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Latest News
Proving DRACO will deliver
The United States is now closer than it has been in over five decades to launching the first nuclear thermal rocket into space, thanks to DRACO—the Demonstration Rocket for Agile Cislunar Orbit.
R. E. Olson
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 38 | Number 1 | July 2000 | Pages 6-10
Technical Paper | Thirteenth Target Fabrication Specialists’ Meeting | doi.org/10.13182/FST00-A36107
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A cryogenic, β-layered NIF ignition capsule with a beryllium ablator that employs a BeO dopant (2% O) for opacity control is described. The design has an optimized yield of 12 MJ and uses a “reduced drive” hohlraum temperature pulse shape that peaks at ∼250 eV. Shock timing sensitivity calculations have been performed for this capsule design. Individual uncertainties of: 1) ∼200 ps in the timing of the foot pulse; 2) ∼5% in the x-ray flux of the foot pulse and first step; 3) ∼10% in the ablator EOS; or 4) ∼ 5 μm in the DT ice layer thickness each have a significant impact on thermonuclear yield. Combined uncertainties have greater impact than isolated, individual issues. For example, a combination of uncertainties of: 200 ps in the foot, 2 eV in the foot, and 5 μm in the DT thickness results in a calculation that produces only ∼1% of the original design yield. A second, more speculative, capsule concept utilizing a liquid DT ablator is also discussed. This design produces a 2 MJ yield in a 250 eV peak drive calculation.