Study on Fission Blanket Fuel Cycling of a Fusion-Fission Hybrid Energy Generation System

Full text: Direct application of ITER-scale tokamak as a neutron driver in a subcritical fusion-fission hybrid reactor to generate electric power is of great potential in predictable future. This paper reports a primary study on neutronic and fuel cycle behaviors of a fission blanket for a new type of fusion-driven system (FDS), namely a subcritical fusion-fission hybrid reactor for electric power generation aiming at energy generation fueled with natural or depleted uranium. Using COUPLE2 developed at INET of Tsinghua University by coupling the MCNP code with the ORIGEN code to study the neutronic behavior and the refueling scheme, this paper focuses on refueling scheme of the fissionable fuel while keeping some important parameters such as tritium breeding ratio (TBR) and energy gain. Different fission fuels, coolants and their volumetric ratios arranged in the fission blanket satisfy the requirements for power generation. The results show that soft neutron spectrum with optimized fuel to moderator ratio can yield an energy amplifying factor of M> 20 while maintaining the TBR > 1.1 and the CR > 1 (the conversion ratio of fissile materials) in a reasonably long refueling cycle. Using an in-site fuel recycle plant, it will be an attractive way to realize the goal of burning 238U with such a new type of fusion-fission hybrid reactor system to generate electric power. (author)