Research Needs for Magnetic Fusion Energy Sciences - US Burning ...

Safety and Environment
• development and application of the Fusion safety standard for a consistent, integrated
approach demonstrating the inherently safe and environmentally beneficial potential of
fusion power.
• conception, enhancement, and verification of nuclear safety simulation tools that incorporate
the unique and challenging phenomena present in fusion power systems, allowing execution
of the Fusion safety standard, for example, in the licensing process for iteR.
• life cycle strategy development for fusion plant materials disposition that are under
consideration by international parties. Recycling and restoration are key to the economic
compatibility of fusion with environmental stewardship.
Reliability, availability, Maintainability and inspectability
• in the 1970s, the electric Power Research institute (ePRi) and other institutions
determined that existing Rami tools and risk assessment tools would apply to fusion.
• in the 1980s, safety analysts examined faults of fusion components to identify failure
modes and hazards. analysts started to create “generic” data sets to use for safety and
reliability assessments of fusion designs. The next european torus Rami study was the
most comprehensive study of that time.
• in the 1990s, analysts collected actual reliability data from other facilities (e.g., accelerators,
fission plants) to apply mainly to fusion experiment safety assessments. some existing
tokamaks (e.g., Jet and diii-d) accumulated enough operating hours late in that decade
to yield statistically significant reliability data values from their operating experiences.
The eU blanket reliability study was one of the most comprehensive studies of that time.
• in the 2000s, tokamak and tritium facility reliability, and to a lesser extent maintainability,
data analyses have been performed on fusion systems and components with highest
relevance to future tokamaks. These data analyses support iteR design.
• in the 2010s, plans are being made to collect detailed Rami data from pertinent iteR
systems to apply to next-step machines.
Research Requirements
FuSioN FuEl cyclE
The top level objective for the Fusion Fuel cycle topic is to learn and test how to manage the flow
of tritium throughout the entire plant, including breeding and recovery.
Requirements for DEMO
The fusion fuel cycle experience base for demo includes tsta and other facilities such as the savannah
River site. tsta and related facilities are considered the present state-of-the-art experience
for fusion fuel processing. but this experience will fall short of what is needed for iteR and
demo. This progression from tsta through iteR and to demo is summarized as follows:
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