核能源前景浅见

文章展望了裂变堆、纯聚变堆和聚变-裂变混合堆的前景,分析了混合堆的低聚变条件和很高的能量与燃料增殖能力等重大优点。认为作为由裂变能源过渡到纯聚变能源的桥梁,聚变-裂变混合堆应成为未来核能源的方向之一。     

混合堆增殖乏燃料组件中子学特性初步研究

本文主要对聚变-裂变混合堆增殖乏燃料在压水堆组件中使用的可能性进行了初步研究。根据聚变 裂变混合堆增殖乏燃料的特点,给出了的聚变-裂变混合堆增殖乏燃料压水堆组件设计方案,分析组件的燃料温度系数、慢化剂温度系数等参数。结果表明：聚变 裂变混合堆乏燃料组件的特性与全铀组件的特性相似。在相同的易裂变同位素质量百分比情况下,本文给出的组件设计方案的功率不均匀系数更小。研究结果可为未来实现聚变 裂变混合堆和压水堆联合循环系统提供技术支持。     

聚变-裂变混合堆的氚工艺问题

文章描述了聚变堆和聚变-裂变混合堆的氚工艺问题。根据聚变堆和聚变-裂变混合堆的特点讨论了对包层氚增殖材料的要求,列举了几种可作氚增殖的合理材料特性。给出了几种从包层提取氚和从废聚变燃料中回收氚的方法。最后对混合堆的氚安全及防护问题进行了讨论。     

聚变—裂变混合堆及其在我国核能发展中的作用

本文概要介绍聚变和聚变-裂变混合堆基本原理及其作用。聚变-裂变混合堆可以为压水堆或快堆提供充足的核燃料。它和压水堆或快堆组成的系统具有经济可行性。在解决我国核能发展中燃料短缺问题和促进纯聚变能源的发展方面可望发挥重要的作用。     

混合堆水冷快裂变包层的中子学设计研究

本工作以国际热核实验堆(ITER)的等离子体参数和堆芯结构为基础,对水冷、球床结构的快裂变包层混合堆作了一维和二维中子学设计研究,并与纯聚变堆的功能作了对比。说明混合堆作为聚变能的前期应用是必要的和可能的。     

聚变-裂变燃料工厂概念设计

报道了正在进行的一项聚变-裂变燃料工厂的概念设计计划,它的主要内容是进行参量系统的分析和进行一些关键性的实验与技术研究,并通过这些研究来探讨在中国建立聚变-裂变燃料工厂来支持PWR核电站的必要性和技术可行性,为下世纪初在中国建立一座实验性的聚变-裂变混合堆作可行性和方案性研究。已有的研究表明,在现有物理与技术基础之上,已有可能建成有意义的,以生产裂变燃料为主的聚变-裂变混合堆。     

我国核能发展中各种堆型的优化组合及混合堆的地位

为适应我国21世纪国民经济发展对能源的需求,寻找大力开发核能的途径,本文试图根据国际发展情况,我国核能资源条件,就高温汽冷堆、快堆(即裂变增殖堆)、聚变—裂变混合堆(即聚变增残堆)三种先进堆型的优化组合和我国核能发展进行一点探讨。     

聚变－裂变混合堆安全性初探

对聚变－裂变混合堆的安全性进行了初步分析和探讨．主要利用改进后的混合堆放射性程序ＦＤＫＲ对混合堆产生的核废物及放射性进行计算，并将结果与压水堆、高温气冷堆和液态金属冷却快中子增殖堆进行了比较。结果表明，混合堆与裂变动力堆相比有较好的安全性。     

聚变—裂变混合堆安全性初探

对聚变－裂变混合堆的安全性进行了初步分析和探讨。主要利用改进后的混合堆放射性程序ＦＤＫＲ对混合堆产生的核废物及放射性进行计算，并将结果与压水堆、高温气冷堆和液态金属冷却快中子增殖堆进行了比较。结果表明，混合堆与裂变动力堆相比有较好的安全性。     

聚变-裂变混合堆外中子源效应

聚变-裂变混合堆(FFHR)作为聚变驱动次临界系统(FDS),具有良好的物理性能,能够实现产能、氚增殖、嬗变核废料等功能。采用COUPLE程序研究了水冷混合堆包层的铀水比和中子倍增剂对中子源效率的影响。结果表明:包层能谱越硬,外中子源效率越高;适当加入中子倍增剂Be可使外中子源效率增加。研究结果对进一步改进聚变-裂变混合堆的概念设计具有一定的指导意义。     

