Fabrication of Be/CuCrZr/SS mock-ups for ITER first wall

Three types of the mock-ups consisting of Be, CuCrZr and stainless steel (SS) were fabricated by a HIP joining method to demonstrate the fabricability of the ITER first wall. The effects of the mock-up design and the interlayer type on the joining strength of the Be/CuCrZr joint were investigated on the basis of the shear test results for the Be/CuCrZr joint specimens. The joining strength of the Be/CuCrZr ranged from 78 MPa to 204 MPa depending on the types of mock-ups and interlayers. The highest shear strength was obtained from the Be/CuCrZr joint specimens which were taken from the Be/CuCrZr/SS mock-ups with three 80 mm x 80 mm x 10 mm Be tiles and a Cr/Cu interlayer. The effect of the size and the number of Be tiles used in the mock-ups was not as significant as the interlayer selection. Even though the shear test is considered to be very useful to elucidate which interlayer is the most applicable for the joining of Be and CuCrZr, the final interlayer selection should be based on the results obtained from the high heat flux test for the mock-ups fabricated in this work. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.