The fusion breeder
The fusion breeder is a fusion reactor designed with special blankets to maximize the transmutation by 14 MeV neutrons of uranium-238 to plutonium or thorium to uranium-233 for use as a fuel for fission reactors. Breeding fissile fuels has not been a goal of the U.S. fusion energy program. This paper suggests it is time for a policy change to make the fusion breeder a goal of the U.S. fusion program and the U.S. nuclear energy program. There is wide agreement that many approaches will work and will produce fuel for five equal-sized LWRs, and some approach as many as 20 LWRs at electricity costs within 20% of those at today's price of uranium ($30/lb of U/sub 3/O/sub 8/). The blankets designed to suppress fissioning, called symbiotes, fusion fuel factories, or just fusion breeders, will have safety characteristics more like pure fusion reactors and will support as many as 15 equal power LWRs. The blankets designed to maximize fast fission of fertile material will have safety characteristics more like fission reactors and will support 5 LWRs. This author strongly recommends development of the fission suppressed blanket type, a point of view not agreed upon by everyone. There is, however, wide agreement that, to meet the market price for uranium which would result in LWR electricity within 20% of today's cost with either blanket type, fusion components can cost severalfold more than would be allowed for pure fusion to meet the goal of making electricity alone at 20% over today's fission costs. Also widely agreed is that the critical-pathitem for the fusion breeder is fusion development itself; however, development of fusion breeder specific items (blankets, fuel cycle) should be started now in order to have the fusion breeder by the time the rise in uranium prices forces other more costly choices.
- Research Organization:
- Lawrence Livermore National Lab., Livermore, CA
- OSTI ID:
- 5194865
- Journal Information:
- J. Fusion Energy; (United States), Vol. 2:4/5
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS
NUCLEAR FUELS
BREEDING
PLUTONIUM 239
THERMONUCLEAR REACTORS
COST BENEFIT ANALYSIS
URANIUM 233
BREEDING BLANKETS
ECONOMICS
ENERGY ACCOUNTING
FEASIBILITY STUDIES
FERTILE MATERIALS
PRICES
REACTOR SAFETY
URANIUM OXIDES U3O8
ACCOUNTING
ACTINIDE COMPOUNDS
ACTINIDE ISOTOPES
ACTINIDE NUCLEI
ALPHA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
CHALCOGENIDES
ENERGY ANALYSIS
ENERGY SOURCES
EVEN-ODD NUCLEI
FUELS
HEAVY NUCLEI
ISOTOPES
MATERIALS
NUCLEAR FUEL CONVERSION
NUCLEI
OXIDES
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PLUTONIUM ISOTOPES
RADIOISOTOPES
REACTOR COMPONENTS
REACTOR MATERIALS
SAFETY
URANIUM COMPOUNDS
URANIUM ISOTOPES
URANIUM OXIDES
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700200* - Fusion Energy- Fusion Power Plant Technology
050700 - Nuclear Fuels- Fuels Production & Properties
051000 - Nuclear Fuels- Economic
Industrial
& Business Aspects
700201 - Fusion Power Plant Technology- Blanket Engineering