Chapter 404 No Obvious Radiation Damage!

On the other side, Peng Hongxi stood beside Xu Chuan, with some expectation and some nervousness in his cloudy and old eyes, and a little worry.

The importance of the first wall material for controlled nuclear fusion technology is unquestionable.

The high-energy neutron beam produced in the deuterium-tritium fusion process is a global problem. If it is not solved, controlled nuclear fusion will never have hope.

And now, a glimmer of hope is just in front of him, which naturally makes him look forward to and nervous.

As for the worry, part of it comes from the experiment in front of him, worrying that the materials they developed may not have such a good neutron irradiation resistance effect in high-energy neutron irradiation.

But more of it comes from the national treasure-level young scholar in front of him.

Compared with other people, as a manager responsible for daily technical issues related to controlled nuclear fusion, he often contacts and discusses various work with the person in front of him on a daily basis, and also understands his ideas to a large extent.

If today's experiment confirms the neutron irradiation resistance of the zirconium oxide carbon composite material, then the next step is to build a demonstration reactor.

This will be the first demonstration reactor in China and the first demonstration reactor in the world.

But you have to know that two years ago, controlled nuclear fusion was still controlling high-temperature and high-density plasma in seconds, and now, in the blink of an eye, demonstration reactors that can actually generate electricity and be used commercially are about to be built.

I have to say that in his opinion, this step is indeed a bit big.

There are still many problems in controlled nuclear fusion technology that have not been fully solved. For example, although there is an idea for tritium self-sustaining, it has not been specifically improved, or key problems such as magnetic surface tearing in the tokamak device have only been suppressed and not completely solved. Even the operation time of high-density plasma, they have not completed at least 24 hours of operation.

At this point, it is a bit too hasty to directly start the construction of the demonstration reactor.

Of course, in this mind, the idea of ​​the older generation being cautious and seeking a complete solution before making achievements also occupies a part.

Compared with the younger generation, the older generation has experienced a lot of hardships. When the country had nothing, they walked a road with insufficient funds, materials and personnel, which made them develop a cautious and careful mindset to ensure that everything is foolproof.

After all, at that time, the motherland was really poor and could not withstand all kinds of squandering.

Of course, nowadays, the motherland has become relatively rich and powerful. Using money, funds and manpower to save time through trial and error, especially in the field of controlled nuclear fusion, is a completely feasible way.

Because the first wall material has not yet been solved, each deuterium-tritium fusion experiment is quite precious, and the time will not be long.

However, Xu Chuan has great hopes for the materials this time, and he extended the time of deuterium-tritium fusion to two minutes at the risk of increasing damage to the first wall.

As the ICRF heating antenna stopped working, the temperature in the chamber of the Dawn Fusion Reactor began to drop rapidly.

The heat generated by the fusion of trace amounts of deuterium-tritium raw materials is not enough to maintain its own reaction. Coupled with the operation of the water-cooled divertor, the temperature of the plasma in the chamber quickly fell below the million level and continued to drop steadily.

After waiting for the device to cool down completely, under the personal leadership of Zhao Hongzhi, two engineers wearing radiation protection suits quickly entered the reactor chamber and took down the material samples and control samples that had been deployed from the first wall.

The staff who responded outside carefully took the samples and stored them in the corresponding vessels.

These sample materials will be sent to the institute, where they will be tested for various residues using specialized testing equipment.

The most critical thing is the neutron irradiation damage test.

Whether it is the DPA value or the neutron penetration rate of the material, it determines whether this carbon composite material with zirconium oxide as an additive can be truly applied to the first wall.

When the last set of experimental samples was removed, the engineers responsible for the equipment maintenance quickly entered the reactor chamber with the testing equipment and began to evaluate the damage to the first wall material, divertor, overall structure and other components.

The two-minute deuterium-tritium raw material fusion reaction doubled the longest time they had ever opened. No one knows how much damage the first wall and fusion reactor structure will cause in this case.

Of course, the damage to the Dawn fusion reactor is not the current focus.

At this moment, everyone's attention is focused on the neutron-resistant materials sent to the institute, which is the key to truly determining fate.

As the materials were sent into the testing room, leaders such as Xu Chuan and Peng Hongxi also followed.

The first thing to do is naturally the neutron irradiation damage detection.

This is the core.

Under the personal supervision of Professor Zhao Guanggui, it took nearly two hours to get the DPA destructive physical analysis test and the neutron penetration and residual test reports.

When Zhao Guanggui came out with the test report, almost everyone in the laboratory surrounded him.

"What is the result?"

"Did it meet the standard?"

"What is the test result, Professor Zhao."

