Design and evaluation of an optimized W/Cu interlayer for W monoblock components

Divertor plasma-facing components of future fusion reactors should be able to withstand heat fluxes of 10-20 MW/m² in stationary operation. Tungsten blocks with an inner cooling tube made of CuCr1Zr, so-called monoblocks, are potential candidates for such water-cooled components. To increase the strength and reliability of the interface between the W and the cooling tube of a Cu-based alloy (CuCr1Zr), a novel advanced W-fibre/Cu metal matrix composite (MMC) was developed for operation temperatures up to 550 °C. Based on optimization results to enhance the adhesion between fibre and matrix, W fibres (W_f) were chemically etched, coated by physical vapour deposition with a continuously graded W/Cu_PVD interlayer and then heated to 800 °C. The W_f/Cu MMC was implemented by hot-isostatic pressing and brazing process in monoblock mock-ups reinforcing the interface between the plasma-facing material and the cooling channel. The suitability of the MMC as an efficient heat sink interface for water-cooled divertor components was tested in the high heat flux (HHF) facility GLADIS. Predictions from finite element simulations of the thermal behaviour of the component under loading conditions were confirmed by the HHF tests. The W_f/Cu MMC interlayer of the mock-ups survived cyclic heat loads above 10 MW/m² without any damage. One W block of each tested mock-up showed stable thermal behaviour at heat fluxes of up to 10.5 MW/m².     

Effect of the ITER FW Manufacturing Process on the Microstructure and Properties of a CuCrZr Alloy

The first wall(FW) is one of the core components in ITER. As the heat sink material,the CuCrZr alloy shall be properly jointed with beryllium and stainless steel. At present, the grains of CuCrZr are prone to coarsen seriously in the thermal cycle process of FW manufacturing, which has become a critical issue for ITER parties. To investigate the mirostructure and mechanical properties of the optimized CuCrZr alloy in the first wall fabricating thermal cycle, simulative experiments have been done in this study. The alloy ingot was forged and hot rolled into plates,and then solid solution annealed, cold rolled and aged for strengthening. Several heat treatments were done to the CuCrZr samples, and the changes of microstructure, micro-hardness and tensile strength were investigated. The results indicated that the original elongated grains had changed into equiaxed ones, and the vickers hardness had declined to about 60 after experiencing the process of CuCrZr/316L(N) bi-metallic plate manufacturing, either by hot isostatic pressing at a higher temperature or by explosion welding followed by solution annealing. Joining Be/CuCrZr by hot isostatic pressing acts as an aging process for CuCrZr, so after the simulated heat treatment,the hardness of the alloy increased to about 110 HV and the tensile yield strength at 250?C rose to about 170 MPa. Meanwhile, the average grain size was controlled below 200 μm.     

N18锆合金的低周疲劳行为

在不同试验温度（室温～500℃）下,对N18合金进行了低周疲劳试验。试验结果表明：室温～300℃温区,合金表现为明显的循环软化;400、450℃时,合金逐渐呈现循环硬化,450℃时其硬化现象更为明显;500℃时则主要表现为循环饱和。随着温度的升高,疲劳寿命先增加后降低,300℃时疲劳寿命最高。低应变幅下,温度对疲劳寿命的影响更明显。通过疲劳断口SEM分析,室温下疲劳起源于单个裂纹源,疲劳裂纹扩展阶段的微观特征主要是疲劳条纹,局部区域出现轮胎状花样。在高温下为多裂纹源,大量二次裂纹的存在是高温疲劳断口的主要特征。     

Mechanical analysis of the joint between Wendelstein 7-X target elements and the divertor frame structure

The target elements of the actively cooled high heat flux (HHF) divertor of Wendelstein 7-X are made of CFC (carbon fiber-reinforced carbon composite) tiles bonded to a CuCrZr heat sink and are mounted onto a support frame. During operation, the power loading will result in the thermal expansion of the target elements. Their attachment to the support frame needs to provide, on the one hand, enough flexibility to allow some movement to release the induced thermal stresses and, on the other hand, to provide enough stiffness to avoid a misalignment of one target element relative to the others. This flexibility is realized by a spring element made of a stack of disc springs together with a sliding support at one of the two or three mounting points. Detailed finite element calculations have shown that the deformation of the heat sink leads to some non-axial deformation of the spring elements. A mechanical test was performed to validate the attachment design under cyclic loading and to measure the deformations typical of the expected deformation of the elements. The outcome of this study is the validation of the design selected for the attachment of the target elements, which survived experimentally the applied mechanical cycling which simulates the thermal cycling under operation.     

