A case for gross electricity producing compact fusion pilot plants

Abstract

A case for compact gross electricity producing pilot plant is presented.
The feasibility of such a plant with a moderate fusion power that is capable of delivering
gross electricity to the grid is investigated. The physics and engineering considerations
of such power plants are elucidated. We show that for a fusion power of about 300 MW
with fusion gain of 5, a moderate plasma β with improved confinement regime is
required to prevent excessive transport power loss. The sensitivity analysis indicates a
wide enough parameter range where, the fusion power and fusion gain can meet their
target values. The constraints arising from the shielding, magnets and maintenance
are discussed. The feasibility of steady-state gross electricity production of 160 MW
is discussed using a helium-cooled solid breeder blanket with an intermediate energy
storage system. It is argued that such a plant has all key technical elements of DEMO,
albeit at a smaller scale, thereby providing strong technical basis for DEMO.