The case for the fusion hybrid

The use of nuclear fusion to produce fuel for nuclear fission power stations is discussed in the context of a crucial need for future energy options. The fusion hybrid is first considered as an element in the future of nuclear fission power to provide long term assurance of adequate fuel supplies for both breeder and convertor reactors. Generic differences in neutronic characteristics lead to a fuel production potential of fusion-fission hybrid systems which is significantly greater than that obtainable with fission systems alone. Furthermore, cost benefit studies show a variety of scenarios in which the hybrid offers sufficient potential to justify development costs ranging in the tens of billions of dollars. The hybrid is then considered as an element in the ultimate development of fusion electric power. The hybrid offers a near term application of fusion where experience with the requisite technologies can be derived as a vital step in mapping a credible route to eventual commercial feasibility of pure fusion systems. Finally, the criteria for assessment of future energy options are discussed with prime emphasis on the need for rational comparison of alternatives. This approach is contrasted with the dual standard too often used in judging the risks and benefits of nuclear power where, for example, rather minor radiological effects are highlighted while much larger exposures to radiation from medical x-rays, airplane travel, color television sets, etc., are ignored. It is concluded that the fusion hybrid deserves a prominent place among new energy resources but that early attention to insure an adequately informed public is a vital ingredient in assuring reasonable prospects of success.     

Reaction balance and efficiency analysis of a D-D fusion/fission hybrid with satellite D-3He reactors

Selected reactor physics and isotope balance characteristics of a fusion hybrid supported D-³He satellite nuclear energy system are formulated and investigated. The system consists of two types of reactors: a parent D-fueled fusion device and a number of smaller reactors optimized for D-³He fusion. The parent hybrid station breeds the helium-3 for the satellites and also breeds fissile fuel for an existing fission reactor economy. Various hybrid operational regimes are examined in order to determine favorable reactorQ values and effective fusion and fission efficiencies. A number of analytical correlations between power output, plasma energetics, blanket neutronics, breeding capacity, and energy conversion cycles are established and evaluated. Numerical examples of performance parameters such as fission-to-fusion power, overall conversion efficiency, and the ratio of satellite to parent fusion power are presented. The range of reactor efficiencies is elucidated as affected by the internal plasma power balances. As an upper bound based on optimistic injection and direct conversion efficiencies, we find the D-³He satellite system power output attaining at best 1/3 of the parent fusion power.     

The fusion breeder

The fusion breeder is a fusion reactor designed with special blankets to maximize the transmutation by 14 MeV neutrons of uranium-238 to plutonium or thorium to uranium-233 for use as a fuel for fission reactors. Breeding fissile fuels has not been a goal of the U.S. fusion energy program. This paper suggests it is time for a policy change to make the fusion breeder a goal of the U.S. fusion program and the U.S. nuclear energy program. There is wide agreement that many approaches will work and will produce fuel for five equal-sized LWRs, and some approach as many as 20 LWRs at electricity costs within 20% of those at today's price of uranium ($30/lb of U₃O₈). The blankets designed to suppress fissioning, called symbiotes, fusion fuel factories, or just fusion breeders, will have safety characteristics more like pure fusion reactors and will support as many as 15 equal power LWRs. The blankets designed to maximize fast fission of fertile material will have safety characteristics more like fission reactors and will support 5 LWRs. This author strongly recommends development of the fission suppressed blanket type, a point of view not agreed upon by everyone. There is, however, wide agreement that, to meet the market price for uranium which would result in LWR electricity within 20% of today's cost with either blanket type, fusion components can cost severalfold more than would be allowed for pure fusion to meet the goal of making electricity alone at 20% over today's fission costs. Also widely agreed is that the critical-path-item for the fusion breeder is fusion development itself; however, development of fusion breeder specific items (blankets, fuel cycle) should be started now in order to have the fusion breeder by the time the rise in uranium prices forces other more costly choices.     

核反应堆内中子能谱测量技术

随着我国核能产业的迅速发展,各种类型的核反应堆设施相继研发和投入使用,掌握堆内的中子能谱信息对其性能诊断和安全运行具有重要的意义。本文针对裂变和聚变两种类型反应堆的特点,详细阐述了适用的中子能谱测量方法以及研发的中子谱仪,为未来相关研究工作提供参考。     

Neutron Excess Generation by Fusion Neutron Source for Self-Consistency of Nuclear Energy System

The present day fission energy technology faces with the problem of transmutation of dangerous radionuclides that requires neutron excess generation. Nuclear energy system based on fission reactors needs fuel breeding and, therefore, suffers from lack of neutron excess to apply large-scale transmutation option including elimination of fission products. Fusion neutron source (FNS) was proposed to improve neutron balance in the nuclear energy system. Energy associated with the performance of FNS should be small enough to keep the position of neutron excess generator, thus, leaving the role of dominant energy producers to fission reactors. The present paper deals with development of general methodology to estimate the effect of neutron excess generation by FNS on the performance of nuclear energy system as a whole. Multiplication of fusion neutrons in both non-fissionable and fissionable multipliers was considered. Based on the present methodology it was concluded that neutron self-consistency with respect to fuel breeding and transmutation of fission products can be attained with small fraction of energy associated with innovated fusion facilities.     

