Further improvements of the water-cooled Pb-17Li blanket

The water-cooled lithium-lead (WCLL) blanket is based on reduced-activation ferritic-martensitic steel as the structural material, the liquid alloy Pb-17Li as breeder and neutron multiplier, and water at typical PWR conditions as coolant. It was developed for DEMO specifications and shall be tested in ITER. In 1999, a reactor parameter optimization was performed in the EU which yielded improved specifications of what could be an attractive fusion power plant. Compared to DEMO, such a power reactor would be different in lay-out, size and performance, thus requiring to better exploit the potential of the WCLL blanket concept in conjunction with a water-cooled divertor. Several new approaches are currently under evaluation. This paper outlines several specific modifications, it highlights progress made on various issues and outlines the R&D work which is still required to define an improved reference design for the WCLL concept. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.