37 results about "Fusion neutron" patented technology

The design of a compact, high-efficiency, high-flux capable compact-accelerator fusion neutron generator (FNG) is discussed. FNG's can be used in a variety of industrial analysis applications to replace the use of radioisotopes which pose higher risks to both the end user and national security. High efficiency, long lifetime, and high power-handling capability are achieved though innovative target materials and ion source technology. The device can be scaled up for neutron radiography applications, or down for borehole analysis or other compact applications. Advanced technologies such as custom neutron output energy spectrum, pulsing, and associated particle imaging can be incorporated.

A laser inertial-confinement fusion-fission energy power plant is described. The fusion-fission hybrid system uses inertial confinement fusion to produce neutrons from a fusion reaction of deuterium and tritium. The fusion neutrons drive a sub-critical blanket of fissile or fertile fuel. A coolant circulated through the fuel extracts heat from the fuel that is used to generate electricity. The inertial confinement fusion reaction can be implemented using central hot spot or fast ignition fusion, and direct or indirect drive. The fusion neutrons result in ultra-deep burn-up of the fuel in the fission blanket, thus enabling the burning of nuclear waste. Fuels include depleted uranium, natural uranium, enriched uranium, spent nuclear fuel, thorium, and weapons grade plutonium. LIFE engines can meet worldwide electricity needs in a safe and sustainable manner, while drastically shrinking the highly undesirable stockpiles of depleted uranium, spent nuclear fuel and excess weapons materials.

A method and system for achieving fusion is provided. The method includes providing laser source that generates a laser beam and a target that includes a capsule embedded in the target and filled with DT gas. The laser beam is directed at the target. The laser beam helps create an electron beam within the target. The electron beam heats the capsule, the DT gas, and the area surrounding the capsule. At a certain point equilibrium is reached. At the equilibrium point, the capsule implodes and generates enough pressure on the DT gas to ignite the DT gas and fuse the DT gas nuclei.

An apparatus and method for a beam target fusion neutron generator comprising a closed cycle flow generator having a continuous liquid phase flowing stream liquid target containing hydrogen isotopes where said stream has a continuously refreshed exposed surface and where said liquid target is high vacuum compatible at cryogenic temperatures; and an ion beam generator adapted to produce an ion beam and focused to direct said beam to bombard said flowing stream liquid target. The flowing stream liquid target can be a thin film curtain and said closed cycle flow generator can be a cryogenic liquid handling system having a heat exchanger adapted to maintain said liquid target at cryogenic temperatures and having a collection reservoir position to capture use target material for recycling.

Disclosed is a device comprising a chamber enclosed by walls about a central axis. The chamber has an inner radius and an outer radius relative to the central axis and is configured to magnetically contain a core plasma. The device is further comprised of a divertor plate configured for receiving exhaust heat. The divertor plate has a divertor radius relative to the central axis. The divertor radius is greater than or equal to the sum of a plasma minor radius and a major radius of the peak point closest to the corresponding divertor plate. The device can be used for containing a fusion plasma, as a compact fusion neutron source, or as a compact fusion energy source. Methods of exhausting heat from such a device when plasma is present therein are also described. This abstract is intended for use as a scanning tool only and is not intended to be limiting.

The invention discloses a method and a system for producing a <252>Cf neutron source by a fusion-driven sub-critical system, the external neutron source is: D-T fusion neutron source; a fuel cycle mode is a U-Pu cycle mode, and the fusion-driven sub-critical system of the U-Pu cycle mode has higher neutron flux. The structure of a cladding layer is as follows: an actinide nuclide treatment area, a target area, a fissile fuel proliferation area or the fissile fuel proliferation area, a fission product treatment area and a reflection and shielding area are sequentially surrounded at the outside of a generation area of the external neutron source, and the various areas are separated by using structural materials. The target area adopts helium as a cooling agent, reaction substances of the target area are formed by stacking in small sphere shape, and the volume of total solids accounts for 60 percent to 90 percent of the total volume. A target ball is taken out after materials of the target area are continuously radiated for about one year in the fusion-driven sub-critical system; the <252>Cf has short half-life and can not be radiated for a long time.

