{"title":"Proposed relaxed criteria for fusion-activated materials","authors":"Son Quang, Nicholas R. Brown, G.Ivan Maldonado","doi":"10.1016/j.cossms.2025.101229","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The advancement of fusion energy, heralded as an innovative, environmentally sustainable, and clean alternative to traditional energy sources, necessitates a comprehensive reevaluation and enhancement of the standards and criteria used to assess the suitability of materials for fusion reactors. This study underscores the reforming and simplifying of the current regulatory framework applicable to activated materials for fusion energy. It highlights the unique environmental properties inherent to plasma systems, requiring the adoption of materials that may not fully align within an established conventional regulatory framework. Existing systems and structures governing regulations and compliance, largely modeled on the rules and standards established for fission reactors, may impose excessively stringent constraints that could impede the advancement and innovation of new technologies. In addition, fusion systems would produce significantly less long-term (>100,000 years) radioactive waste per unit energy generated than fission systems, so the existing regulatory framework based upon fission systems is unnecessarily conservative. By implementing a comprehensive framework that thoroughly accounts for the unique properties and behaviors of radionuclides, along with a detailed assessment of the environmental impacts of different materials, innovation can be responsibly advanced while maintaining safety standards and adherence to regulatory requirements. A judicious and restricted use of activated materials is recommended by the integration of advanced waste management strategies and a comprehensive understanding of these materials during operating conditions. Studies show that several activated products from candidate materials for fusion applications will not meet the existing strict activity limits, either as the main elements or as additions. For example, only about 7.1 % of the blanket’s front wall tungsten volume in the Steady State Tokamak Reactor (SSTR) could generate 2,000 times the amount of <sup>192n</sup>Ir above the allowed limit. The regulatory framework should consider relaxing the criteria for fusion-activated materials by allowing higher activity levels, as the fusion waste decays rapidly and most materials require isolation periods of less than 100 years. The proposed relaxed criteria achieve a balanced integration of optimal performance, enhanced safety measures, and environmental sustainability, thereby promoting the development and adoption of fusion technology as a reliable and viable energy source for the future.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":295,"journal":{"name":"Current Opinion in Solid State & Materials Science","volume":"37 ","pages":"Article 101229"},"PeriodicalIF":12.2000,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Current Opinion in Solid State & Materials Science","FirstCategoryId":"88","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1359028625000166","RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"MATERIALS SCIENCE, MULTIDISCIPLINARY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
The advancement of fusion energy, heralded as an innovative, environmentally sustainable, and clean alternative to traditional energy sources, necessitates a comprehensive reevaluation and enhancement of the standards and criteria used to assess the suitability of materials for fusion reactors. This study underscores the reforming and simplifying of the current regulatory framework applicable to activated materials for fusion energy. It highlights the unique environmental properties inherent to plasma systems, requiring the adoption of materials that may not fully align within an established conventional regulatory framework. Existing systems and structures governing regulations and compliance, largely modeled on the rules and standards established for fission reactors, may impose excessively stringent constraints that could impede the advancement and innovation of new technologies. In addition, fusion systems would produce significantly less long-term (>100,000 years) radioactive waste per unit energy generated than fission systems, so the existing regulatory framework based upon fission systems is unnecessarily conservative. By implementing a comprehensive framework that thoroughly accounts for the unique properties and behaviors of radionuclides, along with a detailed assessment of the environmental impacts of different materials, innovation can be responsibly advanced while maintaining safety standards and adherence to regulatory requirements. A judicious and restricted use of activated materials is recommended by the integration of advanced waste management strategies and a comprehensive understanding of these materials during operating conditions. Studies show that several activated products from candidate materials for fusion applications will not meet the existing strict activity limits, either as the main elements or as additions. For example, only about 7.1 % of the blanket’s front wall tungsten volume in the Steady State Tokamak Reactor (SSTR) could generate 2,000 times the amount of 192nIr above the allowed limit. The regulatory framework should consider relaxing the criteria for fusion-activated materials by allowing higher activity levels, as the fusion waste decays rapidly and most materials require isolation periods of less than 100 years. The proposed relaxed criteria achieve a balanced integration of optimal performance, enhanced safety measures, and environmental sustainability, thereby promoting the development and adoption of fusion technology as a reliable and viable energy source for the future.
期刊介绍:
Title: Current Opinion in Solid State & Materials Science
Journal Overview:
Aims to provide a snapshot of the latest research and advances in materials science
Publishes six issues per year, each containing reviews covering exciting and developing areas of materials science
Each issue comprises 2-3 sections of reviews commissioned by international researchers who are experts in their fields
Provides materials scientists with the opportunity to stay informed about current developments in their own and related areas of research
Promotes cross-fertilization of ideas across an increasingly interdisciplinary field