Design and Testing of Dimes Carbon Ablation Rods in the DIII-D Tokamak

TL;DR

This paper details the design, testing, and analysis of carbon ablation rods with various geometries and coatings in the DIII-D tokamak to simulate high heat flux conditions relevant for spacecraft thermal shields and fusion materials.

Contribution

It introduces new rod designs and a SiC coating approach for ablation testing under high heat flux in a tokamak environment, advancing thermal protection material research.

Findings

Concave design reduces heat flux via increased radiation.

SiC coating enhances erosion resistance and lifetime predictions.

Preliminary experimental results validate design concepts.

Abstract

We present the design of ATJ graphite rods developed for ablation experiments under high heat flux (up to 50 MW/m2) in the lower divertor of the DIII-D tokamak [1], a magnetic plasma confinement device. This work is motivated by the need to test ablation models relevant to carbon-based thermal shields used in high-speed spacecraft atmospheric entries, where the heat fluxes encountered can be comparable to those achieved in the DIII-D divertor plasma. Several different designs for the flow-facing side of the rod are analyzed, including "sharp nose," "blunt," and "concave". The last shape is studied for its potential to lower heat fluxes at the rod surface by increased radiation from trapped neutrals and reduced parallel plasma pressure. We also analyze the possibility of applying a thin (approximately 30 microns) layer of silicon carbide (SiC) to the exposed part of several carbon ablation rods to benchmark its erosion calculations and lifetime predictions. Such calculations are of interest as SiC represents a promising material for both thermal protection systems (TPS) and a fusion plasma-facing material (PFM). Preliminary results from the DIII-D rod ablation experiments are also discussed.