The invention relates to a high thermal power target system suitable for deuterium and tritium fusion neutron sources. The system includes a deuterium beam, a beam scanning drive device, a target slice, a target slice drive device, a cooling structure, a cooling medium, a cooling medium circulation system, a beam transmission chamber, a cooling medium dynamic sealing structure, and a vacuum dynamic sealing structure. The beam scanning drive is used to drive the deuterium beam to move. The deuterium beam is located in the beam transmission chamber. The target slice drive device drives the target slice to move. The target slice is disposed on the moving path of the deuterium beam. The deuterium beam bombards a target spot formed by the target slice. The cooling structure is located in the target slice area where the target spot is located. The cooling medium is filled in the cooling structure. The cooling medium is circulated through the cooling medium circulation system. According to the invention, the tritium target system for the high intensity deuterium and tritium fusion neutron sources can maintain a target surface temperature of less than 200 DEG C when being subjected to bombardment with a deuterium beam of greater than 100 kw / cm2, the stable operation of the tritium target system is ensured, and then 14MeV high-energy fusion neutrons with neutron sources up to 1013 to 1015n / s are produced.

The invention discloses a method and a system scheme for constructing plasma capable of realizing a magnetic confinement fusion reaction by heating a mixture consisting of lithium, tritium and deuterium in a magnetic confinement device by utilizing neutrons. The neutrons required for heating the plasma are provided by performing doubling, moderating and reflecting on an external neutron source or fusion neutrons generated by a fusion reaction in a device through a cladding on the container wall of the magnetic confinement device. The lithium in the plasma is obtained by injecting lithium metal nano-particles or lithium deuteride projectiles. According to the method and the system scheme, the plasma is heated by MeV-level high-energy tritium particles and helium particles generated by a fission reaction caused by bombarding the lithium in the plasma by the neutrons. The plasma formed and maintained by the heating method is mainly deuterium lithium plasma. According to the heating method-based magnetic confinement fusion device, the problem about tritium self-sustaining is not required to be considered, the design of a fusion reactor is greatly simplified, and the economical efficiency of the fusion reactor is greatly improved.

The invention discloses a high-pressure-difference gas target device suitable for a superhigh-intensity deuterium tritium fusion neutron source. The high-pressure-difference gas target device comprises an accelerator interface and a reaction gas cavity. The device also comprises a vacuum difference system, a beam constraint device and a reaction gas cycle collection device, wherein the vacuum difference system comprises a second-stage difference chamber, a first-stage difference chamber, a small-bore long pipeline and a small-bore flange; the beam constraint device is used for carrying out focusing on a deuterium beam in the small-bore long pipeline to enable beam envelope to be smaller than the inner diameter of the small-bore long pipeline and the small-bore flange; and the reaction gas cycle collection device is connected with the first-stage difference chamber and the second-stage difference chamber through a vacuum pump and is used for carrying out separation and purification on the gas discharged by the vacuum pump and then, enabling the gas to enter the reaction gas cavity through a throttle valve. The deuterium beam output from the accelerator interface passes through the vacuum difference system and realizes pressure jump from 10<-5>Pa at the tail end of the accelerator to 10<-3>Pa of the reaction gas cavity, and then, has fusion reaction with a tritium gas or a deuterium gas in the reaction gas cavity to generate high-energy fusion neutrons, and the tritium gas or the deuterium gas is subjected to online purification, collection and recycling.

The invention provides a rotation tritium target device cooled by gallium-indium liquid metal. The rotation tritium target device comprises a vacuum rotation hollow shaft, a rotation tritium target piece, a cooling structure, a pneumatic turbine transmission mechanism, a vacuum pumping pipeline, an accelerator interface, a beam cooling spiral pipe and a gallium-indium liquid metal cooling circulation system. The rotation tritium target device has the advantages that the device can be used as the rotation tritium target system of a high-current deuterium and tritium fusion neutron generator, the gallium-indium liquid metal which is high in thermal conductivity coefficient and atomic number replaces currently commonly used cooling medium water to serve as cooling medium, the cooling effect of the target piece is increased greatly, influence of inverse scattering of cooling medium atoms on the energy and strength of neutrons emitted from the target piece can be lowered, and the monochromaticity of neutrons emitted from a neutron generator tritium target system is increased effectively.