Overall mechanical properties of fiber-reinforced metal matrix composites for fusion applications

The high-temperature strength and creep properties are among the crucial criteria for the structural materials of plasma facing components (PFC) of fusion reactors, as they will be subjected to severe thermal stresses. The fiber-reinforced metal matrix composites are a potential heat sink material for the PFC application, since the combination of different material properties can lead to versatile performances. In this article, the overall mechanical properties of two model composites based on theoretical predictions are presented. The matrix materials considered were a precipitation hardened CuCrZr alloy and reduced activation martensitic steel `Eurofer'. Continuous SiC fibers were used for the reinforcement. The results demonstrate that yield stress, ultimate tensile strength, work hardening rate and creep resistance could be extensively improved by the fiber reinforcement up to fiber content of 40 vol.%. The influence of the residual stresses on the plastic behavior of the composites is also discussed.     

Numerical Study of High Heat Flux Performances of Flat-Tile Divertor Mock-ups with Hypervapotron Cooling Concept

The hypervapotron (HV), as an enhanced heat transfer technique, will be used for ITER divertor components in the dome region as well as the enhanced heat flux first wall panels. W-Cu brazing technology has been developed at SWIP (Southwestern Institute of Physics), and one W/CuCrZr/316LN component of 450 mm×52 mm×166 mm with HV cooling channels will be fabricated for high heat flux (HHF) tests. Before that a relevant analysis was carried out to optimize the structure of divertor component elements. ANSYS-CFX was used in CFD analysis and ABAQUS was adopted for thermal–mechanical calculations. Commercial code FE-SAFE was adopted to compute the fatigue life of the component. The tile size, thickness of tungsten tiles and the slit width among tungsten tiles were optimized and its HHF performances under International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) loading conditions were simulated. One brand new tokamak HL-2M with advanced divertor con?guration is under construction in SWIP, where ITER-like ?at-tile divertor components are adopted. This optimized design is expected to supply valuable data for HL-2M tokamak.     

Behavior of Brazed W/Cu Mockup Under High Heat Flux Loads

In order to transfer the heat from the armor to the coolant, tungsten has to be connected with a copper heat sink. The joint technology is the most critical issue for manufacturing plasma facing components. Consequently, the reliability of the joints should be verified by a great number of high-heat-flux （HHF） tests to simulate the real load conditions. W/Cu brazed joint technology with sliver free filler metal CuMnNi has been developed at Southwestern Institute of Physics （SWIP）. Screening and thermal fatigue tests of one small-scale fiat tile W/CuCrZr mockup were performed on a 60 kW electron-beam Material testing scenario （EMS-60） constructed recently at SWIP. The module successfully survived screening test with the absorbed power density （Pabs） of 2 MW/m2 to 10 MW/m2 and the following 1000 cycles at Pabs of 7.2 MW/m2 without hot spots and overheating zones during the whole test campaign. Metallurgy and SEM observations did not find any cracks at both sides and the interface, indicating a good bonding of W and CuCrZr alloy. In addition, finite element simulations by ANSYS 12.0 under experimental load conditions were performed and compared with experimental results.     

Towards the development of workable acceptance criteria for the divertor CFC monoblock armour

The plasma-facing components (PFCs) of the ITER divertor will be subjected to high heat flux (HHF). Carbon–fibre composite (CFC) is selected as the armour for the region of highest heat flux where the scrape-off layer of the plasma intercepts the vertical targets (VT). Failure of the armour to heat sink joints will compromise the performance of the divertor and could ultimately result in its failure and the shut down of the ITER machine. There are tens of thousands of CFCs to CuCrZr joints. The aim of the PFC design is to ensure that the divertor can continue to function even with the failure of a few joints. In preparation for writing the procurement specification for the ITER vertical target PFCs, a programme of work is underway with the objective of defining workable acceptance criteria for the PFC armour joints.     

