Perspectives on Magnetized Target Fusion Power Plants

One approach to Magnetized Target Fusion (MTF) builds upon the ongoing experimental effort (FRX-L) to generate a Field Reversed Configuration (FRC) target plasma suitable for translation and cylindrical-liner (i.e., converging flux conserver) implosion. Numerical modeling is underway to elucidate key performance drivers for possible future power-plant extrapolations. The fusion gain, Q (ratio of DT fusion yield to the sum of initial liner kinetic energy plus plasma formation energy), sets the power-plant duty cycle for a nominal design electric power e.g. 1,000 MWe(net)]. A pulsed MTF power plant of this type derives from the historic Fast Liner Reactor (FLR) concept and shares attributes with the recent Inertial Fusion Energy (IFE) Z-pinch and laser-driven pellet HYLIFE-II conceptual designs. Work supported by the Office of Science, OFES, through Los Alamos National Laboratory, under DOE contract W-7405-ENG-36.