The fusion reactor of the invention comprises a plurality of elongated triangular electrodes aligned in a cylindrical shape to form an axially symmetric containment geometry. The electrodes are separated by means of electrical insulator preferably pure swept Quartz (SiO2). The Triangular electrodes, are made out of very high electro conductive, high strength, heat resistant, radiation resistant and neutrons moderating material such as thorium carbide, uranium carbide or silicon carbide or the like which is preferably made by ceramic powder metallurgy process. Each electrode includes a cooling structure or flow channel formed in the internal structure allowing for a cooling fluid for extracting heat caused by plasma and nuclear reactions. The acceleration channels electrodes of the fusion reactor are of triangular shape and are protected with a continuously changing protective film or layer of high electro-conductive fissile or fertile material such as thorium carbide or uranium carbide. Lithium may be added for the reactor to breed its own Tritium.

Disclosed are a replaceable fusion core that can be inserted and removed from the core of a nuclear fission reactor, thereby enabling the replacement of materials exposed to neutron flux and reducing outage times and “hybrid reactor, method, and device for improved nuclear fusion reactors to provide sufficient flux of fast neutrons with sufficient energy to transmutate transuranic wastes from nuclear fission and to be used in improved nuclear fuel cycles so as to effectively reduce the amount radio-toxicity, and the risks and costs of the disposal of nuclear waste, thereby reducing the cost of nuclear energy and increasing its acceptability as an energy source. This abstract is intended for use as a scanning tool only and is not intended to be limiting.

The invention discloses a multi-type neutron energy spectrum regulation and control target apparatus. The apparatus comprises a coupled target reaction apparatus and a target replacing apparatus in aneutron energy spectrum regulation and control apparatus. The apparatus is applied to a fusion neutron source driven sub-critical mixed pile energy system; deuterium beam generated by a strong flow deuterium tritium fusion neutron generator bombards a solid-state target to generate a high-flux deuterium tritium fusion neutron beam; then the fusion neutron bombards a sub-critical coating layer witha neutron multiplication material; through neutron multiplication and energy spectrum optimization, neutron energy spectrum regulation and control is realized; the coupled target reaction apparatus comprises a vacuum tube, a target tube and a target sheet assembly positioned in the target tube; and the target replacing apparatus comprises a target replacing cavity, a target sheet storage cavity,a target sheet replacing apparatus, and a target sheet conveying apparatus for conveying the target sheet assembly to the target pipe. Labor intensity of the working staff in target replacing is lowered effectively, meanwhile, the target replacing efficiency is improved, and operational stability of a clean energy system is improved.

The invention relates to a small laser deuterium-deuterium fusion neutron tube with a high temperature and high pressure. An insulation layer is arranged in the inner wall of the tube. A cathode and an anode in the cathode are arranged in the tube. A cathode corner connected with the cathode and an anode corner connected with the anode are arranged on the external lower part of the tube. The top of the tube is a transparent body and the tube is filled with deuterium gas. In the invention, the external diameter of the cathode is 40 mm and the internal diameter is 30-34 mm, as well as the height is 110-150 mm. a center hole with an aperture of 20-23 mm is arranged on the bottom center of the cathode. The anode is positioned in the center hole of the bottom. The anode and the cathode have a same shaft. The diameter of the anode is 8-15 mm and the height is 100-120 mm. The tube is filled with deuterium gap. The neutron tube of the invention has the advantages of small volume, high temperature resistance, high pressure resistance, high productivity and long service life, etc. The neutron tube is a component of an oil logging tool which can satisfy the neutron-neutron well detection under the conditions of high temperature 150 DEG C or more than 150 DEG C and the high pressure 80MPa or more than 80MPa.

