Criteria for practical fusion power systems: Report from the EPRI fusion panel

Abstract

Electric utilities are keenly interested in the promise of fusion: large-scale electricity production anywhere, with virtually no natural resource depletion or environmental pollution. To expedite development of commercially viable fusion systems, the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) -the R&D wing of the U.S. electric utility industry -recently convened a panel of top utility R&D managers and executive oKcers to identify the key criteria that must be met by fusion plants in order to be acceptable to utilities. The panel's findings, summarized in this report, emphasize competitive economics, positive public perception, and regulatory simplicity.

Overview of ARIES-RS tokamak fusion power plant

“…Prior to initiating the design study, a set of top-level system requirements and goals for system economics, safety and waste disposal, and reliability and availability were established through extensive consultations with US electric utilities and industry representatives [1][2][3][4]. These requirements were framed in a quantitative way to help establish the minimum necessary features of a fusion power plant that would lead to its likely introduction into the US electric energy supply.…”

“…Pulsar [7]; (3) steady-state operation in the second-stability regime, e.g. ARIES-II and ARIES-IV [8]; (4) steady-state operation with reversed-shear profile; and (5) low-aspect ratio tokamaks (spherical tokamaks). The extent of the plasma physics data base as well as performance as a power plant were considered.…”

The use of water in a fusion power core

“…Although the requirements for a new source of nuclear energy in the future are uncertain and evolving, it is important to establish a quantitative basis for decision-making; otherwise, decisions can be biased by individual judgment or political pressure. In 1994, an advisory group was formed to provide guidance on the criteria for practical fusion power systems from a US electric utility industry perspective [5]. These relate to economics, public acceptance and regulatory simplicity.…”

Timely Delivery of Laser Inertial Fusion Energy (LIFE)

“…1 This follows on from earlier work with the magnetic fusion community that addressed power plant requirements. 2 These end-user needs have been coupled with an analysis of the likely economic context of fusion power delivery and the commercial impact of different technology options for the power plant. 3 Working backward from these Criteria allows the power plant design process to focus on operational characteristics that are familiar to the end-users (utilities), delivery industries (vendors) and regulators.…”