Magnetohydrodynamic pressure drops in geometric elements forming a HCLL blanket mock-up

The helium cooled lead lithium (HCLL) blanket concept is one of the designs that will be tested and validated in the experimental reactor ITER. The liquid metal, which is slowly circulated in the blanket, interacts with the magnetic field that confines the fusion plasma leading to modifications of velocity and pressure distributions compared to the ones in hydrodynamic flows. Experiments have been performed to investigate magnetohydrodynamic flows in a scaled mock-up of a HCLL blanket. One of the aims is identifying the geometric elements that give rise to the main contributions to the total pressure head in the module. Parametric studies have been carried out to assess the influence of flow rate and magnetic field intensity on pressure drops.