A nanofuel engine including an inventive nanofuel internal engine, whereby nuclear energy is released in the working fluid and directly converted into useful work, with the qualities of an economical advanced small modular gaseous pulsed thermal reactor. Scientific feasibility is established by studying the behavior of nuclear fuels in configurations designed to support a fission chain reaction. Nanofuel is defined as nuclear fuel suitable for use in an internal engine, comprised of six essential ingredients, and can be created from clean fuel or from the transuranic elements found in light-water reactor spent nuclear fuel in a proliferation resistant manner. Three essential ingredients ensure the nanofuel is inherently stable, due to a negative temperature coefficient of reactivity. Reciprocating and Wankel (rotary) internal engine configurations, which operate in an Otto cycle, are adapted to support a fission chain reaction. Dynamic engine cores experience a decrease in criticality as the engine piston or rotor moves away from the top dead center position. In this inherent safety feature, the increase in engine core volume decreases the nanofuel density and increases the neutron leakage. Technological feasibility is demonstrated by examining potential engineering limitations. The nanofuel internal engine can be operated in two modes: spark-ignition with an external neutron source such as a fusion neutron generator; and compression-ignition with an internal neutron source. The structural integrity can be maintained using standard internal combustion engine design and operation practices. The fuel system can be operated in a closed thermodynamic cycle, which allows for complete fuel utilization, continuous refueling, and easy fission product extraction. Nanofuel engine power plant configurations offer favorable economic, safety, and waste management attributes when compared to existing power generation technology. The initial (first-of-a-kind) overnight capital cost is approximately $400 per kilowatt-electric. Obvious safety features include an underground installation, autonomous operation, and an ultra-low nuclear material inventory.

A method and system for achieving fusion is provided. The method includes providing laser source that generates a laser beam and a target that includes a capsule embedded in the target and filled with DT gas. The laser beam is directed at the target. The laser beam helps create an electron beam within the target. The electron beam heats the capsule, the DT gas, and the area surrounding the capsule. At a certain point equilibrium is reached. At the equilibrium point, the capsule implodes and generates enough pressure on the DT gas to ignite the DT gas and fuse the DT gas nuclei.

Fusion devices produce the fusion of neutral atoms and ions in the absence of neutrons in "neutronless fusion" because the products utilize strong ion-neutral coupling at high neutral density. Ions and neutrals rotate together in a cylindrical chamber due to frequent collisions. The high magnetic force makes it possible to reach high rotational energies; the magnetic field in the medium can be set at very high values ​​due to the absence of magnetic charges. Repeated acceleration by strong magnetic forces in the azimuthal direction makes it possible to obtain very high ion velocities. Fusion mainly occurs between neutral particles. This method can also be applied to fusion with neutrons. Conventional fusion schemes and neutron sources can use the principles described above to produce high-energy, high-density neutral particles.

The invention discloses a laser fusion neutron activation transfer device based on an unmanned aerial vehicle. The device comprises a conveying assembly, a fixing assembly and a rack assembly; the conveying assembly comprises a sliding rail, a fixed seat which can slide on the sliding rail, and a rotary table which is connected to the fixed seat in an overturning manner, the sliding rail is provided with a horizontal section and an inclined section, and the inclined section directly faces the sphere center of a spherical device; the fixing assembly comprises a base, the base is provided with a mounting groove with an opening in the upper side, a locking mechanism is arranged on the upper side of the base and used for fixedly keeping an activation piece in the mounting groove, and a first electromagnet is arranged on the lower side of the base and used for being in adsorption connection with the rotary table; and the rack assembly is used for fixedly installing the unmanned aerial vehicle, and a second electromagnet is arranged at the lower end of the rack assembly and used for being in adsorption connection with the fixing assembly. According to the laser fusion neutron activation transfer device based on the unmanned aerial vehicle, the activation piece can be quickly, efficiently and conveniently transferred to the surface position of the large spherical laser device through the unmanned aerial vehicle.

