UK Invests in Tritium Breeding Innovation for Future Fusion Power Plants
Key Ideas
- UKAEA's LIBRTI programme aims to demonstrate controlled tritium breeding for future fusion power plants, addressing tritium scarcity.
- Lancaster University's TriBreed project, part of LIBRTI, will design a tritium breeding experiment using advanced octalithium ceramic breeder materials.
- UKAEA plans to purchase a neutron source from SHINE Technologies to support breeding model experiments for next-generation blanket designs.
- SHINE Technologies' CEO highlights their fusion neutron sources as crucial for validating tritium breeding materials in scalable fusion energy systems.
The UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) is investing in the Lithium Breeding Tritium Innovation (LIBRTI) programme to tackle the challenge of tritium scarcity for future fusion power plants. Fusion energy relies on hydrogen isotopes deuterium and tritium, with tritium being rare on Earth. The LIBRTI programme focuses on demonstrating controlled tritium breeding through small-scale experiments. Lancaster University's TriBreed project, in collaboration with Oxford University and Kyoto Fusioneering, aims to fabricate a tritium breeding experiment using advanced ceramic breeder materials to predict tritium production accurately. Additionally, UKAEA plans to acquire a neutron source from SHINE Technologies in the US to establish a testbed facility for breeding model experiments at Culham Campus. SHINE Technologies' neutron sources, capable of up to 50 trillion fusion reactions per second, are crucial for validating tritium breeding materials necessary for scalable fusion energy systems.