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Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
In transition: Commercializing fusion power
Commercial fusion power is closer than ever. There are now around 30 U.S. fusion companies, several of which claim to be on track to connect to the grid as early as the 2030s.
Tokamak and laser inertial confinement approaches benefit from decades of research at facilities such as the National Ignition Facility (NIF) at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and ITER, with alternative concepts including stellarator, magnetic mirror, and Z-pinch confinement also making notable progress as private and government funding for fusion increases.
Anil Kumar, Mahadeva Srinivasan
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 93 | Number 3 | July 1986 | Pages 240-247
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.13182/NSE86-A17753
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A new equation, called the neutron multiplicity equation (NME), has been derived starting from basic physics principles. Neutron multiplicity υ is defined as the integral number of neutrons leaking from a neutron multiplying system for a source neutron introduced into it. Probability distribution of neutron multiplicities (PDNMs) gives the probability of leakage of neutrons as a function of their multiplicity v. The PDNM is directly measurable through statistical correlation techniques. In a specific application, the NME has been solved for PDNM as a function of v for 9Be spheres of varying radii and driven by a centrally located 14-MeV deuterium-tritium neutron source. The potential of NME for sensitivity analysis is demonstrated through a particular modification of secondary neutron transfer cross sections of 9Be. It turns out that PDNM is very sensitive, even as the “average” neutron leakage is practically insensitive to it.