Simultaneous enhancement of tritium burn efficiency and fusion power with low-tritium spin-polarized fuel

Parisi, J. F.; Diallo, A.; Schwartz, J. A.

doi:10.1088/1741-4326/ad7da3

Title: Simultaneous enhancement of tritium burn efficiency and fusion power with low-tritium spin-polarized fuel

Journal Article · 04 October 2024 · Nuclear Fusion

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1088/1741-4326/ad7da3 · OSTI ID:2472933

^[1];

^[1]; Schwartz, J. A. ^[1]

Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL), Princeton, NJ (United States)

This study demonstrates that using spin-polarized deuterium-tritium (D-T) fuel with more deuterium than tritium can increase tritium burn efficiency (TBE) by at least an order of magnitude without compromising fusion power output, compared to unpolarized fuel. Although previous studies show that a low tritium fraction can enhance TBE, this strategy resulted in reduced fusion power density. The surprising improvement in TBE at fixed power reported here is due to the TBE increasing nonlinearly with decreasing tritium fraction but the fusion power density increasing roughly linearly with D-T cross section. A study is performed for an ARC-like tokamak producing 481 MW of fusion power with unpolarized 53:47 D-T fuel, finding the minimum startup tritium inventory (I_startup,min) is 0.69 kg. By spin-polarizing half of the fuel and using a 60:40 D-T mix, I_startup,min is reduced to 0.08 kg, and fully spin-polarizing the fuel with a 63:37 D-T mix further reduces I_startup,min to 0.03 kg. Some ARC-like scenarios are predicted to achieve plasma ignition with relatively modest spin polarization. These findings indicate that, with advancements in helium divertor pumping efficiency, TBE values of approximately 10%–40% could be achieved using low-tritium-fraction and spin-polarized fuel with minimal power loss. This would dramatically lower tritium startup inventory requirements and reduce the amount of on-site tritium. More generally than just for spin-polarized fuels, increased plasma performance can be used to increase TBE. This strongly motivates the development of spin-polarized fuels and low-tritium-fraction operation for burning plasmas.

View Accepted Manuscript (DOE)

Cite

Export

Save

Research Organization:: Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL), Princeton, NJ (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE

Grant/Contract Number:: AC02-09CH11466

OSTI ID:: 2472933

Journal Information:: Nuclear Fusion, Journal Name: Nuclear Fusion Journal Issue: 12 Vol. 64; ISSN 0029-5515

Publisher:: IOP ScienceCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

References (67)

