Advancements in Thermal-Hydraulic Design and Qualification of In-Vessel Components for Fusion Power Plants
A special issue of Energies (ISSN 1996-1073). This special issue belongs to the section "B4: Nuclear Energy".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 25 February 2026 | Viewed by 26
Special Issue Editor
Interests: breeding blanket design and technology; in-vessel components design and integration; thermal-hydraulic design of breeding blanket system; high-heat flux testing
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Reliable in-vessel components, with a special focus on the Breeding Blanket as the largest in-vessel system, are pivotal not only for tritium self-sufficiency but also for converting neutron energy into useful heat, transporting it through primary cooling circuits, and coupling it efficiently to power-conversion systems. This Special Issue invites cutting-edge contributions on the status and progress of design and technology development, with special emphasis on heat extraction and cooling performance, power-cycle integration, and plant availability/efficiency.
We welcome contributions that quantify the ENTIRE energy pathway—from neutronic energy deposition in the in-vessel components to its conversion into high-grade heat transported by a coolant (He, water, PbLi, FLiBe, etc.) through the primary heat transport system and to its transfer into a power conversion system (Rankine/Brayton, including sCO2). Submissions should also demonstrate margins against high-heat-flux and transient loads. Topics of interest include thermal hydraulics and magnetohydrodynamics in relevant coolants; coolant corrosion and chemistry control aspects; tritium production and extraction with implications for coolant circuits and permeation barriers; and integration challenges of in-vessel systems into the primary heat transport system. Methodological papers are encouraged, particularly those in which multi-physics co-simulation, verification and validation/uncertainty quantification, and digital twins lead to demonstrable improvements in cooling efficiency, thermal margins, and feasible power-conversion coupling. We also seek qualification roadmaps and facility strategies that raise TRL via separate-effects and integrated mock-up tests at representative heat fluxes, flow rates, and temperatures.
Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Breeding Blanket and divertor concepts, focusing on the thermal-hydraulic design and performance;
- Integration challenges of in-vessel components, focusing on the primary heat transfer system;
- First-wall/divertor protection, heat–exhaust compatibility, and transient resilience;
- Coolant/functional material MHD, corrosion, and chemistry control;
- Multi-physics modeling, verification, and validation/uncertainty Quantification and benchmark datasets for heat extraction and energy system integration;
- Testing of in-vessel components and facility strategies of non-nuclear high-heat-flux testing and nuclear testing, as an integral part of the qualification roadmap.
We look forward to original research articles, reviews, perspectives, and short communications that deliver quantitative insights connecting advances in these systems to nuclear heat, cooling, and power conversion for future fusion power plants.
Dr. Francisco A. Hernandez
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- breeding blanket
- divertor
- in-vessel components
- reactor integration
- tritium self-sufficiency
- technology readiness
- thermal hydraulics
- cooling systems
- high-heat flux testing
- power conversion
- balance of plant
- heat extraction
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