Mirror Advanced Reactor Study (MARS): executive summary and overview
Two self-consistent MARS configurations are discussed - a 1200-MWe commercial electricity-generating plant and a synguels-generating plant that produces hydrogen with an energy equivalent to 26,000 barrels of oil per day. The MARS machine emphasizes the attractive features of the tandem mirror concept, including steady-state operation, a small-diameter high-beta plasma, a linear central cell with simple low-maintenance blankets, low first-wall heat fluxes (<10 W/cm/sup 2/), no driven plasma currents or associated disruptions, natural halo impurity diversion, and direct conversion of end-loss charged-particle power. The MARS electric plant produces 2600 MW of fusion power in a 130-m-long central cell. Advanced tandem-mirror plasma-engineering concepts, a high-efficiency liquid lithium-lead (Li/sub 17/Pb/sub 83/) blanket, and efficient direct electrical conversion of end loss power combine to produce a high net plant efficiency of 36%. With a total capital cost of $2.9 billion (constant 1983 dollars), the MARS electric plant produces busbar electricity at approx. 7 cents/kW-hour. The MARS synfuels plant produces 3500 MW of fusion power in a 150-m-long central cell. A helium-gas-cooled silicon carbide pebble-bed blanket provides high-temperature (1000/sup 0/C) heat to a thermochemical water-splitting cycle and the resulting hydrogen is catalytically converted to methanol for distribution. With a total capital cost of $3.6 billion (constant 1983 dollars), the synfuels plant produces methanol fuel at about $1.7/gal. The major features of the MARS reactor include sloshing-ion thermal barrier plugs for efficient plasma confinement, a high efficiency blanket, high-field (24-T) choke cells, drift pumping for trapped plasma species, quasi-optical electron-cyclotron resonant heating (ECRH) systems, and a component gridless direct converter.
- Research Organization:
- Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- W-7405-ENG-48
- OSTI ID:
- 5981974
- Report Number(s):
- UCRL-53563; ON: DE85008705; TRN: 85-008766
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
MARS REACTOR
DESIGN
BREEDING BLANKETS
COST
HYDROGEN PRODUCTION
LEAD ALLOYS
LITHIUM ALLOYS
PLASMA CONFINEMENT
POWER GENERATION
SYNTHETIC FUELS
ALLOYS
CONFINEMENT
FUELS
MAGNETIC MIRROR TYPE REACTORS
REACTOR COMPONENTS
THERMONUCLEAR REACTORS
700200* - Fusion Energy- Fusion Power Plant Technology