Helium exhaust in divertor–closure configuration with W-shaped divertor of JT-60U Sakasai, A.; Takenaga, H.; Kubo, H. Journal of Nuclear Materials, Vol. 290-293 https://doi.org/10.1016/S0022-3115(00)00473-6	journal	March 2001
Macroscopic production of highly nuclear-spin-polarized molecules from IR-excitation and photodissociation of molecular beams Kannis, C. S.; Rakitzis, T. P. Chemical Physics Letters, Vol. 784 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cplett.2021.139092	journal	December 2021
Utilization of thorium in a high power density hybrid reactor with innovative coolants Übeyli, Mustafa; Acır, Adem Energy Conversion and Management, Vol. 48, Issue 2 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enconman.2006.06.007	journal	February 2007
Toward the ultimate goal of tritium self-sufficiency: Technical issues and requirements imposed on ARIES advanced power plants El-Guebaly, Laila A.; Malang, Siegfried Fusion Engineering and Design, Vol. 84, Issue 12 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fusengdes.2008.12.098	journal	December 2009
ARC: A compact, high-field, fusion nuclear science facility and demonstration power plant with demountable magnets Sorbom, B. N.; Ball, J.; Palmer, T. R. Fusion Engineering and Design, Vol. 100 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fusengdes.2015.07.008	journal	November 2015
Tritium fuel cycle modeling and tritium breeding analysis for CFETR Chen, Hongli; Pan, Lei; Lv, Zhongliang Fusion Engineering and Design, Vol. 106 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fusengdes.2016.02.100	journal	May 2016
Tritium supply and use: a key issue for the development of nuclear fusion energy Pearson, Richard J.; Antoniazzi, Armando B.; Nuttall, William J. Fusion Engineering and Design, Vol. 136 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fusengdes.2018.04.090	journal	November 2018
An overview of the EU breeding blanket design strategy as an integral part of the DEMO design effort Federici, G.; Boccaccini, L.; Cismondi, F. Fusion Engineering and Design, Vol. 141 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fusengdes.2019.01.141	journal	April 2019
Pre-conceptual design of an encapsulated breeder commercial blanket for the STEP fusion reactor Fradera, J.; Sádaba, S.; Calvo, F. Fusion Engineering and Design, Vol. 172 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fusengdes.2021.112909	journal	November 2021
Magnetic field and power consumption constraints for compact spherical tokamak power plants Schoofs, F.; Todd, T. N. Fusion Engineering and Design, Vol. 176 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fusengdes.2022.113022	journal	March 2022
ITER research plan of plasma–wall interaction Shimada, M.; Pitts, R.; Loarte, A. Journal of Nuclear Materials, Vol. 390-391 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jnucmat.2009.01.113	journal	June 2009
High density operation for reactor-relevant power exhaust Wischmeier, M. Journal of Nuclear Materials, Vol. 463 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jnucmat.2014.12.078	journal	August 2015
Development and characterization of advanced neutron multiplier materials Vladimirov, Pavel V.; Chakin, Vladimir P.; Dürrschnabel, Michael Journal of Nuclear Materials, Vol. 543 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jnucmat.2020.152593	journal	January 2021
Pressure-anisotropy-induced nonlinearities in the kinetic magnetorotational instability Squire, J.; Quataert, E.; Kunz, M. W. Journal of Plasma Physics, Vol. 83, Issue 6 https://doi.org/10.1017/S0022377817000940	journal	December 2017
Divertor heat flux challenge and mitigation in SPARC Kuang, A. Q.; Ballinger, S.; Brunner, D. Journal of Plasma Physics, Vol. 86, Issue 5 https://doi.org/10.1017/S0022377820001117	journal	September 2020
Overview of the SPARC tokamak Creely, A. J.; Greenwald, M. J.; Ballinger, S. B. Journal of Plasma Physics, Vol. 86, Issue 5 https://doi.org/10.1017/S0022377820001257	journal	September 2020
