NASEM-led panel urges development of American fusion pilot plant by 2040
A new report from a panel of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) called for accelerating investment into fixing the scientific and technical issues surrounding a fusion-powered pilot plant, so it can begin operation between 2035-2040.
The report, “Bringing Fusion to the U.S. Grid,” was requested by the U.S. Department of Energy on the notion that the first country to generate fusion-based electricity will be able to define how fusion develops into the future. A long-sought goal, fusion power, aims to generate electricity using the heat from nuclear fusion reactions. It leashed, scientists believe it could bring a nearly inexhaustible power supply of safe, clean electricity — a must as climate change accelerates.
So far, private industry is still considering various approaches to the issue, said panel chair Richard Hawryluk, associate director for fusion at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL). The NASEM panel, therefore, refrained from calling for any specific type of fusion device.
“The DOE charge requested general criteria that could be applied to different fusion concepts ranging from magnetic, to magneto-inertial to inertial,” Hawryluk said.
Competition from China and the U.K. aims to take the lead on fusion power. The panel noted a critical point is approaching when the U.S. must determine if it wants to lead or step aside — and if it wants to lead, the pilot plant will go a long way to building a commercial fusion power plant by 2050. To do this, the report said a preliminary design for a fusion pilot plant will be needed by 2028 and will require fusion confinement concepts and the necessary technology to extract fusion power and close the fusion fuel cycle to be developed in parallel.
“The need is twofold,” Hawryluk said. “One is to ensure that the pilot plant meets its technical goals. The second is that it meets its economic goals, so innovations are driven by technical and market considerations.”
To develop goals, the report urged the DOE to create multidisciplinary, national teams capable of pursuing conceptual pilot plant designs and technology roadmaps that will ultimately make fusion commercially viable.
