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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.
Lawrence Ruby
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 107 | Number 4 | April 1991 | Pages 394-396
Technical Note | doi.org/10.13182/NSE91-A23801
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The classic example used to illustrate the solution to the point kinetics equations with one equivalent delayed-neutron group is argued to be inappropriate for real reactors. However, a solution to the equations, altered by the addition of a neutron source, is shown to have qualitative resemblance to a real reactor and to predict that all steady states are subcritical. Reactivity oscillations are cited as another reason for subcritical steady states.