Assessment of materials needs for fusion reactors

This report has the goal of presenting for the CTR designer and material supplier potentially significant problem areas in materials manufacturing and in structural material resources projected for potential application in fusion power reactor construction. The projected material requirements are based on presently available bills-of-materials for conceptual CTR designs used for constructing a hypothetical fusion power generating capacity of 106 MW(e) maturing exponentially over a 20-year period. The projected elemental requirements, the ratio of these requirements to the projected total U.S. demand, and the salient problems currently identified with the CTR use of these elements are summarized. The projected requirements are based upon a ''model'' industry, which is described, and the estimated potential use of molybdenum, niobium, vanadium, and tantalum as blanket structural materials