A high-density and high-confinement tokamak plasma regime for fusion energy Ding, S.; Garofalo, A. M.; Wang, H. Q. Nature, Vol. 629, Issue 8012 https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-024-07313-3	journal	April 2024
On lithium walls and the performance of magnetic fusion devices Krasheninnikov, S. I.; Zakharov, L. E.; Pereverzev, G. V. Physics of Plasmas, Vol. 10, Issue 5 https://doi.org/10.1063/1.1558293	journal	May 2003
Gyrokinetic simulations of ion and impurity transport Estrada-Mila, C.; Candy, J.; Waltz, R. E. Physics of Plasmas, Vol. 12, Issue 2 https://doi.org/10.1063/1.1848544	journal	February 2005
Beta limits in long-pulse tokamak discharges Sauter, O.; La Haye, R. J.; Chang, Z. Physics of Plasmas, Vol. 4, Issue 5 https://doi.org/10.1063/1.872270	journal	May 1997
Characterization of injection and confinement improvement through impurity induced profile modifications on the Wendelstein 7-X stellarator Lunsford, R.; Killer, C.; Nagy, A. Physics of Plasmas, Vol. 28, Issue 8 https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0047274	journal	August 2021
Asymmetry between deuterium and tritium turbulent particle flows Belli, E. A.; Candy, J. Physics of Plasmas, Vol. 28, Issue 6 https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0048620	journal	June 2021
Progress toward fusion energy breakeven and gain as measured against the Lawson criterion Wurzel, Samuel E.; Hsu, Scott C. Physics of Plasmas, Vol. 29, Issue 6 https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0083990	journal	June 2022
Fusion Blankets and Fluoride-Salt-Cooled High-Temperature Reactors with Flibe Salt Coolant: Common Challenges, Tritium Control, and Opportunities for Synergistic Development Strategies Between Fission, Fusion, and Solar Salt Technologies Forsberg, Charles; Zheng, Guiqiu (Tony); Ballinger, Ronald G. Nuclear Technology https://doi.org/10.1080/00295450.2019.1691400	journal	December 2019
The LIBRA Experiment: Investigating Robust Tritium Accountancy in Molten FLiBe Exposed to a D-T Fusion Neutron Spectrum Ferry, Sara E.; Woller, Kevin B.; Peterson, Ethan E. Fusion Science and Technology, Vol. 79, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1080/15361055.2022.2078136	journal	June 2022
Initial Neutronics Investigation of a Chlorine Salt–Based Breeder Blanket Bohm, Tim D.; Lindley, Ben A. Fusion Science and Technology, Vol. 79, Issue 8 https://doi.org/10.1080/15361055.2022.2136923	journal	January 2023
Enhancement of alpha-particle confinement in tokamaks in the case of polarized deuterium and tritium nuclei Bittoni, E.; Fubini, A.; Haegi, M. Nuclear Fusion, Vol. 23, Issue 6 https://doi.org/10.1088/0029-5515/23/6/011	journal	June 1983
Physics of spin-polarized plasmas Kulsrud, R. M.; Valeo, E. J.; Cowley, S. C. Nuclear Fusion, Vol. 26, Issue 11 https://doi.org/10.1088/0029-5515/26/11/001	journal	November 1986
A new look at density limits in tokamaks Greenwald, M.; Terry, J. L.; Wolfe, S. M. Nuclear Fusion, Vol. 28, Issue 12 https://doi.org/10.1088/0029-5515/28/12/009	journal	December 1988
Scalings for tokamak energy confinement Yushmanov, P. N.; Takizuka, T.; Riedel, K. S. Nuclear Fusion, Vol. 30, Issue 10 https://doi.org/10.1088/0029-5515/30/10/001	journal	October 1990
Particle and energy transport during the first tritium experiments on JET Balet, B.; Stubberfield, P. M.; Borba, D. Nuclear Fusion, Vol. 33, Issue 9 https://doi.org/10.1088/0029-5515/33/9/I09	journal	September 1993
Commercial tokamak reactor potential with advanced tokamak operation Galambos, J. D.; Perkins, L. J.; Haney, S. W. Nuclear Fusion, Vol. 35, Issue 5 https://doi.org/10.1088/0029-5515/35/5/I06	journal	May 1995
High fusion performance from deuterium-tritium plasmas in JET Keilhacker, M.; Gibson, A.; Gormezano, C. Nuclear Fusion, Vol. 39, Issue 2 https://doi.org/10.1088/0029-5515/39/2/306	journal	February 1999
