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Fusion energy: Progress, partnerships, and the path to deployment
Over the past decade, fusion energy has moved decisively from scientific aspiration toward a credible pathway to a new energy technology. Thanks to long-term federal support, we have significantly advanced our fundamental understanding of plasma physics—the behavior of the superheated gases at the heart of fusion devices. This knowledge will enable the creation and control of fusion fuel under conditions required for future power plants. Our progress is exemplified by breakthroughs at the National Ignition Facility and the Joint European Torus.
J. Galambos, C. Baker, Y-K. M. Peng, D. Cohn, M. Chaniotakis, L. Bromberg, S. O. Dean
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 21 | Number 3 | May 1992 | Pages 1759-1764
Magnetic Fusion Reactor and Systems Studies | doi.org/10.13182/FST92-A29975
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The TETRA systems code is used to examine devices with both normal copper and superconducting coils as vehicles for steady-state production of fusion power in a Pilot Plant. If the constraints of plasma ignition and net electrical power production are dropped, such devices are much smaller and less expensive than ITER-like devices. For wall loads near 0.5 MW/m2 with nominal ITER physics guidelines, devices with copper coils have major radii R near 2 m and direct costs near 1 × 109 $, while devices with superconducting coils have R = 4.1 m and costs of 2.4 × 109 $. However, the copper-coil devices have the burden of hundreds of megawatts of resistive power losses. All cases tend towards high aspect ratio (A > 4), high fields, and low current. The situation improves for the superconducting-coil cases if higher beta limits are permissible, whereas the copper-coil cases see less benefit from higher beta limits.