Fusion energy breakthrough...

[mistermack]

10 hours ago, MigL said:

Inertial confinement uses a pellettised Tritium target , and the lasers provide the high temperatures to momentarily 'ignite' fusion.
Wondering how difficult it would be to use a magnetically confined torus target, and provide the initial temperature with lasers, but then, rely on the 'ignited' fusion reaction to sustain reaction temperatures in the magnetically confined torus.

The neutron problem seems almost trivial ( but maybe the engineering is not ).
A heavy water moderator is used to slow the neutrons and form tritium from the deuterium, ensuring a self-generating supply of fuel.

The pellets are a deuterium/tritium mix I believe. Lasers are a very inefficient way of injecting heat, there wouldn't be any point of using them in a Torus. Their advantage in inertial systems is that the heat is supplied so fast to the pellet by the lazers, that there is for an instant a very high pressure in the pellet, it's the inertia of the target that momentarily gives the high pressure. So the combination of high temperature and pressure enables the fusion in the deuterium/tritium mix. 

In the inertial laser system, the temperatures are much lower than in a torus, but the pressure, for an instant, is much higher. 

I believe the production of Tritium is to be achieved using isotopes of Lithium in a blanket. There are various configurations that are going to be explored, but it's Lithium that will be producing the Tritium.