- By:
- Russell, Nicholas G; Romedenne, Marie ; Jun, Jiheon ; Pint, Bruce; Kondo, Masatoshi; On, Cansu; Kato, Yutai
- Journal Name:
- Fusion Engineering and Design
- Page Number:
- 115504
- Volume:
- 222
- Publication Date:
- November 11, 2025
- View DOI Listing:
- https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fusengdes.2025.115504
Abstract
Liquid metal–based divertor concepts have promising attributes for application in fusion reactors. Liquid tin is being considered as one of those liquid metals due to its excellent thermophysical properties. However, tin is extremely corrosive to steels at elevated temperatures, and the coupled effects of corrosion with neutron irradiation for application in fusion reactors have not been quantified. Researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) have designed and irradiated a series of capsules in the High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) to help address gaps in the literature with respect to coupled corrosion and neutron irradiation effects. The capsules are filled with solid tin designed to melt due to the gamma heating in HFIR and allow interaction with the specimens. The capsules contain a SiC thermometer for post-irradiation temperature verification. Five capsules were irradiated in HFIR for 10.5 days, accumulating 0.93 dpa in the FeCrAl specimens. Post-irradiation temperature verification was performed on the SiC thermometers, and temperatures were observed to be higher than what was expected from thermal models. An explanation for the model underprediction is given herein. The capsules described within this article are the first to irradiate liquid metal within the HFIR flux trap and demonstrated the safety basis for continued liquid coolant studies in HFIR.
