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DTRA’s advancements in nuclear and radiological detection
A new, more complex nuclear age has begun. Echoing the tensions of the Cold War amid rapidly evolving nuclear and radiological threats, preparedness in the modern age is a contest of scientific innovation. The Research and Development Directorate (RD) at the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) is charged with winning this contest.
Karl Erickson, N. J. Mccormick, Gene L. Woodruff
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 1 | Number 4 | October 1981 | Pages 533-541
Technical Paper | Hybrid Reactor | doi.org/10.13182/FST81-A19946
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The feasibility of spatial and temporal power density flattening in fusion-fission hybrid reactors was investigated by varying the concentration of 239Pu within a set of zones in the fission region and by examining two different fuel management schemes. Blanket designs with no 239Pu typically had a spatial maximum-to-average power density ratio of ∼2.5, but this value was reduced to between 1.26 and 1.67, depending on the design and fuel management scheme selected. Unfortunately, however, significant impact occurs only with relatively high fissile concentrations, with the outer zones approaching equilibrium values. Thus, either an impractically large fissile inventory for startup or long operating histories would be required.