LiSoR, a liquid metal loop for material investigation under irradiation

Abstract LiSoR is a liquid metal loop that will use PSI’s 72 MeV Philips cyclotron to irradiate stressed steel specimens in contact with flowing lead–bismuth with 50 μA proton beam. Liquid metal–solid metal reactions is a joint effort of PSI and SUBATECH with the support from CNRS and the Institute of Physics from Riga. It has been initiated to explore whether or not liquid metal corrosion and liquid metal embrittlement are enhanced under irradiation in the presence of stress. Numerical simulations showed that the damage levels and gas production in thin specimens induced by 72 MeV protons are, within reasonable limits, comparable to those on the inside of the beam window of a spallation target at 600 MeV, while much less radioactivity is produced. The paper describes the basic features of the experiment, the technical concept of the liquid metal loop with a special emphasis on the test section exposed to the proton beam and some of the relevant safety aspects.