News & events
Printed tokamaks: the way forward? | 22/10/2013
Could 3D printing one day be used to make components for fusion reactors? This was one of the intriguing questions posed at London's Science Museum on Tuesday 15 October for an event unveiling the work of the AMAZE materials consortium.
CCFE is one of 28 industrial and academic partners in AMAZE, which is led by the European Space Agency. The project's aim is to find new ways of manufacturing the advanced metals needed for a range of future technology, from space to aeronautics and fusion. In particular it will focus on developing ‘additive manufacturing', more popularly known as 3D printing.
In recent years, 3D printing – which allows you to build objects by printing them layer by layer straight from a computer design – has come a long way from novelty nick-nacks like paperweights. It is already producing complex items like mechanical hands, medical implants, and parts for aircraft engines. Such is the potential that Hilde Loken Larsen of Norsk Titanium, speaking at the Science Museum event, called additive manufacturing the ‘third industrial revolution'. Mostly used for plastic goods up till now, the next challenge is to transfer it to metal products; potentially saving money and creating less waste compared with present-day casting techniques.
For fusion, 3D printing could come into play with production of tungsten components for the divertor region of tokamaks, where the plasma exits the machine and heat loads on surfaces are greatest. It might also help with developing new alloys that are better equipped to survive in the intense conditions of fusion powerplants. This is CCFE's area of interest in the AMAZE partnership, and Chris Waldon from Culham described the potential in his presentation at the Science Museum.
Chris Waldon said: “The AMAZE consortium is a fantastic opportunity to challenge previous manufacturing design constraints and consider high heat flux concepts with improved performance. These gains are vital in supporting the EFDA European fusion roadmap and delivering credible concepts that underpin fusion's sustainability as a credible power source.”
Read more about AMAZE and the event on the BBC News website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-24528306
- The Science Museum's 3D: printing the future exhibition shows how innovators are using the technology to revolutionise the way the world makes things – from medicine, consumer products to artworks. It is running until June 2014.
Images courtesy of the European Space Agency.
