Engineering Papers⌕ Search

Engineering topics

Shimada, Masashi

Publications and source records attributed to Shimada, Masashi.

At least 19 records

Comparative characterization of mixed spectra and thermal neutron shielded irradiated tungsten

The effect of mixed spectra and thermal neutron shielded irradiation on tungsten was evaluated with plasma exposure in the tritium plasma experiment followed by thermal desorption spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. The two different irradiation campaigns were performed at the High Flux Isotope Reactor to 0.39–0.74 displacement per atom (dpa) in the 894–1379 K temperature range. A neutron spectrum influence on the void size and void number density was not observed. However, a strong correlation was found between void size and void number density with temperature, but not with dpa in the limited dpa range of this study. Thermal neutron shielding significantly reduced the transmutation to Re+Os. Higher irradiation temperature will lead to larger voids with lower number density, which reduces deuterium retention. In conclusion, grain growth was also observed for high-temperature irradiation of over ~1300 K within the limited grains visible in the transmission electron microscopy specimens.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Developing Multiphysics, Integrated, High-Fidelity, Massively Parallel Computational Capabilities for Fusion Applications Using MOOSE

As the need for fusion as a clean, sustainable, and abundant energy source grows internationally, so does the need for multiphysics, computational tools to model, study, and predict the complex interactions between plasma, materials, and engineering processes. These tools have a crucial role to play in solving scientific and engineering challenges and accelerating fusion energy deployment. To address these needs, modeling capabilities should enable massively parallel, multiphysics, fully integrated high-fidelity simulations of fusion systems. Additional attributes, such as being open source and modular while maintaining high software quality assurance standards will maximize impact by ensuring accessibility for all and wide acceptance, rapid expansion and development, as well as reliability, efficiency, and robustness. In this paper, we describe how the Multiphysics Object-Oriented Simulation Environment (MOOSE) framework, which has a track record of success in the fission space thanks to the attributes listed above, can be leveraged in the fusion energy field. We highlight key successes of the MOOSE application in the fission space and describe how MOOSE has been and is being applied to fusion applications in the United States---e.g., Tritium Migration Analysis Program, version 8 (TMAP8), MOOSE Fusion Module, Fusion ENergy Integrated multiphys-X (FENIX)---and the United Kingdom---e.g., AURORA, Achlys, Apollo. These efforts aim to establish a suite of tools that can be further extended to accelerate fusion energy deployment.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

FENIX: Towards a Fully Integrated Multiphysics Framework for Plasma Facing Component Modeling

Computational tools have a crucial role to play in accelerating the deployment of fusion as a clean, reliable, abundant, and sustainable energy source. Multiphysics, high-fidelity simulation capabilities can help model, study, and predict intricate interactions between materials performance, plasma exposure, neutron irradiation, and engineering processes. As such, they can assist in the resolution of scientific and engineering challenges underpinning design, construction, and commission of fusion power plants. To address these needs, ongoing efforts are leveraging the Multiphysics Object-Oriented Simulation Environment (MOOSE) framework and delivering new computational tools for the fusion community. These tools inherit crucial attributes from MOOSE. They are open-source, modular, integrated with nuclear industry-standard software quality assurance processes, and enable multiphysics, multi-fidelity, fully integrated, zero- to three-dimensional, and massively parallel simulations. After a short overview of these capabilities, we will present the development of Fusion ENergy Integrated multiphys-X (FENIX), a MOOSE-based application designed to enable plasma facing component design and performance evaluation. Throughout their lifetime, plasma facing components are exposed to extreme thermal loads, repeated thermal shocks, and irradiation by plasma ions, neutral particles, and high-energy neutrons. Consequently, designing a plasma facing component with acceptable lifetime degradation is extremely challenging. FENIX aims to model the multiphysics environment in which plasma facing components evolve to accelerate their design studies. To that end, FENIX couples existing MOOSE capabilities such as heat transfer, thermomechanics, and thermal hydraulics, with tritium transport via the MOOSE-based Tritium Migration Analysis Program, Version 8 (TMAP8), with neutronics via the MOOSE-based high-fidelity neutron-photon transport and fluid dynamics code Cardinal, and finally with Particle-in-Cell plasma simulation capabilities being developed in this project. In this study, we present the current FENIX capabilities and preliminary results of its application to model the Tritium Plasma Experiment set up at Idaho National Laboratory.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

