The fusion breeder concept

Some practical aspects and broader consequences of strategies that have been proposed for the association of fusion and fission processes are reviewed.It is concluded more particularly that the build-up of the technology necessary for the ultimately desired substitution of fusion for the present fission source of nuclear power could be much advanced by an interim period of the application of fusion entirely to the breeding of U-233 for the large number of fission reactors that will be coexisting during this period.Principal reasons for this view are the considerable technical easements of this approach, and the very large gain in effective energy release per fusion event, which offers economic advantage long before achievement of the classic definition of the fusion “break even” point.