One-step brazing process for CFC monoblock joints and mechanical testing

A new method of joining CFC to copper (CFC/Cu) and CFC/Cu to CuCrZr alloy (CFC/Cu/CuCrZr) was previously developed for the flat-type configuration. The joining technique foresees a single-step brazing process: the brazing of the three materials (CFC, Cu and CuCrZr) can be performed in a single heat treatment using the same non-active brazing alloy. The composite surface was previously modified by solid state reaction with chromium with the purpose of increasing the wettability of CFC by the brazing alloy.The feasibility of this process also for monoblock geometry is described in this work. The thermal fatigue resistance of the joined samples (quenching from 450 °C to RT; 50 cycles) was tested and the joints were characterized by apparent shear tests before and after thermal fatigue. The apparent shear strength of the CFC/Cu/CuCrZr joined samples was unaffected after these thermal fatigue tests.     

Manufacture of first wall mock-ups with calibrated defects for fabrication control methods: Development of UT detectable defects

A Research and Development program for the ITER Blanket-First Wall has been implemented in Europe to provide input data for the manufacture of the full-scale production components. In this frame, FW mock-ups have been fabricated according to ITER FW design requirements.In order to define acceptance criteria for non-destructive examination (NDE) for the series production, FW mock-ups (FWMU) representative of ITER FW are manufactured with calibrated defects to be validated by heat flux tests to assess the critical defect dimensions able to degrade fatigue performance and lifetime, when located at Be/CuCrZr joint corners and beryllium tile edges, and at the CuCrZr/CuCrZr and CuCrZr/316L SS joints.In order to create the defects of given dimensions, two techniques were studied: alumina and zirconia coating using a PVD technique in one hand; and on the another hand alumina and quartz thicker inserts.The paper describes the different approaches used to manufacture test samples with calibrated defects, before applying on FW mock-ups, and related non-destructive examination (NDE) by ultrasonic examination (UT). High heat flux (HHF) testing is not part of this work.     

Development of the armoring technique for ITER Divertor Dome

This paper describes the current status of the technique for armoring of Plasma Facing Units (PFUs) of the ITER Divertor Dome with flat tungsten tiles planned for application at the procurement stage.Application of high-temperature vacuum brazing for armoring of High Heat Flux (HHF) plasma facing components was traditionally developed at the Efremov Institute and successfully tried out at the ITER R&D stage by manufacturing and HHF testing of a number of W- and Be-armored mock-ups [1], [2]. Nevertheless, the so-called “fast brazing” technique successfully applied in the past was abandoned at the stage of manufacturing of the Dome Qualification Prototypes (Dome QPs), as it failed to retain the mechanical properties of CuCrZr heat sink of the substrate. Another problem was a substantially increased number of armoring tiles brazed onto one substrate. Severe ITER requirements for the joints quality have forced us to refuse from production of W/Cu joints by brazing in favor of casting.These modifications have allowed us to produce ITER Divertor Dome QPs with high-quality tungsten armor, which then passed successfully the HHF testing. Further preparation to the procurement stage is in progress.     

Numerical Analysis of Fatigue Behavior of ITER-Like Monoblock Divertor Interlayer Under Coupled Heat Loads

High-confinement mode is a very prominent operation style for future fusion device due to its unique advantages. However, the conjuncted edge localized modes (ELMs) are very difficult to control so that divertor plates are very prone to suffer both stationary high heat flux (HHF) loads of long-pulse operating mode and transient shock loads of ELMs. Most previous researches focus on degradation of plasma facing material (PFM), however, as a layer joining PFM and cooling tube, the soft copper interlayer suffers concentrated thermal stress loads due to mismatched thermal expansion of PFM and cooling tube. Its thermal fatigue behavior under such coupled loads is also of great significance to structural safety of divertor component. With such a motivation, the reduction effects on fatigue life time of a typical interlayer of monoblock divertor under series of coupled HHF and ELMs shock loading conditions are investigated. It is found that: (1) The transient shock feature of ELMs loading is propagated into interlayer with less sharp pattern. The increase of damage induced by coupled ELMs loading is limited in single cycle, while the accumulated damage of multiple consecutive coupled loading cycles is increased nonlinearly. (2) Under the coupled HHF and ELMs loading, the fatigue life time of interlayer is generally decreasing. The magnitude of decrease is increasing nonlinearly with the magnitude of ELMs peak and averaged heat flux. (3) For three characteristic parameters of ELMs shock loading such as frequency, duration and peak heat flux, the peak heat flux and frequency are two parameters more sensitive to determine coupled reduction effects on fatigue lifetime of the interlayer, while for high frequency case, time averaged heat flux takes the lead.     

