Compatibility of fusion reactor materials with flowing nanofluids

In this study, rotating experimental devices have been built to investigate the compatibility of the fusion reactor materials RAFM steel, 316L(N) stainless steel, and CuCrZr alloy with the Al2O3-water nanofluids. According to the ITER water-cooling program, the experimental conditions were selected as flow velocity of 1.13 m/s and 3.71 m/s, fluid temperature of 70∘C, testing duration of 1224 h and 2136 h, and nanofluid mass fraction of 0.01% and 1%. Surface morphology and component analysis are characterized by SEM, EDS and XPS. The preliminary results indicate that the compatibility of RAFM steel and 316L(N) steel with nanofluids is better than that of CuCrZr alloy. Metallic oxide film with holes and cracks appears on the surface of CuCrZr alloy, and its morphology is strongly affected by the testing duration, flow velocity and mass fraction of nanofluids. The corrosion mechanism is dominated by the coupling effect of chemical corrosion and mechanical erosion.