For the ITER TBM Program, two equatorial ports (#16, #18) of the machine are dedicated to the operations of four independent Test Blanket Systems (TBSs). Each TBS is composed of a Test Blanket Module (TBM) and several ancillary systems, among them the Tritium Extraction System (TES), the Neutron Activation System (NAS), the Tritium Accountancy System (TAS). The main equipment of TES, NAS and TAS are located in different rooms of the tokamak complex. The pipes connecting such equipment from one room to another room are called Connection Pipes (CPs) and they carry tritiated fluids. A second barrier of confinement is necessary in order to fulfill some key project requirements.The paper addresses the rational and benefits of implementing guard-pipes around the process pipes. It describes also the outcomes of the design development phase carried out over the last few years to reach the stage of detailed design, to proceed with the fabrication of some components, and also to complete the construction design ready for works execution. The design accounts for the specific sequence of assembly and welding operations. It will focus on some technical complexities which were tackled. They were triggered in particular by the required compliance with French regulations for nuclear pressure equipment.

This paper describes the main acceptance criteria and required acceptance tests for the components of the six Test Blanket Systems to be installed and operated in ITER It summarizes the guide-line toward the establishment of detailed test plans for the TBS, starting from the end-product at the ITER Members factories, and to generally define the type of tests that have to be performed on the ITER site after shipment, and/or prior to the systems final commissioning phase. (C) 2015 Published by Elsevier B.V.

The paper describes the organization of the Test Blanket Module (TBM) program, its overall objective and schedule and the status of the technical activities within the ITER Organization-Central Team (IO-CT). The latter include the design integration of the Test Blanket Systems (TBSs) into the nuclear buildings, ensuring all interfaces with other ITER systems, the design of the common TBS components such as the TBM Frames, the Dummy TBMs, and the TBS maintenance tools and equipment in the TBM Port Cell as well as in the Hot Cell building, the design of the TBS connection pipes and the definition of the required maintenance operations and associated R&D. The paper also discusses the major challenges that the TBM Program will be facing in ITER such as the potential impact of the TBMs ferritic/martensitic structures on plasma operations, the approaches to tritium and contamination confinement, the required mitigation and recovery actions in case of accidents, and the assessment of the reliability aspects that could have an impact on ITER availability.

Three ITER equatorial port cells are dedicated to the assessment of six different designs of breeding blankets, known as Test Blanket Modules (TBMs). Several high temperature components and pipework will be present in each TBM port cell and will release a significant quantity of heat that has to be extracted in order to avoid the ambient air and concrete wall temperatures to exceed allowable limits. Moreover, from these components and pipes, a fraction of the contained tritium permeates and/or leaks into the port cell. This paper describes the optimization of the heat extraction management during operation, and the tritium concentration control required for entry into the port cell to proceed with the required maintenance operations after the plasma shutdown. (C) 2014 L.M. Giancarli. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Each Test Blanket System in ITER is formed by an in-vessel component, the Test Blanket Module, and several associated ancillary systems (coolant and Tritium systems, instrumentation and control systems). The paper describes the overall replacement/maintenance strategy and the main maintenance tasks that have to be considered in the design of the systems. It shows that there are no critical issues. (C) 2013 ITER Organization. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

In the framework of the TBM Program, three ITER vacuum vessel equatorial ports (#16, #18 and #02) have been allocated for the testing of up to six mock-ups of six different DEMO tritium breeding blankets. Each one is called a Test Blanket System (TBS). A TBS consists mainly of the Test Blanket Module (TBM), the in-vessel component facing the plasma, and several ancillary systems, in particular the cooling system and the tritium extraction system. Each port accommodates two TBMs and therefore the two TBSs have to share the corresponding port cell. This paper deals with the design integration aspects of the two TBSs in each port cell performed at ITER Organization (10) with the corresponding definition of interfaces with other ITER systems. The performed activities have raised several issues that are discussed in the paper and for which design solutions are proposed. (C) 2012 ITER Organization. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Up to six mock-ups of different tritium breeding blanket systems, referred to as Test Blanket Systems (TBS), will be tested in three equatorial ports of ITER. The paper describes the recent studies performed by the IO for the preparation of the most urgent interfaces required for the integration of the TBSs into the ITER device and Tokamak complex.Main addressed items concern the impact of the TBM ferromagnetic structural material on plasma performance, the preliminary design of the TBM frame, the main dimensions and location for the TBM cooling systems and for the Tritium circuits, and preliminary requirement for measurement systems.A large effort has also been devoted to the proposed maintenance/refurbishment procedure and to the space and equipment requirements in the hot cell facility, including provisions for the shipping of TBM sub-components outside the ITER site for post-irradiation examinations. (C) 2010 Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.