation ability of volatile matter as well as that of solid carbon.However,the NTP gas source rate had little effects on oxidation activity of volatile matter,while it strongly influenced the oxidation activity of solid carbon.Considering the quantity concentration and oxidation activity of particles,a gas source flow rate of 10 L min-1 was more appropriate for the purification of particles.     

Radio Frequencv Induction Plasma Spraying of Molybdenum

Radio frequency (RF) induction plasma was used to make free-standing depositionof molybdenum (Mo). The phenomena of particle melting, flattening, and stacking were inves-tigated. The effect of process parameters such as plasma power, chamber pressure, and spraydistance on the phenomena mentioned above was studied. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM)was used to analyze the plasma-processed powder, splats formed, and deposits obtained. Exper-imental results show that less Mo particles are spheroidized when compared to the number ofspheroidized tungsten (W) particles at the same powder feed rate under the same plasma spraycondition. Molten Mo particles can be sufficiently flattened on substrate. The influence of theprocess parameters on the flattening behavior is not significant. Mo deposit is not as dense as Wdeposit, due to the splash and low impact of molten Mo particles. Oxidation of the Mo powderwith a large particle size is not evident under the low pressure plasma spray.     

Kinetic study of key species and reactions of atmospheric pressure pulsed corona discharge in humid air

In this study, we examined the key particles and chemical reactions that substantially influence plasma characteristics. In summarizing the chemical reaction model for the discharge process of N2–O2–H2O(g) mixed gases, 65 particle types and 673 chemical reactions were investigated. On this basis, a global model of atmospheric pressure humid air discharge plasma was developed, with a focus on the variation of charged particles densities and chemical reaction rates with time under the excitation of a 0–200 Td pulsed electric field. Particles with a density greater than 1% of the electron density were classified as key particles. For such particles, the top ranking generation or consumption reactions (i.e. where the sum of their rates was greater than 95% of the total rate of the generation or consumption reactions) were classified as key chemical reactions. On the basis of the key particles and reactions identified, a simplified global model was derived. A comparison of the global model with the simplified global model in terms of the model parameters, particle densities, reaction rates (with time), and calculation efficiencies demonstrated that both models can adequately identify the key particles and chemical reactions reflecting the chemical process of atmospheric pressure discharge plasma in humid air. Thus, by analyzing the key particles and chemical reaction pathways, the charge and substance transfer mechanism of atmospheric pressure pulse discharge plasma in humid air was revealed, and the mechanism underlying water vapor molecules' influence on atmospheric pressure air discharge was elucidated.     

Time-to-Pinch Investigation of 5 kJ Mather-Type Plasma Focus Device

The Egyptian Atomic Energy Authority-Plasma focus (EAEA-PF2) has been upgraded to a 5 kJ plasma focus device. Its characteristics have been investigated at various pressures and different voltages in a 5 kJ Mather-type plasma focus device for Ar gas. Its time-to-pinch has been measured, simulated and analyzed at different operating conditions. It is observed from the results that, the time-to-pinch decreased when either the charging voltage increased or the gas pressure decreased. In addition, the time-to-pinch is estimated theoretically using Lee model RADPF5.15. A comparison between the experimental and theoretical time-to-pinch is discussed. Also, the drive factor of plasma focus is analyzed at different pressures and charging voltages. It is noticed that, the mass and current factors are affected by changing the pressure and voltage. Finally, it is observed that, the drive factor is proportional inversely to the pressure and directly to the charging voltage.     

Dynamic behavior of a solid particle bed in a liquid pool: SIMMER-III code verification

Dynamic behavior of solid particle beds in a liquid pool against pressure transients was investigated to model the mobility of core materials in a postulated disrupted core of a liquid metal fast reactor. A series of experiments was performed with a particle bed of different bed heights, comprising different monotype solid particles, where variable initial pressures of the originally pressurized nitrogen gas were adopted as the pressure sources. Computational simulations of the experiments were performed using SIMMER-III, a fast reactor safety analysis code. Comparisons between simulated and experimental results show that the physical model for multiphase flows used in the SIMMER-III code can reasonably represent the transient behaviors of pool multiphase flows with rich solid phases, as observed in the current experiments. This demonstrates the basic validity of the SIMMER-III code on simulating the dynamic behaviors induced by pressure transients in a low-energy disrupted core of a liquid metal fast reactor with rich solid phases.     

