Current status on the detailed design and development of fabrication techniques for the ITER blanket shield block in Korea

Recent activities and progress on the design and fabrication of the ITER blanket shield block in Korea are described in this paper. Hydraulic analyses, using a flow driver model for determining the gap between the radial cooling passages and flow drivers inside the shield block, were performed. The thermo-hydraulic analysis of half of a shield block was also conducted to investigate the uniformity of the flow stream in cooling passages and to evaluate the temperature distribution in the structure. The maximum temperature is below the allowable value, although hot spots occurred in the corner edge in the shield block. A manufacturing feasibility study for the development of the blanket shield block was performed in cooperation with KO industries. It was found that specific techniques would be required for the successful fabrication of an ITER blanket shield block, specifically electron-beam welding at a thickness up to 110 mm. The development of joining and drilling technologies for the thick shield block and lid joints is in progress. In addition, a full scale mock-up fabrication and the development of NDT techniques are planned in the near future.