The voices of many people kept asking questions. Zhao Guanggui stood in the crowd, holding the thin test report tightly in his hand, and met Xu Chuan's gaze.

With excitement and excitement in his eyes, he nodded vigorously, and said excitedly and tremblingly: "From the test report, the carbon composite material with zirconium oxide as the catalyst has shown excellent performance in the test of two minutes of high-energy neutron irradiation! Neutron irradiation damage. It fully meets the requirements of the first wall material!"

Hearing this, the laboratory suddenly burst into fierce cheers.

Peng Hongxi opened his mouth slightly, and his eyes were a little moist.

Gao Hongming was even more delighted.

Everyone showed a happy smile on their faces.

The neutron irradiation damage result is the core key.

There is no problem with this test, which means that the first wall material has done it!

After hearing Zhao Guanggui's report, Xu Chuan also smiled. He reached out and took the test report from the other party and read it carefully.

[Irradiation conditions: deuterium-tritium fusion, irradiation temperature is 2945.15K]

[Irradiated materials: experimental group (zirconia carbon composite material), control group (austenitic steel + tungsten gold)],

[DPA generation rate: experimental group (0.0067%), control group (7.4%)]

[Neutron penetration rate: experimental group (99.958%), control group (59.81%)]

[Self-repairability of Frenkel crystal defects: experimental group (grain boundary reconstruction was observed, current efficiency is 58.92%), control group (no reconstruction traces were detected)]

[.]

The values ​​passed through his eyes one by one, and Xu Chuan's mouth curled up a little.

According to the test report, the zirconium oxide carbon composite material still showed excellent performance under the 14.1Mev high-energy neutron irradiation produced by deuterium-tritium fusion.

Not only is the DPA destructive physics excellent in terms of data, the grain boundary reconstruction ability given by the atomic cycle technology also shows a very strong performance in the material.

It can repair those trace neutron irradiation damages and reconstruct the destroyed carbon nanotube zirconium crystals to maintain the stability of the material itself.

As for the neutron penetration rate, although it is slightly reduced in the high-energy region, it does not affect the overall performance. The lost neutrons are less than a drop in the bucket compared to the amount of neutrons produced by deuterium-tritium fusion energy, which is completely acceptable.

I have to say that today's experiment was quite successful.

As expected, the zirconium oxide carbon composite material showed extremely excellent performance.

Staring at the test report in his hand, Xu Chuan thought with a smile on his face. The construction of the demonstration reactor can begin.

But, I have to write another letter.

After handing over other work to Peng Hongxi, Xu Chuan returned to his office with the test report of the zirconium oxide carbon composite material.

The white letter paper was spread on the table. He pondered for a while, organized his words, and then the signature pen in his hand fell on the paper.

[Dear Sir:]

[Hello, recently, the Qixia controlled nuclear fusion project has ushered in a major breakthrough. ]

[I believe you should already know that, in terms of the first wall material, after the unremitting efforts of many researchers in the institute, we have found a material suitable for the first wall of the chamber of the controlled nuclear fusion reactor]

[In terms of controlled nuclear fusion technology, the Qixia controlled nuclear fusion project has mastered many puzzle pieces. First of all, in terms of plasma confinement, the Dawn Fusion Device has completed more than two hours of high-density plasma operation (of course, if necessary, we can do it longer), and in terms of the first wall material, we have now found a suitable material. I believe we have enough ability to solve the remaining problems. ]

[The progress of the Dawn Fusion Device has given us hope that controlled nuclear fusion technology will be realized in the near future. Dreams shine into reality, and there is nothing better than this. ]

[Of course, this is inseparable from the country's long-term strong support and trust. ]

[.]

It took some time for Xu Chuan to write the letter and then handed it to Zheng Hai.

The purpose of writing this letter is not to ask for research funds. The last 20 billion funds have not been spent. This time, on the one hand, the purpose of writing a letter is to report the good news, and on the other hand, it is to let the upper arrange people to handle the construction of the demonstration reactor.

The experimental reactor and the demonstration reactor are two completely different things. The latter is much larger than the former in terms of scale and supporting equipment, and is more complicated to build.

Of course, in addition to this, there is also the need to make relevant preparations.

With the first wall material solved, he now has enough confidence to make controlled nuclear fusion.

After all, some of the later problems will never be more difficult than the long-term control of the first wall material and the high-temperature and high-density plasma turbulence.

And if the problem of controlled nuclear fusion is really solved, the impact will definitely be earth-shattering.

Not only in terms of economy and energy, but also in terms of politics.

Even controlled nuclear fusion itself needs to be properly arranged and handled.

PS: There is another chapter in the evening, please vote for the monthly ticket.