Technology Transfer Department

Application sectors

Problem to solve

Nuclear fusion reactors (tokamak) require periodic inspections to check the degradation of vessel components during operation. To overcome this problem, a prototype of laser radar (In Vessel Viewing and ranging System, IVVS) has been developed in ENEA laboratories within the framework of the ITER (International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor) project. This system can also be used for inspections in the new generation of nuclear fission power plants where, because high neutron fluxes and gamma radioactivity are produced, conventional laser radars, TV systems, CCD cameras and other electronic devices cannot be used inside the vessel. Another laser radar sensor (LARUNA, LAser Radar Underwater for Nuclear Applications, EDEN project, End-User Driven Demo for CBRN) was also realized in ENEA laboratories for applications in hostile environments and in the presence of water with operating conditions up to 1MGy of integrated gamma dose.

Description

The laser radar systems developed in ENEA laboratories are based on an amplitude-modulated laser (at 500MHz) capable of simultaneously providing intensity and ranging images with high accuracy (1mm @ 10m distance) and with integration times per pixel of about 1 ms. The IVVS prototype developed for ITER works under the following conditions: UHV pressure 10^-3 Pa, temperature 120-240°C, gamma flux 5 kG/h, total gamma radiation dose up to 10MGy, neutron flux 5 x 10^13 n/cm2, magnetic field up to 8 Tesla. The LARUNA prototype for underwater applications realized for the EDEN project is based on the same principle and was used in the TRIGA research reactor (ENEA - Casaccia) for the inspection of nuclear fuel rods.

Research group involved