Hybrid Fusion: The Only Viable Development Path for Tokamaks?

The world needs a great deal of carbon free energy, and soon, for civilization to continue. Fusion’s goal is to develop such a carbon free energy source. For the last 4 decades, tokamaks have been the best magnetic fusion has to offer. But what if its development stops short of commercial fusion? This paper introduces ‘conservative design principles’ for tokamaks. These are very simple, are reasonably based in theory, and have always constrained tokamak operation. Assuming they continue to do so, it is unlikely that tokamaks will ever make it as commercial reactors. This is independent of their confinement properties. However because of the large additional gain in hybrid fusion, tokamaks reactors look like they can make it as hybrid fuel producers, and provide large scale power by mid century or shortly thereafter.     

Preliminary Comparison of Radioactive Waste Disposal Cost for Fusion and Fission Reactors

The environmental and economic impact of radioactive waste (radwaste) generated from fusion power reactors using five types of structural materials and a fission reactor has been evaluated and compared. Possible radwaste disposal scenario of fusion radwaste in Japan is considered. The exposure doses were evaluated for the skyshine of gamma-ray during the disposal operation, groundwater migration scenario during the institutional control period of 300 years and future site use scenario after the institutional period. The radwaste generated from a typical light water fission reactor was evaluated using the same methodology as for the fusion reactors. It is found that radwaste from the fusion reactors using F82H and SiC/SiC composites without impurities could be disposed by the shallow land disposal presently applied to the low level waste in Japan. The disposal cost of radwaste from five fusion power reactors and a typical light water reactor were roughly evaluated and compared.     

Regulatory aspects of fusion power-lessons from fission plants

Experience from fission reactors has shown the regulatory process for licensing a nuclear facility to be legalistic, lengthy, unpredictable, and costly. This experience also indicates that much of the regulatory debate is focused on safety margins, that is, the smaller the safety margins the bigger the regulatory debate and the greater the amount of proof required to satisfy the regulator. Such experience suggests that caution and prudence guide the development of a regulatory regime for fusion reactors. Fusion has intrinsic safety and environmental advantages over fission, which should alleviate significantly, or even eliminate, the regulatory problems associated with fission. The absence of a criticality concern and the absence of fission products preclude a Chernobyl type accident from occurring in a fusion reactor. Although in a fusion reactor there are large inventories of radioactive products that can be mobilized, the total quantity is orders of magnitude smaller than in fission power reactors. The bulk of the radioactivity in a fusion reactor is either activation products in steel structures, or tritium fuel supplies safely stored in the form of a metal tritide in storage beds. The quantity of tritium that can be mobilized under accident conditions is much less than ten million curies. This compares very favorably with a fission product inventory greater than ten billion curies in a fission power reactor. Furthermore, in a fission reactor, all of the reactivity is contained in a steel vessel that is pressurized to about 150 atmospheres, whereas in a fusion reactor, the inventory of radioactive material is dispersed in different areas of the plant, such that it is improbable that a single event could give rise to the release of the entire inventory to the environment. These intrinsic features give fusion a significant safety and environmental advantage over fission. With such significant intrinsic safety advantages there is noa priori need to make fusion requirements/regulations more demanding and more stringent than fission. To do so could have the effect of making the licensing process more difficult, more costly, and less certain. The result could be a delay in the advent of a safer and more environmentally benign energy system.     

Suitability of Small Scale Linear Systems for a Fission–Fusion Reactor, Breeder, and Waste Transmutation

To date the magnetic fusion effort has been almost entirely devoted to only one application, that being a multi gigawatt central station electric plant. Given the already well established fission based industry, the likelihood that fusion will have any impact on curbing the current carbon-based energy demand in the 21st century is slim. This paper advocates that the first and primary use of fusion neutrons should be as the driver for a sub-critical fission nuclear energy system—a fission–fusion hybrid reactor. This system can also be utilized to transmute long-lived radioactive wastes, and breed fissile nuclear fuel for several additional fission reactors. A small-scale fusion system based on a reciprocating fusion cycle employing the magneto-kinetic compression of the Field Reversed Configuration (FRC) is particularly well suited for this application. The characteristics of this fusion neutron driver and the potential for transmutation of long-lived nuclear wastes and breeding of fissile nuclear fuel in a blanket are presented.