High heat load properties of actively cooled W/CuCrZr mock-ups by diffusion bonding with Ni or Ti interlayer

Two actively cooled mock-ups with 5 mm thick tungsten armor, joined to CuCrZr alloy, were successfully developed by diffusion bonding technique with Ti or Ni interlayer for the EAST device in ASIPP. Its thermal response and thermal fatigue properties were investigated with active cooling. No cracks and voids occurred at the interface of W/CuCrZr after thermal response test with a heat flux from 0 MW/m² to 10 MW/m². It survived up to 200 cycles under 10 MW/m². The temperature distributions of the mock-up were estimated by Finite Element Analysis. The simulation results indicated that thermal contact capability between the tungsten and the copper alloy with Ti interlayer was higher than that of Ni interlayer. Results showed that diffusion bonding of W/CuCrZr with Ni or Ti interlayer is a potential candidate for a high heat resistance armor material on plasma facing components (PFC).     

Effect of pH on corrosion behavior of CuCrZr in solution without and with NaCl

CuCrZr is a high copper alloy widely used as electrical and thermal conducting material, especially in heat exchangers in nuclear reactors. In this respect, the physical and fatigue properties of CuCrZr have been extensively studied. The electrochemical behavior of CuCrZr, on the other hand, has not been adequately investigated. In the present study, the effect of pH on the corrosion behavior of CuCrZr in aqueous solutions without and with chloride (0.6 M NaCl) was studied. The pH of the solutions is found to exert significant influence on the corrosion behavior of CuCrZr. In acidic solutions without chloride, the corrosion of CuCrZr is ascribed to active dissolution with soluble products. In neutral and alkaline solutions without NaCl, the presence of oxides on the surface of CuCrZr leads to a noble shift in corrosion potential and passivation results in increased corrosion resistance. In chloride solutions at various pH values, the chloride ions influence the formation of the surface layers and the anodic dissolution process during polarization. At high pH, CuCrZr shows significant passivity and high corrosion resistance due to the growth of Cu₂O/Cu(OH) film which hinders further dissolution whereas at low pH the corrosion resistance is lowered due to active dissolution of Cu.     

High heat flux test with HIP bonded Be/Cu/SS mock-ups for the ITER first wall

In order to verify the integrity of the first wall (FW) of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER), especially for preparing its qualification program by ITER-O, Be/Cu/SS mock-ups, which were the same size as the qualification mock-ups, were fabricated and tested at the TSEFEY, an e-beam facility, in Efremov, Russia. These mock-ups were joined with a 316 L austenitic stainless steel (SS316L) block for a structural material, CuCrZr for a heat sink material and SS316L tubes for a coolant and then, joined with three Be tiles for an armor material. A hot isostatic pressing (HIP) was used as manufacturing methods at a 1050 °C, 100 MPa for 2 h for a Cu/SS joining and at a 580 °C, 100 MPa for 2 h for a Be/(Cu/SS) joining. Two mock-ups were fabricated by using 1 μmCr/10 μmCu of an interlayer between the Be tile and Cu block. The high heat flux (HHF) tests were performed at 1.5 and 2.0 MW/m² heat fluxes for each mock-up. The given conditions and the expected fatigue lifetime were evaluated from a preliminary analysis with ANSYS. Both mock-ups survived for up to 1000 and 268 cycles at 1.5 and 2.0 MW/m² heat fluxes, respectively. They are higher than the expected numbers of cycles to a failure.     

Examination of C/C flat tile mock-ups with hypervapotron cooling after high heat flux testing

