Antiproton-Driven Fusion Propulsion System for OTV Applications

Kammash, T.; Tang, Ricky

doi:10.2514/6.2007-5610

Cited by 2 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 3 publications

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“…1) we introduced a bi-modal fusion propulsion system which can be used for transportation on the one hand, and for power production once destination is reached on the other. Fusion reactions in the device are initiated by fission fragments and annihilation products produced by "at rest" annihilation of antiprotons in a U 238 target properly placed in the magnetic confinement chamber in which the fusion 1 Stephen S. Attwood Professor Emeritus of Nuclear Engineering and Radiological Sciences, 2355 Bonisteel Blvd., Ann Arbor, MI 48109, AIAA Associate Fellow. 2 Graduate Student, Dept.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fusion Driven Fission System for Space Surface Power Application

Kammash¹,

Tang²

2008

44th AIAA/ASME/SAE/ASEE Joint Propulsion Conference &Amp;amp; Exhibit

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It is well known that fission reactors are energy rich and neutron poor, while fusion reactors are neutron rich and energy poor. As a result, it may be desirable to use the neutrons produced by a fusion reactor operating at a multiplication factor Q ~ 1 to breed fissile material in a blanket, which can also undergo fission reactions with the fast neutrons to produce power. We examine this approach in conjunction with a bi-modal fusion propulsion system which, upon reaching destination, is operated primarily as a neutron source. The neutrons produced by the DT reactions are allowed to impinge on a blanket containing thorium-232, thereby producing uranium-233. This uranium isotope has a fast neutron fission cross reaction of about 2 barns, which we employ to calculate the power density produced in a steady-state operating system. We consider a cylindrical system whose length is significantly larger than its diameter, thereby invoking a one-dimensional approximation for the neutron flux equation which we solve in conjunction with the U 233 production rate equation. For reasonable blanket dimensions consistent with the fusion plasma parameters, we calculate the power density in the fission system and find that it is about 70 times larger than would have been the case in a pure fusion reactor. Hence, such a hybrid system may be viewed as equivalent to a fusion reactor with a Q ~ 70 that can be utilized for space surface power production with no proliferation risk. Nomenclature

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fusion Driven Fission System for Space Surface Power Application

Kammash¹,

Tang²

2008

44th AIAA/ASME/SAE/ASEE Joint Propulsion Conference &Amp;amp; Exhibit

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Fusion Propulsion

Kammash

2010

Encyclopedia of Aerospace Engineering

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Next to antimatter annihilation reactions, fusion nuclear reactions produce more energy per unit mass than other energy sources considered suitable for space propulsion. The mass converted to energy in fusion reactions is almost an order of magnitude larger than that in fission reactions, and several orders of magnitude larger than chemical reactions. The fusion fuel, which can also serve as a propellant, must, however, be heated to very high temperatures, comparable to those inside the sun, in order to achieve ignition, and for the reactions to become self sustaining. At such temperatures the fusion fuel becomes ionized consisting of unbound, freely moving charged particles, namely electrons and ions often referred to as “plasma.” In order to produce energy exceeding that required to heat it to ignition, the plasma must be confined long enough to allow the ions to undergo fusion reactions. Such confinement is generally achieved in one of two ways, “magnetic” or “inertial.” Both of these approaches have been investigated for utilization in space propulsion. In what follows, the underlying principles of the use of fusion energy in space propulsion will be examined, and some representative concepts of both confinement approaches will be addressed.

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Antiproton-Driven Fusion Propulsion System for OTV Applications

Cited by 2 publications

References 3 publications

Fusion Driven Fission System for Space Surface Power Application

Fusion Driven Fission System for Space Surface Power Application

Fusion Propulsion

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