Fusion fuel pellet injection with a railgun
Railguns have been nominated as fusion fuel pellet injectors. It appears that a railgun could launch dielectric hydrogen isotope pellets at velocities up to 10 km/s or more at high repetition rates. A railgun consists of two parallel conductors (rails) that carry current to and from an interconnecting link (plasma arc armature). The magnetic field generated by the rail currents accelerates the armature and pellet. In addition to high launch velocity, a railgun offers several potential advantages for pellet injection: (1) pellets can be dielectric, (2) pellets can be fed into the open breech as rapidly as they are launched, (3) current can be controlled to ensure isentropic acceleration, (4) the mass of the propulsive arc is less than the pellet mass, (5) cryogenic and vacuum operation is possible, and (6) the pellet is provided lateral support permitting acceleration stresses in excess of its tensile strength, which results in shorter injectors, acceleration times, and higher repetition rates. The most restrictive limitation on railgun injector operation results from the low strength of the solid hydrogen pellets. An acceleration stress limited to 30 bars would require a launcher length of 3400 times the DT projectile length to achieve 10 km/s; i.e., a 5-mm-long projectile would require a 17-m launcher. A critical area needing investigation is the potentially adverse effect of the high temperature armature on the pellet.
- Research Organization:
- Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, California 94550
- DOE Contract Number:
- W-7405-ENG-48
- OSTI ID:
- 5768948
- Journal Information:
- J. Vac. Sci. Technol., A; (United States), Vol. 1:2
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
FUEL PELLETS
FUEL INJECTION SYSTEMS
RAILGUN ACCELERATORS
OPERATION
THERMONUCLEAR FUELS
THERMONUCLEAR REACTORS
DEUTERIUM
HYDROGEN
ACCELERATORS
ELEMENTS
FUEL SYSTEMS
FUELS
HYDROGEN ISOTOPES
ISOTOPES
LIGHT NUCLEI
NONMETALS
NUCLEI
ODD-ODD NUCLEI
PELLETS
STABLE ISOTOPES
700205* - Fusion Power Plant Technology- Fuel
Heating
& Injection Systems