New simulations to qualify eutectic lithium-lead as breeder material

Abstract

Pb17Li is today a reference breeder material in diverse fusion R&D programs worldwide. One of the main issues is the problem of liquid metals breeder blanket behavior. The knowledge of eutectic properties like optimal composition, physical and thermodynamic behavior or diffusion coefficients of Tritium are extremely necessary for current designs. In particular, the knowledge of the function linking the tritium concentration dissolved in liquid materials with the tritium partial pressure at a liquid/gas interface in equilibrium, CT =f(PT ), is of basic importance because it directly impacts all functional properties of a blanket determining: tritium inventory, tritium permeation rate and tritium extraction efficiency. Nowadays, understanding the structure and behavior of this compound is a real goal in fusion engineering and materials science. Atomistic simulations of liquids can provide much information; not only supplementing experimental data, but providing new tests of theories and ideas, making specific predictions that require experimental tests, and ultimately helping to a deeper understanding