The invention discloses a lead-based neutron multiplier suitable for a fusion reactor solid cladding, which adopts a composite sphere design of a three-layer core-shell structure: a PbxMy sphere core material is a lead-based intermetallic compound with high melting point and excellent neutron multiplication performance, including but not limited to LaPb3, CePb3, Zr5Pb4, Zr5Pb3, PrPb3, NbPb3, Nd5Pb4, Nd5Pb3 and PbS, and plays a role in neutron multiplication; the middle shell layer is a PbxMy-Li2O metal ceramic composite material, the comprehensive tritium breeding ratio of the cladding is improved through efficient tritium production of Li2O and fusion neutrons, meanwhile, the metal ceramic composite material and a PbxMy metal interface have good thermodynamic matching, and the overall core-shell structure is stable; and the PbxMy shell layer is a thin film, so that the overall chemical inertness of the spherical shell is ensured. The invention provides a neutron multiplier design which is good in economical efficiency and can meet the fusion reactor tritium breeding requirement, and a feasible solution can be provided for replacing pure beryllium.

The invention discloses a high-precision and fast fusion neutron incidence point position finding method in the field of pulse type fast neutron imaging, which comprises the following steps: classifying all measured signals to form a plurality of sets, reconstructing tracks of all signals in each set by using a mapping relation of Hough transform, and finding positions of all neutron incidence points. According to the method, the signals are classified and segmented firstly, so that the data size needing to be analyzed is greatly reduced, all the signals in each signal set can be circularly exhaustive, the tracks of the signals can be extracted, and the running speed of the system is greatly increased. Besides, an optimized Hough transform algorithm is adopted in the track searching process, the neutron incidence point is finally obtained, and efficient and high-precision neutron incidence point searching can be achieved.

The invention discloses a proton conductor ceramic membrane-based self-loop tritium target system which is mainly suitable for a deuterium and tritium fusion neutron generator. In the proton conductor ceramic membrane-based self-loop tritium target system, a proton conductor ceramic membrane is used as a core part of a tritium target, and the proton conductor ceramic membrane consists of a compact oxide ceramic solid electrolyte and two porous electrodes. A self-loop process comprises the following steps: tritiated water is ionized into tritium ions on an anode via an external power source, and the tritium ions are reduced into tritium atoms and subjected to deuterium and tritium fusion due to bombardment of a deuterium beam after spreading in the porous anodes and migrating to a cathode. Tritium which does not participate in a fusion reaction are oxidized into the tritiated water via a purifying system, and the tritiated water is recycled back to the anode and reused after being collected. Via the proton conductor ceramic membrane-based self-loop tritium target system, operating temperature of the tritium target can be improved to 800 DEG C and 1000 DEG C, cyclic utilization of tritium is realized, and a utilization rate of tritium can be greatly increased.

The invention relates to a small laser deuterium-deuterium fusion neutron tube with a high temperature and high pressure. An insulation layer is arranged in the inner wall of the tube. A cathode and an anode in the cathode are arranged in the tube. A cathode corner connected with the cathode and an anode corner connected with the anode are arranged on the external lower part of the tube. The top of the tube is a transparent body and the tube is filled with deuterium gas. In the invention, the external diameter of the cathode is 40 mm and the internal diameter is 30-34 mm, as well as the height is 110-150 mm. a center hole with an aperture of 20-23 mm is arranged on the bottom center of the cathode. The anode is positioned in the center hole of the bottom. The anode and the cathode have a same shaft. The diameter of the anode is 8-15 mm and the height is 100-120 mm. The tube is filled with deuterium gap. The neutron tube of the invention has the advantages of small volume, high temperature resistance, high pressure resistance, high productivity and long service life, etc. The neutron tube is a component of an oil logging tool which can satisfy the neutron-neutron well detection under the conditions of high temperature 150 DEG C or more than 150 DEG C and the high pressure 80MPa or more than 80MPa.

The invention relates to a high-precision fusion neutron energy spectrum measuring device and method. The invention aims to solve problems that an existing fusion neutron energy spectrum measuring device and method are only suitable for diagnosis under high neutron yield if a recoil proton magnetic analysis method is adopted, an initial time waveform and a response waveform are difficult to obtain simultaneously and effectively by using the same detection system if a neutron time-of-flight method is adopted, and an initial time waveform and a response waveform are difficult to obtain simultaneously and effectively if different detection systems are adopted; time difference is additionally introduced, so precision of solving flight time broadening, Doppler energy spectrum broadening, fusion plasma temperature characteristics and the like is reduced. The measuring device comprises a hydrogen-rich perovskite scintillator, a photoelectric conversion device, a power supply, an oscilloscope and a computer, a photocathode of the photoelectric conversion device faces the hydrogen-rich perovskite scintillator; an output end of the photoelectric conversion device is connected with an input end of the oscilloscope, and an output end of the oscilloscope is connected with an input end of the computer. The measurement method is carried out by using the high-precision fusion neutron energy spectrum measurement device.

