Advances in the mechanical and thermal design of fusion reactors

This paper was prepared for SMiRT-10, 1989, and produced to show the evolution of fusion technology in the light of interactions between the SMiRT Conferences and the fusion programmes. It describes the present status of fusion in general, and then concentrates on a description of the advances of those fusion technologies which have particular relevance to SMiRT topics. These are first wall and high heat flux components, magnets and their support structure, breeding blankets, remote maintenance, and structural materials. It turned out that fission oriented developments discussed at SMiRT Conferences are of high relevance also for fusion applications, indeed, but it also became apparent that the electro-magnetic properties of a fusion reactor make their immediate application impossible. (orig.)