Scientific feedback from high heat flux actively cooled PFCs development, realization and first results in Tore Supra

The implementation of actively cooled high heat flux plasma facing components (PFCs) are one of the major ingredients required for operating the Tore Supra tokamak with very long pulses. A pioneering activity has been developed in this field from the very beginning of the device operation that is today culminating with the routine operation of an actively cooled toroidal pumped limiter (TPL) capable to sustain up to 10 MW.m-2 of nominal convected heat flux. A technical feedback is given from the whole development up to the industrialization and focuses on a number of critical issues, such as bonding technology analysis, manufacture processes, repair processes, destructive and non destructive testing. The actual experience in Tore Supra allows to address the question of D retention on carbon walls. Redeposition on surfaces without plasma flux is suspected to cause the final 'burial' of about the injected gas during long discharges. (authors)