FENIX: An Open-Source Multiphysics Integrated Framework Enabling Collaborative Development of Plasma Facing Component Modeling Capabilities

Advanced modeling and simulation tools have a crucial role to play in accelerating fusion energy deployment as a sustainable power source. Multiphysics, high-fidelity computational tools can help understand, model, and quantify the complex interactions between materials performance, plasma and neutron exposure, and engineering processes. As a result, they accelerate the design, safety analysis, and performance evaluation of fusion systems. This webinar introduces the Fusion ENergy Integrated multiphys-X (FENIX) framework, an open-source multiphysics tool for plasma facing component modeling. FENIX leverages the Multiphysics Object-Oriented Simulation Environment (MOOSE) framework, which has been developed by the United States Department of Energy Nuclear Energy Advanced Modeling and Simulation (NEAMS) program. FENIX couples various MOOSE capabilities such as heat transfer, thermomechanics, thermal hydraulics, electromagnetics, and plasma kinetics with the MOOSE-based applications Cardinal (neutronics) and TMAP8 (tritium transport). During the webinar, we will present FENIX and discuss how its modularity, openness, software quality assurance processes, and licensing approach supports effective collaborations, including public-private partnerships.

11 - NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

Toward a high-fidelity tritium transport modeling for retention and permeation experiments

We report Tritium Migration Analysis Program version 8 (TMAP8), the latest version of TMAP, was developed within the framework of the Multiphysics Object-Oriented Simulation Environment (MOOSE). Created at Idaho National Laboratory (INL), MOOSE is an open-source, dimension-agnostic, fully coupled, and fully implicit multiphysics platform featuring massively parallel computation capabilities. Using TMAP8, tritium transport in a divertor monoblock was analyzed to elucidate the effects of pulsed operation (up to fifty 1,600 s plasma discharge and cool-down cycles) on the tritium in-vessel inventory source term and ex-vessel release term (i.e., tritium retention and permeation) for safety analysis. With its built-in Message Passing Interface capability, TMAP8 can, in under 2 h, simulate tritium transport in three different layered materials (i.e., tungsten, copper, and copper-chromium-zirconium alloy) in 2D geometry, using a single device/computer with 10 cores. The MOOSE-based TMAP8 code can leverage other MOOSE tools developed under the Nuclear Energy Advanced Modeling and Simulation program to perform tritium and thermal transport in complex geometries and multiphysics environments. And via its massively parallel computation, MOOSE will enable the fusion pilot plant designers to conduct high-fidelity multiphysics modeling for the design of the divertor and blanket systems as well as for the safety analysis.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Deuterium Permeation Through a Self-Supported Palladium-Silver Membrane in Helium Gas Mixtures

Palladium membranes and membrane reactors can separate and purify tritium from impurities in the plasma exhaust processing system for the fusion energy fuel cycle. Membranes can also act as a continuous separation method to remove tritium from helium streams in the breeder blanket tritium extraction system, such as from the purge gas of solid breeders. To investigate the potential of these membranes for these applications, we performed a deuterium permeation campaign with a self-supported palladium-silver (Pd-25Ag wt%) tube of 0.15 m length, 76 µ m wall thickness, and 3.0 mm inner diameter. A gas mixture of 3.95% D 2 and a balance of He was delivered to the inside of the tube and D permeated radially outwards through the membrane into a vacuum chamber. Permeation experiments were conducted at 300 ° C, 350 ° C, 400° C, and 450°C, from 100 to 1000 sccm total flow rate, and with total pressures of 90, 150, 190, and 250 kPa. Further, deuterium permeation was consistently lower than predicted from diffusion-limited permeation models, thus we developed a transport model that included gas-phase mass transfer and surface reactions to model experimental results. The dissociation constant was optimized to fit the developed model to experimental data.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Hydrogen and deuterium permeation in Hastelloy N

