The European Breeding Blanket Test Facility: An integrated device to test European helium cooled TBMs in view of ITER

The activities of testing and qualification of the two European Test Blanket Modules (TBMs) to be installed in ITER as well as their main ancillary circuits are of outstanding importance in view of the experimental activities planned during ITER lifetime. Having in mind this purpose the EBBTF has been designed and installed at ENEA Brasimone Research Centre in order to meet the important requirements coming directly from the scientific Communities to tests and qualify blanket components and technologies in view of ITER and DEMO reactors. ENEA is responsible for the activities of design, construction and installation of the system at ENEA Brasimone and for all of them different national companies have been involved. Essentially, EBBTF consists of the upgraded HeFus3 helium loop coupled with a new lead lithium loop named IELLLO (integrated European Lead Lithium LOop). The two loops working together will be able to test the HCLL and HCPB mock-up, up to 1:1 scale. The device and its original design solution are described in this paper. (c) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.