Permeator Probe for Tritium Measurement

This repository develops a helical permeator probe design for simulating tritium measurement in fusion fuel cycle components. The permeator probe is based on the geometry from HyPer-QuarCh II: A laboratory-scale device for hydrogen isotopes permeation experiments by L. Candido et al (2021). Using OpenFOAM for CFD simulations as coupled to FESTIM for tritium transport, the permeator probe can be modeled and tested as a potential tritium measurement device.

How to Run:

Clone the repository:

git clone https://github.com/kaelyndunnell/Permeator-Probe
cd Permeator-Probe 

Run this command to create a new environment with the right dependencies (e.g. dolfinx, OpenFOAM):

conda env create -f environment.yml 

Then, activate the environment:

conda activate permeator-probe-env

NOTE: The environment.yml file does not include OpenFOAM installation, which will need to be done independently. Refer to OpenFOAMv13 installation instructions for your operating system.

Workflow:

To run the probe-in OpenFOAM simulation, first create the mesh:

python meshing/cad_to_gmsh_for_openfoam.py

Convert mesh to OpenFOAM format:

mv meshing/probe_in_openfoam_mesh.msh OpenFOAM/laminar-case
cd OpenFOAM/laminar-case
gmshToFoam probe_in_openfoam_mesh.msh

NOTE: Ensure the bounding box of the mesh is in the proper units -- with our geometry, it should be (-0.067 -0.1 -0.067) (0.067 0.1 0.067). If it isn't, use the transformPoints command accordingly.

Check the mesh:

checkMesh

Finally, run the OpenFOAM simulation:

foamRun -solver incompressibleFluid

When the OpenFOAM simulation is finished, the results can be fed into the FESTIM simulation by running:

python two_volume_festim_model.py

The results can be read from the festim_results folder that is created from the FESTIM simulation.