Behavior of Capillary-Porous Systems with Liquid Lithium under Influence of Pulsed Deuterium Plasma

Abstract

Capillary-porous systems (CPS) with liquid lithium are considered as a prospective alternative to traditional structural materials (W, Be, CFC) during the production of in-vessel elements contacting plasma of stationary thermonuclear reactors. The behavior of CPS with liquid lithium under the impact of pulsed deuterium plasma flows is considered. The basic processes determining the high stability of CPS against damage are revealed and the critical parameters defining the CPS resistance are specified. The behavior of the tungsten-lithium CPS after its interaction with atmospheric gases is studied in experiments on a plasma facility at the Ioffe Physical-Technical Institute. The irradiated samples of the CPS were studied by optical and scanning electronic microscopy and local X-ray spectral and X-ray diffraction analyses. The surface temperature was measured using a bicolored pyrometer during deuterium plasma irradiation. The outcome of the plasma effect on the heavily oxidized CPS surface substantially differs from that for a pure surface: there is damage to the CPS structure. The specific power of the plasma flow was 22–41 GW/m², and the number of pulses per irradiated target was 100.