Neutronics aspects of a DHCE experiment

• Published in: Journal of nuclear materials 1999-05, Vol.271 (1-3), p.349-355
• Main Authors: Gomes, Itacil C, Tsai, Hanchung, Smith, Dale L
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 0022-3115; 1873-4820
• DOI: 10.1016/S0022-3115(98)00719-3

The DHCE (dynamic helium charging experiment) irradiation experiment was conceived to simulate fusion-relevant helium production in a fission reactor irradiation. The main objective is to maintain the helium-to-dpa ratio at, roughly, the same level as expected in a fusion environment. The problem in fission reactor irradiation is that helium production is very low, because the fission neutrons, for basically all structural materials relevant for fusion applications, do not have enough energy to trigger the helium producing reactions. A DHCE experiment involves the decay of tritium to He-3 to produce the required helium during irradiation. This paper describes an analysis of the most important aspects of a DHCE experiment and compares different types of fission reactors and their suitability for performing such an experiment. It is concluded that DHCE experiments are feasible in a certain class of mixed-spectrum fission reactors, but a careful and detailed evaluation, for each facility and condition, must be performed to ensure the success of the experiment.