Proposal of a progressive thermalization fusion reactor able to produce nuclear fusions with a mechanical gain superior or equal to 18

For the published article in the "Energy and Power Engineering" journal: https://doi.org/10.4236/epe.2022.141003

In the standard fusion reactors, mainly tokamaks, the plasma, in thermal equilibrium, is heated up to an energy of about 15 keV with complicated devices. At the present time, the mechanical gain obtained by these reactors is below 1. In the other hand, there are colliding beam fusion reactors, as for example the « Fusor », for which, the particles are initially injected radially. The plasma not being neutral in these reactors, the space charge limits the number of fusions to a very small number. Consequently, for this reason and for others reasons, the mechanical gain is extremely low.

The proposed reactor is also a colliding beam fusion reactor using initial directed beams, but D+/T+ ions are injected in opposition, with electrons, at high speeds, so as to form a neutral beam. All these particles turn in a magnetic loop in form of figure of “0” (“racetrack”). The plasma is initially non-thermal but, as expected, rapidly becomes thermal, so all states between non-thermal and thermal exists in this reactor. The main advantage of this reactor is that this plasma after having been brought up near to the optimum conditions for fusion (around 68 keV), is then maintained in this state, thanks to low energy non-thermal ions (≤15 keV). So the energetic cost is low and the mechanical gain (Q) is elevated (≥18). There is no net plasma current inside this reactor, so no disruptive instabilities and consequently, the working is continuous. Moreover, the main plasma control by the particles injectors (I and U) is relatively simple. This reactor has been partly checked on a simulator.