ADVANCED LOW-ACTIVATION MATERIALS - FIBER-REINFORCED CERAMIC COMPOSITES

A serious safety and environmental concern for thermonuclear fusion re actor development regards the induced radioactivity of the first wall and structural components. The use of low-activation materials (LAM) i n a demonstration reactor would reduce considerably its potential risk and facilitate its maintenance. Moreover, decommissioning and waste m anagement including disposal or even recycling of structural materials would be simplified. Ceramic fibre-reinforced SiC materials offer hig hly appreciable low activation characteristics in combination with goo d thermomechanical properties. This class of materials is now under ex perimental investigation for structural application in future fusion r eactors. An overview on the recent results is given, covering coolant leak rates, thermophysical properties, compatibility with tritium bree der materials, irradiation effects, and LAM-consistent purity. SiC/SiC materials present characteristics likely to be optimised in order to meet the fusion application challenge. The scope is to put into practi ce the enormous potential of inherent safety with fusion energy.