Hastelloy N was chosen as the fluoride salt-contacting structural material for the Molten Salt Reactor Experiment due to its excellent compatibility with the fuel salt FLiBe. FLiBe is currently investigated for several advanced fusion and fission reactor concepts where tritium generation in the FLiBe is anticipated. Knowledge of hydrogen transport properties through Hastelloy N is important to understand how tritium would permeate through this material and result in an unintentional release. In this study, the hydrogen and deuterium permeability, diffusivity, and solubility were measured from 500 to 700 °C at a primary-side pressure of 10 kPa in a well-characterized sample of Hastelloy N. The prepared polycrystalline Hastelloy N had C and O impurities present on the surface. These impurities were investigated using Auger Emission Spectroscopy and Ar depth profiling. Here, the adventitious C was removed upon the first Ar sputter cycle whereas O persisted deeper into the sample. For permeation experiments, applied deuterium pressures ranged from 13 Pa to 100 kPa and deuterium transport remained in the diffusion-limited regime (J ∝ P 0.5 ) throughout the pressure range examined. Two methods are employed to measure the effective hydrogen and deuterium diffusivity: rise and decline. The decline method produced improved statistical model fits for calculating the effective diffusion coefficient compared to the rise method. The resultant transport properties compared well to published values for other nickel alloys.

08 HYDROGEN↗

Low temperature hydrogen plasma permeation in palladium and its alloys for fuel recycling in fusion systems

Superpermeation of hydrogen isotopes through metal foils is a critical component for efficient fuel recycling in fusion power systems. In that context hydrogen permeation through foils of palladium and its alloys with silver and copper was studied at low temperature (60 - 200°C) under plasma exposure. These alloys differ significantly in both bulk and surface properties, and comparisons can provide mechanistic insights. Here, permeation was observed only during plasma operation, confirming the negligible contribution of molecular hydrogen to the observed flux. As-received foils required surface treatment to achieve top performance. For Pd and Pd75Ag25 an oxidation treatment increased permeation an order of magnitude, but proved unstable as this desirable surface was reduced under hydrogen plasma exposure. In contrast, an Ar plasma cleaning step provided both high and stable flux. As-received FCC phase Pd60Cu40 foils required annealing to transform it into the high permeability BCC phase that delivered top performance. All foils displayed similar temperature dependence with flux declining with temperature, suggesting that the primary rate-limiting step is absorption of superthermal hydrogen. Among these foils the hydrogen flux through PdCu was 3 - 5X greater than that of Pd or PdAg, which were similar. The superiority of BCC PdCu is attributed to its superior hydrogen desorption kinetics. Using PdCu 100% permeation of supplied hydrogen was achieved, and the flux saturated with increasing plasma power at values >10 –2 mol H•m –2 •s– 1 , and under these conditions permeation rates are equivalent with or without the membrane present. The fluxes achieved are the highest reported to date at these conditions, and the results highlight the important roles of both surface and bulk properties.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Effect of He seeding on hydrogen isotope permeation in tungsten by H-D mixed plasma exposure

Hydrogen (H) and deuterium (D) permeation fluxes for tungsten (W) by H-D mixed plasma were studied to clarify the hydrogen isotope effect on permeation by a newly designed plasma driven permeation (PDP) device at Shizuoka University. A mixed H-D plasma was produced by introducing H and D gasses with various ratios. The atomic ratio and permeation flux in the plasma were measured during the experiments. It was found that the H:D atomic ratio in the plasma was almost proportional to the introduced H:D gas ratio. When single species of H or D was irradiated, the H permeation rate showed approximately 1.6 times as high as that of D. Under H-D mixed plasma irradiation, the highest HD permeation rate was observed when the atomic ratio of H:D in the plasma was 50:50. In addition, the effect of He seeding on H-D mixed plasma driven permeation behavior was also evaluated. The recycling of hydrogen isotopes on the upstream side was enhanced due to the formation of He bubbles near the surface, which would prevent the dissolution of hydrogen isotopes into bulk W and enhance the reflection process during plasma exposure. H and D permeation fluxes were clearly reduced by seeding He in H-D mixed plasma. At lower temperature (~723 K), the ratio of steady permeation fluxes of H and D was about 75 : 25, confirming the high permeation flux of H . These results have demonstrated a significant hydrogen isotope effect, even if He was seeded or not. As the temperature increased, H and D permeation fluxes approached unity at 923 K. Therefore,this indicates that the hydrogen isotope effect was determined by the combination of recycling / reflection at or beneath the surface, which will be controlled by the temperature during plasma exposure.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Relevance of Tritium Breeder Irradiation Testing in a Fusion Prototypic Neutron Source