Design and installation of the closed helical divertor in LHD

Neutral particle behavior in the Large Helical Device heliotron has been investigated to conduct the effective particle control using the intrinsic helical divertor. It was revealed that the torus in-out asymmetry observed in the neutral pressure distribution depended on the divertor particle flux distribution, and thus, on the operational magnetic configuration. It was also revealed that the neutral pressure in the vacuum vessel in LHD was below 0.1 Pa. Degradation of the plasma confinement with increasing of the neutral pressure was observed, and that suggested the effective particle control is necessary for the sustaining of long discharge with high performance plasma and the further improvement of the confinement. The modification of the open helical divertor to the closed one was investigated for the particle control using helical divertor by using EIRENE code. Results of the calculation showed that proper rearrangement of divertor plates and additional components, such as dome structure make the neutral particles to be compressed well in the divertor region, and effective divertor pumping to be possible. Based on the simulation and experimental results, design of the closed helical divertor was completed and it will be partially installed in the Large Helical Device before the experimental campaign in 2010.     

Charge Collection by Drift during Single Particle Upset

An improved analytical model for the drift charge collection during a single particle upset is developed. The model is based on the assumption that initially the plasma column created by an energetic particle is spread by the ambipolar diffusion. Then the collection occurs via the ambipolar drift process at the outer radius of the plasma column where the plasma density drops to a value comparable to the substrate doping. In agreement with experimental data the model predicts that the collected charge increases with the decrease in the substrate doping. A good fit to experimental data for beryllium, oxygen and copper ions is obtained for Si n+p and p+n samples.     

Analysis on discharge process of a plasma-jet trigered gas spark switch

The plasma-jet triggered gas switch (PJTGS) could operate at a low working coefficient with a low jitter. We observed and analyzed the discharge process of the PJTGS at the lowest working coefficient of 47% with the trigger voltage of 40 kV and the pulse energy of 2 J to evaluate the effect of the plasma jet. The temporal and spatial evolution and the optical emission spectrum of the plasma jet were captured. And the spraying delay time and outlet velocity under different gas pressures were investigated. In addition, the particle in cell with Monte Carlo collision was employed to obtain the particle distribution of the plasma jet varying with time. The results show that, the plasma jet generated by spark discharge is sprayed into a spark gap within tens of nanoseconds, and its outlet velocity could reach 104ms−1. The plasma jet plays a non-penetrating inducing role in the triggered discharge process of the PJTGS. On the one hand, the plasma jet provides the initial electrons needed by the discharge; on the other hand, a large number of electrons focusing on the head of the plasma jet distort the electric field between the head of the plasma jet and the opposite electrode. Therefore, a fast discharge originated from the plasma jet is induced and quickly bridges two electrodes.     

Effect of Plasma on the Zeta Potential of Cotton Fabrics

In this work, the effect of a low-temperature plasma on the zeta potential of cotton fabric was studied. The silver particle absorption on cotton fabric when modified by a low-temperature plasma was also investigated. The modification consisted of plasma pre functionalization followed by a one-step wet treatment with silver nitrate solution. The process was performed in a low-temperature plasma medium, using a magnetron sputtering device. Oxygen and nitrogen were used as working gases in the system, and the results were compared. After preparing the samples, the zeta potentials of the untreated and plasma-treated cotton under a constant pH value solution were estimated and compared. Also, Fourier transform infrared spec troscopy (FTIR) was used to examine the functional groups of the corresponding samples. The amounts of silver absorption on plasma treated and untreated cotton were examined using the energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) method. The results show that the amount of zeta potential for the nitrogen plasma treated sample is less and the absorption of silver particles by cotton can be increased strongly with nitrogen plasma treatment.     

Analysis on discharge process of a plasma-jet triggered gas spark switch

The plasma-jet triggered gas switch (PJTGS) could operate at a low working coefficient with a low jitter.We observed and analyzed the discharge process of the PJTGS at the lowest working coefficient of 47％ with the trigger voltage of 40 kV and the pulse energy of 2 J to evaluate the effect of the plasma jet.The temporal and spatial evolution and the optical emission spectrum of the plasma jet were captured.And the spraying delay time and outlet velocity under different gas pressures were investigated.In addition,the particle in cell with Monte Carlo collision was employed to obtain the particle distribution of the plasma jet varying with time.The results show that,the plasma jet generated by spark discharge is sprayed into a spark gap within tens of nanoseconds,and its outlet velocity could reach 104 ms-1.The plasma jet plays a non-penetrating inducing role in the triggered discharge process of the PJTGS.On the one hand,the plasma jet provides the initial electrons needed by the discharge;on the other hand,a large number of electrons focusing on the head of the plasma jet distort the electric field between the head of the plasma jet and the opposite electrode.Therefore,a fast discharge originated from the plasma jet is induced and quickly bridges two electrodes.