Application of e-beam welding in W/Cu divertor project for EAST

In the development of EAST actively cooled W/Cu components, the ITER-grade CuCrZr has been chosen as the heat sink material for its good thermomechanics properties. To realize the seal joint of the heat sink, a large number of electron beam welding (EBW) of CuCrZr/CuCrZr or CuCrZr/Inconel625 has been carried out. In the quality control of the W/Cu components, the helium leak detection at thermal condition has been performed on the entire components before delivery. However, in the operation of EAST device some micro leak on the components was detected indicating that the helium leak detection under present standard was unreliable for the quality control. Therefore, the ultrasonic non-destructive testing technique was introduced to exclude the defects. In addition, the welding shrinkage and bending has also been investigated to meet the required tight tolerances for plasma-facing components in vacuum vessel.