Overview of JT-60U results towards the establishment of advanced tokamak operation Oyama, N. Nuclear Fusion, Vol. 49, Issue 10 https://doi.org/10.1088/0029-5515/49/10/104007	journal	September 2009
Ignition conditions for inertial confinement fusion targets with a nuclear spin-polarized DT fuel Temporal, M.; Brandon, V.; Canaud, B. Nuclear Fusion, Vol. 52, Issue 10 https://doi.org/10.1088/0029-5515/52/10/103011	journal	August 2012
Advanced tokamak physics-status and prospects Goldston, R. J.; Batha, S. H.; Bulmer, R. H. Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion, Vol. 36, Issue 12B https://doi.org/10.1088/0741-3335/36/12B/018	journal	December 1994
Physics of advanced tokamaks Taylor, T. S. Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion, Vol. 39, Issue 12B https://doi.org/10.1088/0741-3335/39/12B/005	journal	December 1997
Overview of physics basis for ITER Mukhovatov, V.; Shimada, M.; Chudnovskiy, A. N. Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion, Vol. 45, Issue 12A https://doi.org/10.1088/0741-3335/45/12A/016	journal	November 2003
Tritium inventory in ITER plasma-facing materials and tritium removal procedures Roth, Joachim; Tsitrone, Emmanuelle; Loarer, Thierry Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion, Vol. 50, Issue 10 https://doi.org/10.1088/0741-3335/50/10/103001	journal	August 2008
The relationships between edge localized modes suppression, pedestal profiles and lithium wall coatings in NSTX Boyle, D. P.; Maingi, R.; Snyder, P. B. Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion, Vol. 53, Issue 10 https://doi.org/10.1088/0741-3335/53/10/105011	journal	September 2011
Thermal confinement and transport in spherical tokamaks: a review Kaye, S. M.; Connor, J. W.; Roach, C. M. Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion, Vol. 63, Issue 12 https://doi.org/10.1088/1361-6587/ac2b38	journal	November 2021
Studies of power exhaust and divertor design for a 1.5 GW-level fusion power DEMO Asakura, N.; Hoshino, K.; Suzuki, S. Nuclear Fusion, Vol. 57, Issue 12 https://doi.org/10.1088/1741-4326/aa867a	journal	October 2017
Tritium resources available for fusion reactors Kovari, M.; Coleman, M.; Cristescu, I. Nuclear Fusion, Vol. 58, Issue 2 https://doi.org/10.1088/1741-4326/aa9d25	journal	December 2017
High fusion performance in Super H-mode experiments on Alcator C-Mod and DIII-D Snyder, P. B.; Hughes, J. W.; Osborne, T. H. Nuclear Fusion, Vol. 59, Issue 8 https://doi.org/10.1088/1741-4326/ab235b	journal	June 2019
Physics and technology considerations for the deuterium–tritium fuel cycle and conditions for tritium fuel self sufficiency Abdou, Mohamed; Riva, Marco; Ying, Alice Nuclear Fusion, Vol. 61, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1088/1741-4326/abbf35	journal	November 2020
Stellarators as a fast path to fusion Boozer, Allen H. Nuclear Fusion, Vol. 61, Issue 9 https://doi.org/10.1088/1741-4326/ac170f	journal	August 2021
Conceptual design of DIII-D experiments to diagnose the lifetime of spin polarized fuel Garcia, A. V.; Heidbrink, W. W.; Sandorfi, A. M. Nuclear Fusion, Vol. 63, Issue 2 https://doi.org/10.1088/1741-4326/acaf0d	journal	January 2023
Polarized fusion and potential in situ tests of fuel polarization survival in a tokamak plasma Baylor, Larry R.; Deur, Alexandre; Eidietis, Nicholas W. Nuclear Fusion https://doi.org/10.1088/1741-4326/acc3ae	journal	March 2023
Isotope mass scaling and transport comparison between JET Deuterium and Tritium L-mode plasmas Tala, T.; Järvinen, A. E.; Maggi, C. F. Nuclear Fusion, Vol. 63, Issue 11 https://doi.org/10.1088/1741-4326/acea94	journal	October 2023
Tritium burn efficiency in deuterium-tritium magnetic fusion Whyte, Dennis G.; Ferry, Sara; Meschini, Samuele Nuclear Fusion https://doi.org/10.1088/1741-4326/acf3fb	journal	August 2023
Modeling and analysis of the tritium fuel cycle for ARC- and STEP-class D-T fusion power plants Meschini, Samuele; Ferry, Sara E.; Delaporte-Mathurin, Rémi Nuclear Fusion, Vol. 63, Issue 12 https://doi.org/10.1088/1741-4326/acf3fc	journal	September 2023
