Neutronics Analysis for ITER Diagnostic Generic Upper Port Plug
- 1. Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Institute for Neutron Physics and Reactor Technology, Hermann-von-Helmholtz-Platz 1, 76344 Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen (Georgia)
- 2. ITER Organization, Route de Vinon-sur-Verdon, CS 90 046, 13067 St. Paul Lez Durance Cedex (France)
- 3. Departamento de Ingenieria Energetica, ETSII-UNED, Calle Juan del Rosal 12, Madrid 28040 (Spain)
Description
This paper presents new results of neutronics analysis performed for the updated design of the ITER Diagnostic Generic Upper Port Plug (DGUPP). Such analysis is performed regularly during the development of the ITER Ports design. Neutronics analysis is an important step in support of the development of ITER components irradiated by 14 MeV neutrons generated in D-T fusion thermonuclear reactions. The neutrons are born in the ITER tokamak plasma chamber and then impinge on the surrounding blanket and port plugs, after that they diffuse through shielding material of vacuum vessel components or could stream through the diagnostic channels and assembly gaps far away from plasma up to the bio-shield and in a small amount beyond it. While ITER machine is in operation it is inaccessible, after the shut-down it is planned to provide personnel access to the Upper Port Inter-Space Structure (UP ISS) behind the Port Plug via the corridors. Neutrons activate the ITER materials and those radioactive materials emit decay gammas during the shut-down causing a Shut-Down Dose Rate (SDDR) field distributed all around the activated materials. Decay gammas could also stream through the void channels. That emphasizes the need for calculation of decay gamma transport in evaluations of SDDR, which is reflected in the use of transport - activation interface code described in Section of Computational Modelling. The assessment of radiation environment (fluxes and SDDR) at DGUPP was focused on the port back-side area of UP ISS, where personnel access is planned along the ISS maintenance corridors. Minimization of SDDR at the front part of the ISS maintenance corridors was the target value for optimization of the DGUPP shielding and analysis of related neutronics effects. Following the dose ALARA (As Low As Reasonably Achievable) principle, every possibility to reduce SDDR should be investigated, emphasizing the importance of this analysis. The challenges of such analysis are inextricably connected with the engineering complexity of the ITER machine, with integration of many diagnostics systems having channels and gaps inside the ITER ports. Those gaps result in radiation streaming and negatively affect the shielding performance of the port plugs. The computational complication is caused by the need to model precisely the ITER geometry and then to run deep penetrating radiation transport in the substantially heterogenic toroidal geometry of ITER large-size tokamak, with 30 m height and diameter of its bio-shield. The whole mass of Upper Port Plug (UPP) could be up to 25 tons and it must be very precisely positioned inside the port opening in blanket and Vacuum Vessel. Facing the engineering challenges for the assembly of DGUPP, there were proposed two Project Change Requests (PCRs) No. 439 and 709 concerning the design updates of UPP/blanket interface and its remote handling
Additional details
Publishing Information
- Journal Title
- Transactions of the American Nuclear Society
- Journal Volume
- 116
- Journal Page Range
- p. 275-278
- ISSN
- 0003-018X
Conference
- Title
- 2017 Annual Meeting of the American Nuclear Society
- Dates
- 11-15 Jun 2017
- Place
- San Francisco, CA (United States)
INIS
- Country of Publication
- United States
- Country of Input or Organization
- France
- INIS RN
- 52087786
- Subject category
- S70: PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY; S61: RADIATION PROTECTION AND DOSIMETRY; S73: NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS;
- Resource subtype / Literary indicator
- Conference
- Descriptors DEI
- ALARA; COMPUTERIZED SIMULATION; DECAY; DESIGN; DOSE RATES; GEOMETRY; IRRADIATION; ITER TOKAMAK; MEV RANGE; MINIMIZATION; NEUTRONS; PERFORMANCE; PLASMA; RADIATION STREAMING; RADIATION TRANSPORT; RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS; REMOTE HANDLING; SHIELDING MATERIALS; THERMONUCLEAR REACTIONS
- Descriptors DEC
- BARYONS; CLOSED PLASMA DEVICES; ELEMENTARY PARTICLES; ENERGY RANGE; FERMIONS; HADRONS; MATERIALS; MATHEMATICS; NUCLEAR REACTIONS; NUCLEONS; NUCLEOSYNTHESIS; OPTIMIZATION; SIMULATION; SYNTHESIS; THERMONUCLEAR DEVICES; THERMONUCLEAR REACTORS; TOKAMAK DEVICES; TOKAMAK TYPE REACTORS
Optional Information
- Notes
- 6 refs.; available from American Nuclear Society - ANS, 555 North Kensington Avenue, La Grange Park, IL 60526 (US)