A fusion prototypic neutron source (FPNS) will play a fundamental role in testing and developing fusion materials that can withstand the harsh fusion environment. We conducted a thorough assessment to determine whether blanket materials would benefit from FPNS testing. Because of the cross sections for the various blanket materials, lithium-containing materials can generally be tested adequately using existing fission irradiation capabilities instead of waiting for or relying solely on future FPNS experiments. However, non-lithium blanket materials, such as beryllium multipliers and flow channel inserts, should be tested under a fusion neutron spectrum.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Surface chemistry of neutron irradiated tungsten in a high-temperature multi-material environment

Deuterium retention was measured on neutron irradiated tungsten samples where one side of the samples had a visually clean metallic luster and the opposite side appeared to have a reacted surface film. Deuterium plasma exposure and subsequent thermal desorption from the reacted surface side produced spectra with larger total deuterium desorption at lower temperatures than from the clean surface side. For neutron irradiation, these W disk samples were installed in an irradiation capsule in such a way that one side of W sample was in contact with the surface of another W sample, and the opposite side was in contact with a SiC temperature monitor. The composition of the reacted surface was investigated using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and showed that SiC had interdiffused into the W samples. Neutron enhanced diffusion likely contributed to this as SiC and W are stable at temperatures exceeding the irradiation temperature. Results highlight the need to consider the surface chemistry of samples in drawing conclusions on hydrogen isotope retention of W materials and also illustrate the complexity of multi-material nuclear environments expected in fusion devices.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Calibration of a mesoscale tritium transport model for ceramic breeder materials in TMAP8 using experimental data

Due to the scarcity of the long-term external tritium supply, lithium-containing breeder materials are used in the blanket of fusion reactors to produce tritium faster than the deuterium-tritium fusion reaction consumes it. A cellular breeder is a promising material with higher lithium density and thermal conductivity than conventional ceramic pebbles and enhanced tritium extraction with interconnected pores. Although several experimental and modeling efforts have improved our understanding of tritium transport, the exact mechanisms governing tritium release from breeder materials are still unknown. As a result, current models cannot reliably assess the tritium breeding capabilities of cellular breeder materials. This work presents a tritium transport multiphysics model and calibrates it using experimental data of deuterium absorption and desorption from cellular breeder materials at different temperatures and pressures. This model accounts for ceramic and pore diffusion, trapping and detrapping, and several surface reactions at the pore surface. After calibrating the model and performing sensitivity analysis, we discuss pre-dominant mechanisms governing tritium release from cellular breeder materials. The model is part of the Tritium Migration Analysis Program [TMAP8], a multiscale, multiphysics framework for tritium transport based on the finite element multiphysics framework MOOSE. This study demonstrates some of TMAP8’s capabilities and provides insight into the mechanisms governing tritium transport in cellular ceramic breeder materials.

08 HYDROGEN↗

Hydrogen Permeation Analysis Tool

There is a rising need for the measurement and understanding of hydrogen transport properties in materials for the energy and transportation industries. The Hydrogen Permeation Analysis Tool (HyPAT) provides a user friendly interface for batch analysis of dynamic hydrogen permeation data to calculate the transport properties permeability, solubility, and diffusivity. A built in literature database provides an easy comparison to known values. A common method for measuring these hydrogen transport properties is dynamic pressure rise permeation experiments, for example, those done in the Static Gas Absorption and Permeation (SGAP) experiment at INL. Most laboratories develop individual, in-house codes for data analysis. HyPAT provides a platform that can be adopted by other user groups for such experimental analysis and significantly reduce personnel time spent performing data analysis.

Fuerst, ThomasF↗

Report on the Second MPEX User Research Forum

The Material Plasma Exposure eXperiment (MPEX) User Research Forum (MURF), a 2 day workshop, was held virtually on September 13–14, 2021, to seek community input for MPEX, a new high-power linear plasma device that is currently being built at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). This was the second MURF workshop. The first MURF workshop was held in October 2019 in La Jolla, California, and focused exclusively on the definition of the surface analysis station for MPEX. MPEX is designed to address crucial R&D gaps in plasma material interactions (PMI) for future fusion reactors. The MPEX plasma source and heating systems will allow plasma exposures of plasma-facing materials and components to prototype fusion reactor divertor plasma conditions. The MPEX design accommodates the introduction of previously neutron-irradiated materials for fusion reactor-relevant plasma exposures. This capability will be unique worldwide. The US fusion program has advocated for such a device in numerous community reports in recent years, and now ORNL is building this new device. MPEX is a Major Item of Equipment project executed by the US Department of Energy’s Office of Science Fusion Energy Sciences.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