Stellarators with enhanced tritium confinement and edge radiation control Boozer, Allen H. Nuclear Fusion, Vol. 64, Issue 7 https://doi.org/10.1088/1741-4326/ad5366	journal	June 2024
The Natural Distribution of Tritium Kaufman, Sheldon; Libby, W. F. Physical Review, Vol. 93, Issue 6 https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRev.93.1337	journal	March 1954
Highly Nuclear-Spin-Polarized Deuterium Atoms from the UV Photodissociation of Deuterium Iodide Sofikitis, Dimitris; Glodic, Pavle; Koumarianou, Greta Physical Review Letters, Vol. 118, Issue 23 https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.118.233401	journal	June 2017
Ultrahigh-Density Spin-Polarized H and D Observed via Magnetization Quantum Beats Sofikitis, Dimitris; Kannis, Chrysovalantis S.; Boulogiannis, Gregoris K. Physical Review Letters, Vol. 121, Issue 8 https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.121.083001	journal	August 2018
Lawson Criterion for Ignition Exceeded in an Inertial Fusion Experiment Abu-Shawareb, H.; Acree, R.; Adams, P. Physical Review Letters, Vol. 129, Issue 7 https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.129.075001	journal	August 2022
Robust Avoidance of Edge-Localized Modes alongside Gradient Formation in the Negative Triangularity Tokamak Edge Nelson, A. O.; Schmitz, L.; Paz-Soldan, C. Physical Review Letters, Vol. 131, Issue 19 https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.131.195101	journal	November 2023
Regime of Improved Confinement and High Beta in Neutral-Beam-Heated Divertor Discharges of the ASDEX Tokamak Wagner, F.; Becker, G.; Behringer, K. Physical Review Letters, Vol. 49, Issue 19 https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.49.1408	journal	November 1982
Nuclear Spin-Polarized Fuel in Inertial Fusion More, Richard M. Physical Review Letters, Vol. 51, Issue 5 https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.51.396	journal	August 1983
Fusion power production from TFTR plasmas fueled with deuterium and tritium Strachan, J. D.; Adler, H.; Alling, P. Physical Review Letters, Vol. 72, Issue 22 https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.72.3526	journal	May 1994
A New Concept for a Higher Burn-Up Fraction Improvement in DEMO Reactor Igitkhanov, Yuri; Day, Christian; Varoutis, Stylianos IEEE Transactions on Plasma Science, Vol. 46, Issue 5 https://doi.org/10.1109/TPS.2018.2814785	journal	May 2018
An Analytic Expression for the Tritium Burnup Fraction in Burning-Plasma Devices Jackson, G. L.; Chan, V. S.; Stambaugh, R. D. Fusion Science and Technology, Vol. 64, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.13182/FST13-A17042	journal	July 2013
The Spherical Tokamak Path to Fusion Power Stambaugh, Ronald D.; Chan, Vincent S.; Miller, Robert L. Fusion Technology, Vol. 33, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.13182/FST33-1	journal	January 1998
Deuterium-Tritium Fuel Self-Sufficiency in Fusion Reactors Abdou, M. A.; Vold, E. L.; Gung, C. Y. Fusion Technology, Vol. 9, Issue 2 https://doi.org/10.13182/FST86-A24715	journal	March 1986
Spin Polarization Effect on Ignition Access Condition for D-T and D-³He Tokamak Fusion Reactors Mitarai, Osamu; Hasuyama, Hiroki; Wakuta, Yoshihisa Fusion Technology, Vol. 21, Issue 4 https://doi.org/10.13182/FST92-A29720	journal	July 1992
A framework of computer vision-enhanced microfluidic approach for automated assessment of the transient sickling kinetics in sickle red blood cells Qiang, Yuhao; Xu, Mengjia; Pochron, Mira Patel Frontiers in Physics, Vol. 12 https://doi.org/10.3389/fphy.2024.1331047	journal	March 2024
Development of Carbon Nanotube Yarn Supercapacitors and Energy Storage for Integrated Structural Health Monitoring Binfaris, Abdulrahman S.; Zestos, Alexander G.; Abot, Jandro L. Energies, Vol. 16, Issue 15 https://doi.org/10.3390/en16155736	journal	August 2023