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US-20260128186-A1 - SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR ENHANCED TRITIUM BURN EFFICIENCY IN FUSION ENERGY SYSTEMS

US20260128186A1US 20260128186 A1US20260128186 A1US 20260128186A1US-20260128186-A1

Abstract

In various aspects a method for optimizing the operation of a fusion plant is provided. The method may include selecting a preferred objective. The objective may be chosen to enhance the operation of a plant with a plasma. The plasma may include a deuterium-tritium fuel. The method may also include determining a target deuterium-tritium ratio based on the preferred objective. The method may also include polarizing at least a portion of the deuterium-tritium fuel according to the preferred objective before the deuterium-tritium fuel is injected into a fusion plasma.

Inventors

  • Jason Parisi
  • Ahmed Diallo
  • Jacob Schwartz

Assignees

  • THE TRUSTEES OF PRINCETON UNIVERSITY

Dates

Publication Date
20260507
Application Date
20251107

Claims (17)

  1. 1 . A method for optimizing the operation of a fusion plant, comprising: selecting a preferred objective, said objective chosen to enhance the operation of a plant with a plasma comprised of deuterium-tritium fuel; determining a target deuterium-tritium ratio based on the preferred objective; and polarizing at least a portion of the deuterium-tritium fuel according to the preferred objective before the deuterium-tritium fuel is injected into a fusion plasma.
  2. 2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the preferred objective is one of tritium burn efficiency, fusion power density, minimum tritium startup inventory, or desired power output, or a combination thereof.
  3. 3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the preferred objective parameters are tritium fuel injection fraction and/or spin polarization.
  4. 4 . The method of claim 2 , wherein the preferred objective is minimum tritium startup inventory.
  5. 5 . The method of claim 4 , wherein the minimum tritium startup inventory is between 1 kg and 0.01 kg.
  6. 6 . The method of claim 2 , wherein the preferred tritium burn efficiency is between 10% and 40%.
  7. 7 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the target deuterium-tritium ratio is 55%-65% by number deuterium to 35-45% by number tritium.
  8. 8 . The method of claim 7 , wherein the target deuterium-tritium ratio is (i) 57% by number deuterium and 43% by number tritium or (ii) 61% by number deuterium to 39% by number tritium.
  9. 9 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the nuclei of at least some deuterium and/or tritium is polarized.
  10. 10 . The method of claim 1 , wherein at least a quarter of the deuterium-tritium fuel is polarized.
  11. 11 . The method of claim 1 , wherein at least three-fourths of the deuterium-tritium fuel is polarized.
  12. 12 . The method of claim 1 , wherein at least 95% of the deuterium-tritium fuel is polarized.
  13. 13 . A fusion fuel made by the method of claim 1 .
  14. 14 . A system, comprising: a non-transitory computer-readable medium carrying instructions to be executed by at least one processor, wherein the instructions are configured to perform a method for optimizing a fusion power plant, comprising: receiving a preferred optimization objective: improving a deuterium-tritium fuel fraction, according to the preferred optimization objective, wherein improving the deuterium-tritium fuel includes: determining a deuterium-tritium fueling mix; and determining target spin polarizations for injected deuterium fuel and for injected tritium fuel.
  15. 15 . The system of claim 14 , wherein the preferred optimization objective is at least one of tritium burn efficiency, fusion power density, and minimum startup inventory.
  16. 16 . The system of claim 14 , wherein the preferred optimization objective one of tritium fuel injection or spin polarization.
  17. 17 . The system of claim 14 , further comprising means for adjusting spin polarization of the deuterium-tritium fuel to achieve the preferred optimization objective.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS The present application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application 63/717,530, filed Nov. 7, 2024, the contents of which are incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT This invention was made with government support under Grant No. DE-AC02-09CH11466 awarded by the Department of Energy. The government has certain rights in the invention. TECHNICAL FIELD The present disclosure is drawn to systems and methods for optimizing the operation of a fusion plant. BACKGROUND This section is intended to introduce the reader to various aspects of the art, which may be related to various aspects of the present disclosure that are described and/or claimed below. This discussion is believed to be helpful in providing the reader with background information to facilitate a better understanding of the various aspects of the present disclosure. Accordingly, it should be understood that these statements are to be read in this light, and not as admissions of prior art. Deuterium-tritium (D-T) is widely considered the most feasible fuel for first-generation fusion power plants due to its high reactivity at experimentally realizable temperatures and the large energy release per fusion reaction. However, tritium is scarce because it has a half-life of 12.3 years and is hard to produce in large quantities with current technology. Due to tritium scarcity, D-T plants are designed to be tritium self-sufficient. This is achieved by neutron capture reactions with lithium in the blanket surrounding the core. In order for a power plant to be tritium self-sufficient, the tritium-breeding ratio (TBR), which measures the ratio of tritium production to burn-up, must exceed a minimum value. It has been reported that the tritium fractional burn-up is among the most important, if not the most important, variable for achieving a high TBR. A closely related quantity used in this work is the tritium burn efficiency (TBE), the ratio of the tritium burn rate to the tritium injection rate. Improvements in the TBE can lessen requirements for other key tritium self-sufficiency parameters such as the startup inventory, the tritium doubling time, and tritium loss fractions. A high TBE could significantly lower the cost and regulation complexity of a fusion plant. BRIEF SUMMARY Various deficiencies in the prior art are addressed below by the disclosed systems and methods for optimizing the operation of a fusion plant. In various aspects, a method for optimizing the operation of a fusion plant may be provided. The method may include selecting a preferred objective. The preferred objective may be chosen to enhance the operation of a plant with a plasma comprised of deuterium-tritium fuel. The method may also include determining a target deuterium-tritium ratio based on the preferred objective. The method may also include polarizing at least a portion of the deuterium-tritium fuel according to the preferred objective before the deuterium-tritium fuel is injected into a fusion plasma. In some embodiments, the preferred objective may be one of tritium burn efficiency, fusion power density, minimum tritium startup inventory, or desired power output, or a combination thereof. In some embodiments, the preferred objective may be the tritium fuel injection fraction and/or spin polarization. In some embodiments, the preferred objective may be minimum startup inventory. The preferred minimum startup inventory may be between 1 kg and 0.01 kg. The preferred tritium burn efficiency may be between 10% and 40%. In some embodiments, the target deuterium-tritium ratio may be 55%-65% by number deuterium to 35%-45% by number tritium. In some embodiments, the target deuterium-tritium ratio may be (i) 57% by number deuterium and 43% by number tritium or (ii) 61% by number deuterium to 39% by number tritium. In some embodiments, the nuclei of at least some deuterium and/or tritium may be polarized. At least a quarter of the deuterium-tritium fuel may be polarized. At least three-fourths of the deuterium-tritium fuel may be polarized. At least 95% of the deuterium-tritium fuel may be polarized. In various aspects, a fusion fuel made by the process described herein may be provided. In various aspects, a system may be provided. The system may include a non-transitory computer-readable medium carrying instructions to be executed by at least one processor. The instructions may be configured to perform a method for optimizing a fusion power plant. The method may include receiving a preferred optimization objective. The method may include improving a deuterium-tritium fuel fraction, according to the preferred optimization objective. Improving the deuterium-tritium fuel may include determining a deuterium-tritium fueling mix. Improving the deuterium-tritium fuel may include determining target spin polarizations for injected deuterium fuel and for injected tritium fuel