SiCf/SiC composites are considered as one of promising candidate blanket structural materials and functional materials for the flow channel insert of LiPb blanket for fusion reactors. One of key issues for the SiCf/SiC composites is its compatibility with LiPb. A variety of SiC materials prepared by different processes (i.e. CVD-SiC, PIP-SiC), coated SiCf/SiC composite (the coating containing Al2O3 and SiO2) and SiO2 were exposed in the static liquid LiPb at 800°C for 200h and 1000h, respectively. The preliminary results showed that PIP-SiC had good compatibility with LiPb at 800°C. The coating on the SiCf/SiC composite was corroded by liquid LiPb. In addition, the XRD pattern of CVD-SiC integrally moved left a little after 1000h exposure.

A single new-type two-strap Ion Cyclotron Resonance Frequency (ICRF) antenna with output RF power of 1.5MW, has been designed and fabricated for the EAST device. it can be operated in the frequency range from 30MHz to 110 MHz. The design of new-type ICRF antenna including the current straps, faraday shield, and support structure and drive system are detailedly presented in this paper. The assembly procedure for the new-type of ICRF antenna was considered elaborately due to the complex structure. With the aim of increase the performance for new-type ICRF antenna, the modification for current strap and the development for vacuum feedthrough have been carried out successfully. The prototype of new-type of ICRF antenna was involved in the physics experiment in Autumn,2010 and have achieved good results of 6.4 H-model, 1MA plasma discharge operation, which indicated the new-type ICRF antenna have fulfilled the design requirements.

Reduced activation ferritic/martensitic (RAFM) steels are widely regarded as promising structural materials for fusion reactors. So the compatibility of RAFM steel with liquid metal should be investigated. Series corrosion experiments on CLAM steel in static and flowing LiPb with different flowing velocities have been performed both at 480°C and 550°C for thousands hours in DRAGON-ST and DRAGON-RT devices, respectively. The results of static experiments showed that the corrosion of CLAM steel was affected obviously by the crucible materials mainly due to the isothermal mass transfer between dissimilar metals during the corrosion process, and also the temperature and flowing velocity effect on the corrosion was also verified in the series experiments. The corrosion of CLAM steel tested in liquid LiPb can be attributed to the corrosion attack on the boundary of grain and the depletion of iron and chromium elements on the surface of CLAM steel after exposure. Further corrosion experiment under longer corrosion time will be carried out in the near future.

Based on the experience of the thermal convection LiPb loops, a multi-functional forced convection loop. DRAGON-IV, was constructed to confirm the different design functions of blankets in China. It can provide directly the valuable and real working condition, such as high magnetic field, flowing liquid LiPb with high temperature, tensile stress, reference IBM mockup, etc. Therefore, many out-of-pile experiments can be performed in it, such as high temperature corrosion experiment, stress corrosion, MHD effect under magnetic field for different manifolds, characteristic of flowing and heat transfer for mini-TBM, and purification technology.The detailed information of DRAGON-IV is described in the paper, its design objective, experimental parameters, main components are introduced, and the design scheme and analysis results of thermal-hydraulic for some key subsystems are presented. The results showed that they meet well the design requirement. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

CLAM (China Low Activation Martensitic) steel is considered as the candidate structural material in liquid LiPb blanket concepts of FDS series fusion reactors. To evaluate the kinetics of the corrosion attack exposed to liquid LiPb, long-term exposure tests for specimens of CLAM steel were performed in the DRAGON-I loop more than 8000h at 480°C. The exposed specimens were examined by scanning electron microscope and energy dispersive X-ray spectrometer and optical microscope. Moreover, the fresh specimens of CLAM steel were exposed to flowing LiPb at 480°C for 500h in order to investigate the mechanism in detail during the early stage of corrosion. X-ray photoelectron spectrometry (XPS) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analyses were performed before and after exposure, respectively. The results showed that CLAM steel suffered from LiPb corrosion attack due to the dissolution of the passivated layer and the typical steel elements occurred. And the detected corrosion rate is about 17μm per year.

Lead bismuth eutectic(PbBi) has been proposed as the candidate spallation target and coolant material for Accelerator Driven sub-critical Systems(ADS) as well as coolant material for fast neutron reactor,the liquid PbBi loop is the necessary experimental platform for the study of PbBi-related technologies.The series of liquid PbBi loops named KYLIN has been designed and built by the FDS Team,China.The corrosion experiments on martensitic steel T92,CLAM and austenitic stainless steel 316L performed in the thermal convection KYLIN-Ⅰ loop were presented in this paper.The preliminary results showed that three kinds of tested materials all suffered oxidation corrosion after exposed to oxygen-saturated flowing PbBi alloy at 480 ℃ with the flowing velocity of 0.14 m/s for 100 hours.

China Low Activation Martensitic (CLAM) steel is being developed at the Institute of Plasma Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences under collaboration with many institutes and universities. This steel has been chosen as the primary candidate structural material for the LiPb blanket and DFLL–TBM developed in China. The development and testing strategy for DFLL–TBM includes three stages: out-of-pile tests, tests in EAST, and tests in ITER. The joining of CLAM by Hot Isostatic Pressing Diffusion Welding and Electron Beam Welding is being studied in detail, and small scale panels of the TBM first wall and cover plate with flow channels are being fabricated. Properties of CLAM including fatigue crack growth, creep properties and compatibility with liquid LiPb are also being studied. Recent progress in these R&D activities is summarized.

Liquid LiPb eutectic is one of the promising candidate tritium breeder materials for fusion reactors. This paper presents the progress in compatibility experiments with liquid LiPb achieved up to now in China for some candidate structural materials. The results showed that CLAM steel had good compatibility with flowing LiPb at 480°C with the velocity of 0.08m/s after 5000h in DRAGON-I loop. On the other hand, after exposed in static LiPb at 700°C for 500h in a SiC crucible, the W and Mo specimens suffered much more weight loss compared with Nb specimen, and a thin reaction product layer was visible on the surface of all the three refractory metals. Preliminary analysis on SiCf/SiC composite specimens indicated that there was no penetration of LiPb and no reaction products on the surface with CVD SiC coating, which showed SiCf/SiC composite were stable and compatible with static LiPb under 700°C after 500h exposure.

Liquid LiPb(lithium-lead) experimental loops are the important platforms to investigate the key technologies of liquid LiPb breeder blankets for fusion reactors. Based on the development strategy for liquid LiPb breeder blankets,the technologies development of liquid LiPb experimental loops have been explored by the FDS Team for years,and a series of LiPb experimental loops named DRAGON have been designed and developed,which have independence intellectual property and multi-functional parameters. In this paper,the development route suggestion of Chinese LiPb experimental loops was elaborated,and some information for the senes experimental loops were introduced, such as the design principles,structural features,functions and related experimental researches,etc.