Magnetohydrodynamic flows in model porous structures

An interesting option for plasma-facing components such as divertors seems to be the use of liquid-metal saturated capillary porous structures, on which a stable liquid surface could be obtained by capillary forces. The aim of the present study is providing a first description of liquid metal flows in a capillary porous system (CPS) when an external uniform magnetic field is imposed, in order to judge the feasibility, from the magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) point of view, of the CPS technology for steady-state divertor applications. Numerical results show that, independently of the orientation of the magnetic field, the permeability strongly reduces in porous MHD flows compared to those in the corresponding hydrodynamic Darcy regime. Main parameters that influence MHD flows in CPS are identified.