Characterization and analysis of dusts produced in three experimental tokamaks: TFTR, DIII-D, and Alcator C-Mod

Particulate, referred to as ‘dust’, produced during operation of tokamak systems can be a large source of activated material in a D-T fusion machine. Particulate less than 10 μm in size is easily mobilized both during an accident as well as during routine maintenance activities. We have collected and analyzed dust samples from three tokamaks to determine the potential contribution to accident source terms in future fusion power plants. We have obtained dust samples from Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratoryʹs TFTR (prior to the final run period in 1997), from MITʹs Alcator C-Mod (during March and April of 1998), and from General Atomics’ DIII-D (August of 1998). This paper presents the results of our analyses for particle size distribution, specific surface area, and dust composition, including the tritium content of TFTR dust.