A kinetic model based on the balance of charge and energy over the dust particle surface around the scrape off layer (SOL) region in fusion devices has been developed; for describing the dust mass diminution, its temperature evolution and phase change process have been taken into account. The formulation has been utilized to determine the lifetime of cylindrical and spherical dust particles. A realistic situation in fusion devices, when the plasma exhibits meso-thermal flow, has been taken into account; for this purpose a rigorous approach, pioneered by Mott-Smith and Langmuir (1926 Phys. Rev.28 727), has been adopted to derive the general expressions for the electron (ion) current on cylindrical dust surfaces and the corresponding mean energy of accreting electrons/ions in a flowing plasma. On the basis of analytical modelling the numerical results for the dust electric potential energy and the lifetime of the dust particles corresponding to a typical plasma environment near the SOL region of Mega Ampere Spherical tokamak (MAST)/Joint European Torus (JET) fusion devices have been evaluated for graphite and tungsten dust particles. The results are graphically illustrated as functions of particle size, electron/ion temperature and plasma ionization. It is seen that a large dust particle immersed in low temperature plasma can survive for long time; as an important outcome it is also noticed that the cylindrical particles of tungsten last longer than spherical particles. The findings are of relevance in characterizing and simulating the effects of a variety of dusts for experimental campaigns in large scale (ITER/Demo-like) fusion devices.
The influence of secondary electron emission on the floating potential of tokamak-born dust