Inside the next generation of fusion vessels known as spherical tokamaks, scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) envisioned a hot region with flowing liquid metal that is reminiscent of a subterranean cave. Researchers say evaporating liquid metal could protect the inside of the tokamak from the intense heat of the plasma). It’s an idea that dates back several decades and is tied to one of the Lab’s strengths: working with liquid metals.
“PPPL’s expertise in using liquid metals, particularly liquid lithium, for enhanced fusion performance is helping refine ideas about how it can best be deployed inside a tokamak,” said Rajesh Maingi, PPPL’s head of tokamak experimental science and co-author of a new paper in nuclear fusion detailing the proposed placement of the lithium.