Two C/C flat tile mock-ups with a hypervapotron cooling concept, have been successfully tested beyond ITER specification (3000 cycles at 15 MW/m², 300 cycles at 20 MW/m² and 800-1000 cycles at 25 MW/m²) in two electron beam testing facilities [F. Escourbiac, et al., Experimental simulation of cascade failure effect on tungsten and CFC flat tile armoured HHF components, Fusion Eng. Des., submitted for publication; F. Escourbiac, et al., A mature industrial solution for ITER divertor plasma facing components: hypervapotron cooling concept adapted to Tore Supra flat tile technology, Fusion Eng. Des. 75-79 (2005) 387-390]. Both mock-ups provide a SNECMA SEPCARB^® NS31 armour, which has been joined onto the CuCrZr heat sink by active metal casting (AMC) and electron beam welding (EBW). No tile detachment or sudden loss of single tiles has been observed; a cascade-like failure of flat tile armours was impossible to generate. At the maximum cyclic heat flux load of 25 MW/m² all tested tiles performed well except one, which revealed already a clear indication in the thermographic examination at the end of the manufacture. Visual examination and analysis of metallographic cuts of the remaining tiles demonstrated that the interface has not been altered. In addition, the shear strength of the C/C to copper joints measured after the high heat flux (HHF) test has been found to be still above the interlamellar shear strength of the used C/C material. The high resistance of the interface is explained by a modification of the C/C to copper joint interface due to silicon originating from the used C/C material.     

Low cycle fatigue properties of CLAM steel at room temperature

The low cycle fatigue (LCF) properties and the fracture behavior of China Low Activation Martensitic (CLAM) steel have been studied over a range of total strain amplitudes from 0.2 to 2.0%. The specimens were cycled using tension-compression loading under total strain amplitude control. The CLAM steel displayed initial hardening followed by continuous softening to failure at room temperature in air. The relationship between strain and fatigue life was predicted using the parameters obtained from fatigue test. The factors effecting on low cycle fatigue of CLAM steel consisted of initial state of matrix dislocation arrangement, magnitude of cyclic stress, magnitude of total strain amplitude and microstructure. The potential mechanisms controlling the stress response, cyclic strain resistance and low cycle fatigue life have been evaluated.     

Design improvement of the target elements of Wendelstein 7-X divertor

The actively cooled high-heat flux divertor of the Wendelstein 7-X stellarator consists of individual target elements made of a water-cooled CuCrZr copper alloy heat sink armored with CFC tiles. The so-called “bi-layer” technology developed in collaboration with the company Plansee for the bonding of the tiles onto the heat sink has reliably demonstrated the removal of the specified heat load of 10 MW/m² in the central area of the divertor. However, due to geometrical constraints, the loading performance at the ends of the elements is reduced compared to the central part. Design modifications compatible with industrial processes have been made to improve the cooling capabilities at this location. These changes have been validated during test campaigns of full-scale prototypes carried out in the neutral beam test facility GLADIS. The tested solution can remove reliably the stationary heat load of 5 MW/m² and 2 MW/m² on the top and on the side of the element, respectively. The results of the testing allowed the release of the design and fabrication processes for the next manufacturing phase of the target elements.     

On a simplified inelastic analysis of structures

In this paper two main problems are considered: the derivation of cyclic constitutive relations during inelastic regime where hardening, softening and creep can occur, and the development of the eventual periodical state in the structure during cyclic thermodynamical loadings.We give a very simple and practical framework to solve these problems in one unique manner.Its essential feature consists in the introduction of a family of internal parameters which characterize local inelastic mechanisms and the family of transformed internal parameters which are linearly linked to the previous ones through a symmetrical non-negative matrix and are indeed the opposite of the associated residual stresses. Thanks to that, the treatment of the local plastic or viscoplastic yield conditions can be easily made from only the classical simple purely elastic (or viscoelastic) analysis.This property allows important results during cyclic loadings: conditions for elastic shakedown, plastic shakedown, ratcheting and bounds for the limiting state.Several examples are given in the text.     

Design and technological solutions for the plasma facing components of WENDELSTEIN 7-X

The operation of W7-X stellarator for pulse length up to 30 min with 10 MW input power requires a full set of actively water-cooled plasma facing components. From the lower thermally loaded area of the wall protection system designed for an averaged load of 100 kW/m² to the higher loaded area of the divertor up to 10 MW/m², various design and technological solutions have been developed meeting the high load requirements and coping with the restricted available space and the particular 3D-shaped geometry of the plasma vessel. 80 ports are dedicated alone to the water-cooling of plasma facing components and a complex networking of kilometers of pipework will be installed in the plasma vessel to connect all components to the cooling system. An advanced technology was developed in collaboration with industry for the target elements of the high heat flux (HHF) divertor, the so-called “bi-layer” technology for the bonding of flat tiles made from CFC NB31 onto the CuCrZr cooling structure. The design, R&D and the adopted technological solutions of plasma facing components are presented. At present, except the HHF divertor, most of plasma facing components has been already manufactured.