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Abstract
Instability and disruption of high-temperature plasma in fusion devices may result in the edge-localized modes (ELMs) and lead to melting of plasma facing components (PFCs) causing their damage. Beryllium (Be) is used as a first wall for PFCs due to its low density, high strength, and high thermal conductivity. However, melting of Be on the surface of first wall is of a great concern as splashing of a molten Be layer will result in the plasma contamination and termination of fusion reaction. Therefore, it is important to understand the physics mechanisms characterizing the splashing of Be from a pool under the plasma impact in a strong magnetic field as that in the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER). The computational model that combines the volume of fluid (VoF) and magneto-hydrodynamic (MHD) models is used to simulate the effects of thermal, viscous, gravitational and surface tension forces on the molten Be layer. The additional source terms representing the external and thermo-emission currents are also implemented. These currents are taken into consideration as they contribute to the electromagnetic JxB force and may result in faster melt motion, redistribution, and splashing. In this work, the effects of JxB forces on splashing of molten Be, development and growth of waves, and ejection of molten droplets are examined. The stimulation results show the motion of molten Be layer and development waves at the vapor-melt interface. Results may complement the experiments at Joint European Torus (JET) and studies of PFCs melt layer phenomenon for ITER program.
Publication Date
2020
Disciplines
Nuclear Engineering
Is Part Of
VCU Graduate Research Posters