Speaker
Andre Haußler
(Institute for Neutron Physics and Reactor Technology (INR))
Description
The Helical-Axis Advanced Stellarator (HELIAS) is the leading stellarator concept in Europe. Its prime example, Wendelstein 7-X, successfully started operation in 2015. Based on the 5-field-period symmetry, the HELIAS 5-B engineering design study emerged which is a stellarator power reactor concept designed for 3000MW fusion power.
The stellarator confines the hot plasma by external field coils only leading to a complex 3D topology of the magnetic configuration. However, the use of specifically shaped non-planar field coils is necessary to generate the helical modulation of the magnetic field. This type of fusion reactor represents a challenging task for the design and maintenance of technological components such as the breeder blanket and the radiation shield. In this context, a major task is related to the neutronic analysis and optimization which must proof the ability of the power reactor to breed the tritium required for self-sufficiency and provide sufficient shielding to protect the super-conducting magnetic field coils.
The HELIAS concept was developed at the Max-Planck-Institute for Plasma Physics (IPP) to demonstrate the capability of optimized stellarators to work as fusion power reactors. To this end, the neutronic performance of the HELIAS fusion reactor needs to be assessed. This requires the development of a suitable computational approach to describe the generation of source neutrons in the plasma chamber and to simulate the subsequent particle transport through the complex HELIAS geometry.
In this paper, the development of a HELIAS user specific neutron source model for the Monte-Carlo particle transport code MCNP is described. Additionally, an improved CAD model of the HELIAS 5-B engineering design is presented containing breeding blanket, shielding modules, vacuum vessel and magnetic field coils. The CAD model is used to generate a mesh model, which is targeted for the application with MCNP6 for the first neutronic analysis of a HELIAS fusion reactor.
Co-authors
Andre Haußler
(Institute for Neutron Physics and Reactor Technology (INR), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen, Germany)
Felix Warmer
(Max-Planck-Institute for Plasma Physics (IPP), Greifswald, Germany)
Ulrich Fischer
(Institute for Neutron Physics and Reactor Technology (INR), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen, Germany)
