Alpha transport and blistering in tokamaks

Abstract

The particle flux and angular distribution of 3.5 MeV alpha particles impinging on the first wall from uncontained banana orbits in an axisymmetric tokamak reactor have been calculated. The resulting helium concentration profiles in the first wall can give rise to surface exfoliation under specified conditions. The major mitigating factor is the simultaneous surface recession due to sputtering by the D-T charge-exchange neutral flux. For the parameters used in these calculations blistering in high-sputtering-rate materials such as beryllium is unlikely, whereas in low-sputtering-rate materials such as niobium helium-induced surface deformation is quite probable.