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RIC panel discusses pathway to fusion commercialization
Fusion leaders at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s annual Regulatory Information Conference discussed the path forward for regulating the burgeoning fusion industry. The speakers discussed government and private industry initiatives in the United States and United Kingdom, with a focus on efforts shaping the near-term deployment of commercial fusion machines.
A recurring theme was the need to explain the difference between fission and fusion. Representatives from the Department of Energy and Type One Energy highlighted this as an important distinction for regulators, as it will allow fusion to undergo its own independent maturation process for developing standards and regulations in the same way that fission has. Lea Perlas, Fusion Program director at the Virginia Department of Health, said that confusion between fission and fusion has been a common cause for misplaced concerns among community members surrounding Commonwealth Fusion Systems’ proposed fusion plant site near Richmond, Va.
Shunji Kakiuchi, Yoshiaki Kazawa, Hitachi Works, Masatsugu Nishi, Takashi Okazaki, Osamu Motojima, Atsuo Iiyoshi, Koji Uo
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 4 | Number 2 | September 1983 | Pages 1332-1337
Alternate Concepts | doi.org/10.13182/FST83-A23041
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A conceptual design for a heliotron type nuclear fusion reactor is studied. Making most use of the advantageous features of heliotron, the reactor core is designed to be as compact as possible. The superconducting helical coil and cryostat are continuously wound around the vacuum vessel. Disassembly, assembly and repair of core components such as divertor, first wall and blanket modules are accomplished through port spaces between the slots of the helical coil. The reactor core is designed as compactly as possible. The large aspect ratio simplifies the maintenance work.