The tritium extraction and removal system for the DCLL-DEMO fusion reactor

Garcinuño, Belit; Rapisarda, D.; Antunes, Rodrigo; Utili, Marco; Fernández-Berceruelo, Iván; Sanz, J.; Ibarra, Á.

doi:10.1088/1741-4326/aacb89

Cited by 27 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 39 publications

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“…However, the fuel tritium does not exist in nature, and it may need to be produced in fission (uranium) reactors and be transported to the fusion reactor sites, or produced in separate facilities on-site [27,28]. This clearly indicates that fusion methods using DT fuel are not more sustainable than fission.…”

Section: Tritium As Fusion Fuelmentioning

confidence: 99%

Muon-catalyzed fusion and annihilation energy generation will supersede non-sustainable T + D nuclear fusion

Holmlid

2022

Energ Sustain Soc

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Background Large-scale fusion reactors using hydrogen isotopes as fuel are under development at several places in the world. These types of fusion reactors use tritium as fuel for the T + D reaction. However, tritium is not a sustainable fuel, since it likely will require fission reactors for its production, and since it is a dangerous material due to its radioactivity with main risks of release to the environment during tritium production, transport and refuelling operations. Thus, widespread use of fusion relying on tritium fuel should be avoided. At least two better methods for producing the nuclear energy needed in the world indeed already exist, using deuterium or ordinary hydrogen as fuel, and more methods need to be developed. It should be noted that the first experiments with sustained laser-driven fusion above break-even using deuterium as fuel were published already in 2015. Similar results for T + D fusion do not exist even after 60 years of development, which gives no confidence in this approach. Main text The well-known muon-induced fusion (often called muon-catalyzed fusion) can use non-radioactive deuterium as fuel. With the recent development of a high intensity muon source (1013 muons per laser shot) (patented), this method is technically and economically feasible today. Due to the low energy cost of producing muons at < 1 MeV with this new source, the length of the so-called catalytic chain is unimportant. This removes the 60-year-old enigma, concerning the so-called alpha sticking process. The recently developed annihilation energy generation uses ordinary hydrogen in the form of ultradense hydrogen H(0) as fuel and is thus sustainable and has very high efficiency. Conclusions Muon-induced fusion is able to directly replace most combustion-based power stations in the world, giving sustainable and environmentally harmless power (primarily heat), in this way eliminating most CO2 emissions of human energy generation origin. Annihilation-based power generation has the potential to replace almost all other uses of fossil fuels within a few decades, also in mobile applications, including spaceflight, where it is the only method able to give relativistic rocket propulsion.

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Section: Tritium As Fusion Fuelmentioning

confidence: 99%

Muon-catalyzed fusion and annihilation energy generation will supersede non-sustainable T + D nuclear fusion

Holmlid

2022

Energ Sustain Soc

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“…Tritium extraction from LiPb has been successfully demonstrated, and several different methods exist, including gas-liquid contactor [49], permeator against vacuum (PAV) [50], [51], [52], and vacuum sieve tray (VST) [9], [53]. The latter two can reach high extraction efficiencies of above 80%.…”

Section: B Liquid Lithium-leadmentioning

confidence: 99%

Overview of Kyoto Fusioneering’s SCYLLA© (“Self-Cooled Yuryo Lithium-Lead Advanced”) Blanket for Commercial Fusion Reactors

Pearson¹,

Baus²,

Konishi³

et al. 2022

IEEE Trans. Plasma Sci.

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This article outlines Kyoto Fusioneering's (KF's) initial engineering and development activities for its self-cooled lithium lead-type blanket: Self-Cooled Yuryo Lithium-Lead Advanced (SCYLLA©). We provide details on overall design, including an initial tritium breeding ratio (TBR) assessment via neutronics analysis, as well as the status of SCYLLA©-relevant R&D. This includes silicon carbide composite (SiC f /SiC) manufacturing techniques, tritium extraction, materials compatibility, and heat transfer, which are being explored via collaboration with Kyoto University. Results of previous work in relation to this R&D are presented. Permeability coefficients indicate a promising property of SiC f /SiC tritium hermeticity at high temperatures. Tritium extraction technology via vacuum sieve tray (VST) is shown to be demonstrated at engineering scale. A local TBR of up to 1.4 can be achieved with the SCYLLA© configuration. Fabrication methods for various SiC f /SiC components including the blanket module, heat exchanger, and flow path components are provided. A tritium compatible high-temperature SiC f /SiC heat exchanger is discussed. Commercial viability and reactor adaptability are considered as a theme throughout. Finally, KF's plans to build a facility for demonstration reactor relevant testing of a SCYLLA© prototype in the mid-2020s, which will provide a significant step toward commercial fusion energy, are presented.

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“…For example D+D fusion cannot be used. However, the fuel T does not exist in nature, and it may need to be produced in fission (uranium) reactors and be transported to the fusion reactor sites, or produced in separate facilities on-site [27,28]. This indicates that fusion methods using DT fuel are not more sustainable than fission.…”

Section: Nuclear Energymentioning

confidence: 99%

Muon-catalyzed Fusion and Annihilation Energy Generation will Supersede Non-sustainable T+D Nuclear Fusion

Holmlid¹

2021

Preprint

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Background : Large-scale fusion reactors using hydrogen isotopes as fuel are still under development at several places in the world. These types of fusion reactors use tritium as fuel for the T +D reaction. However, tritium is not a sustainable fuel, since it may require fission reactors for its production, and since it is a dangerous material due to its radioactivity with main risks of release to the environment during tritium production, transport and refuelling operations. Thus, widespread use of fusion relying on tritium fuel should be avoided. At least two better methods for producing the nuclear energy needed in the world using deuterium or ordinary hydrogen as fuel indeed already exist, and more need to be developed. It should be noted that the first experiments with sustained laser-driven fusion above break-even using deuterium as fuel were published already in 2015. Similar results for T+D fusion do not exist yet, which gives no confidence in this approach. Results: The well-known muon-induced fusion (conventionally called muon-catalyzed fusion) can use deuterium as fuel. With the recent development of a high intensity (10 13 muons per laser shot) muon source (patented), this method is technically and economically feasible today. Due to the low energy cost of producing muons at < 1 MeV with this new source, the length of the so-called catalytic chain is not important. This circumvents the 60 year-old enigma with the alpha sticking process. The recently developed annihilation energy generation uses ordinary hydrogen in the form of ultradense hydrogen H(0) as fuel. Conclusions: muon-induced fusion is able to directly replace most combustion-based power stations in the world, giving sustainable and environmentally harmless power (primarily heat), in this way eliminating most CO 2 emissions of human energy generation origin. Annihilation-based power generation has the potential to replace almost all other uses of fossil fuels within a few decades, also in mobile applications, including spaceflight where it is the only method able to give relativistic rocket propulsion (Acta Astronautica 2020).

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The tritium extraction and removal system for the DCLL-DEMO fusion reactor

Cited by 27 publications

References 39 publications

Muon-catalyzed fusion and annihilation energy generation will supersede non-sustainable T + D nuclear fusion

Muon-catalyzed fusion and annihilation energy generation will supersede non-sustainable T + D nuclear fusion

Overview of Kyoto Fusioneering’s SCYLLA© (“Self-Cooled Yuryo Lithium-Lead Advanced”) Blanket for Commercial Fusion Reactors

Muon-catalyzed Fusion and Annihilation Energy Generation will Supersede Non-sustainable T+D Nuclear Fusion

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