Porous tungsten scrubbed by glow discharge cleaning

[Marlin]

Porous tungsten scrubbed by glow discharge cleaning

https://www.ans.org/news/2026-08-12/article-8289/porous-tungsten-scrubbed-by-glow-discharge-cleaning/

[Core Content]

Researchers at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory demonstrated that glow discharge cleaning removes carbon and oxygen contaminants from porous tungsten samples used in fusion reactors. By exposing the material to neon plasma and heat within the Lithium Tokamak Experiment-Beta, the team successfully cleared pore blockages. This in situ process allows for the maintenance of liquid lithium-facing components without requiring the removal of hardware from the vacuum vessel.

Researchers conducted experiments in Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory's Lithium Tokamak Experiment-Beta (LTX-β) showing glow discharge cleaning can be used to effectively clean samples of porous tungsten—used to hold liquid lithium in fusion machine inner walls—manufactured from powder-reconstituted materials, according to a paper published in...

Tungsten is widely used for plasma-facing components in fusion machines, especially in the divertor region where materials must withstand extreme levels of power flow. According to the paper, spark plasma sintering can be used to make tungsten into spongelike samples for holding liquid lithium.

Advantages of the manufacturing process include scalability, low processing time, and low cost. However, the powder-reconstituted materials and exposure to air leave the material contaminated with carbon and oxygen.

Read the full article at ans.org:
https://www.ans.org/news/2026-08-12/article-8289/porous-tungsten-scrubbed-by-glow-discharge-cleaning/