The invention discloses a laser fusion neutron irradiation effect test device, which includes a collection module, the collection module is equipped with a first pipeline and a second pipeline extending outward, wherein the remote end of the second pipeline is connected with a sample for placement assembly, used to fix the sample, the far end of the first pipeline is connected with a detection head assembly, used to measure the neutron dose near the sample, the collection module is connected to the detection head assembly through a first optical fiber, and the collection module is connected to the detection head assembly The sample placement components are connected by a second optical fiber, and the first optical fiber and the second optical fiber are placed in the first pipeline and the second pipeline respectively. The beneficial effect of the invention is that it can prevent corresponding parts in the collection module from being irradiated by neutrons, so as to ensure the accuracy of neutron dose measurement and effect evaluation.

The invention discloses a proton conductor ceramic membrane-based self-loop tritium target system which is mainly suitable for a deuterium and tritium fusion neutron generator. In the proton conductor ceramic membrane-based self-loop tritium target system, a proton conductor ceramic membrane is used as a core part of a tritium target, and the proton conductor ceramic membrane consists of a compact oxide ceramic solid electrolyte and two porous electrodes. A self-loop process comprises the following steps: tritiated water is ionized into tritium ions on an anode via an external power source, and the tritium ions are reduced into tritium atoms and subjected to deuterium and tritium fusion due to bombardment of a deuterium beam after spreading in the porous anodes and migrating to a cathode. Tritium which does not participate in a fusion reaction are oxidized into the tritiated water via a purifying system, and the tritiated water is recycled back to the anode and reused after being collected. Via the proton conductor ceramic membrane-based self-loop tritium target system, operating temperature of the tritium target can be improved to 800 DEG C and 1000 DEG C, cyclic utilization of tritium is realized, and a utilization rate of tritium can be greatly increased.

The invention discloses a method and a system for producing a <252>Cf neutron source by a fusion-driven sub-critical system, the external neutron source is: D-T fusion neutron source; a fuel cycle mode is a U-Pu cycle mode, and the fusion-driven sub-critical system of the U-Pu cycle mode has higher neutron flux. The structure of a cladding layer is as follows: an actinide nuclide treatment area, a target area, a fissile fuel proliferation area or the fissile fuel proliferation area, a fission product treatment area and a reflection and shielding area are sequentially surrounded at the outside of a generation area of the external neutron source, and the various areas are separated by using structural materials. The target area adopts helium as a cooling agent, reaction substances of the target area are formed by stacking in small sphere shape, and the volume of total solids accounts for 60 percent to 90 percent of the total volume. A target ball is taken out after materials of the target area are continuously radiated for about one year in the fusion-driven sub-critical system; the <252>Cf has short half-life and can not be radiated for a long time.

The invention discloses a fusion neutron real-time spectrum unfolding method for a magnetic confinement device. The fusion neutron real-time spectrum unfolding method for a fusion neutron multi-ball spectrometer of the magnetic confinement device is realized by utilizing a method of combining an artificial neural network and Monte Carlo. The fusion reaction in the current magnetic confinement plasma has the characteristics of short duration and narrow energy interval (0.5-20 MeV), so that compared with a conventional energy spectrum unfolding method of a neutron multi-sphere spectrometer, the real-time energy spectrum unfolding method of the fusion neutron multi-sphere spectrometer has the advantages that more attention is paid to the real-time performance and a specific neutron energy interval: the real-time performance of energy spectrum measurement is ensured by using an artificial neural network; and a lot of fusion neutron training spectra corresponding to plasma parameters are constructed by using Monte Carlo and other calculation methods, so that the energy spectrum unfolding precision of the artificial neural network in a fusion neutron energy range is ensured. The method is mainly applied to fusion neutron energy spectrum real-time measurement of the magnetic confinement plasma.