Summary of Opportunities in the Fusion Energy Sciences Program Prepared by the Fusion Energy Sciences Advisory Committee For the Office of Science of the U.S. Department of Energy SUMMARY OF OPPORTUNITIES IN THE FUSION ENERGY SCIENCES PROGRAM November 1999 Prepared by the Fusion Energy Sciences Advisory Committee for the Office of Science of the U.S. Department of Energy Fusion Energy Sciences Advisory Committee Panel * Charles C. Baker, University of California, San Diego Stephen O. Dean, Fusion Power Associates † N. Fisch, Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory Jeffrey P. Freidberg,* Massachusetts Institute of Technology Richard D. Hazeltine,* University of Texas G. Kulcinski, University of Wisconsin John D. Lindl,* Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Gerald A. Navratil,* Columbia University Cynthia K. Phillips,* Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory S. C. Prager, University of Wisconsin D. Rej, Los Alamos National Laboratory John Sheffield,* Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Coordinator J. Soures, University of Rochester R. Stambaugh, General Atomics R. D. Benson, ORNL Support J. Perkins, LLNL Support J. A. Schmidt, PPPL Support N. A. Uckan, ORNL Support * Member of FESAC. † Ex-Member of FESAC. ii Fusion Energy Sciences Advisory Committee 1998–1999 Members Dr. Charles C. Baker, University of California, San Diego Dr. Richard J. Briggs, Science Applications International Corporation Dr. Robert W. Conn, University of California, San Diego Professor Jeffrey P. Freidberg, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Dr. Katharine B. Gebbie, National Institute of Standards and Technology Professor Richard D. Hazeltine, University of Texas at Austin Professor Joseph A. Johnson III, Florida A&M University Dr. John D. Lindl, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Dr. Gerald A. Navratil, Columbia University Dr. Cynthia K. Phillips, Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory Dr. Marshall N. Rosenbluth, University of California, San Diego Dr. John Sheffield (Chair), Oak Ridge National Laboratory Dr. Tony S. Taylor, General Atomics Ex-Officios Dr. Clement Wong (GAT), American Nuclear Society [Previously, Dr. Wayne Houlberg (ORNL)] Professor Miklos Porkolab (MIT), American Physical Society Dr. Ned R. Sauthoff (PPPL), Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Staff Robert Benson (ORNL) PREFACE This document has been prepared in response to a charge to the Fusion Energy Sciences Advisory Committee (FESAC) from Dr. Martha Krebs, Director of the Department of Energy’s Office of Science: ... to make final a program plan for the fusion energy science program by the end of 1999 (FY). Such a program plan needs to include paths for both energy and science goals taking into account the expected overlap between them. The plan must also address the needs for both magnetic and inertial confinement options. It will have to be specific as to how the U.S. program will address the various overlaps, as well as international colla- boration and funding constraints. Finally, this program plan must be based on a ‘working’ consensus (not unanimity) of the community, otherwise we can’t move forward. Thus I am turning once again to FESAC. I would like to ask FESAC’s help in two stages. First, please prepare a report on the opportunities and the requirements of a fusion energy science program, including the technical requirements of fusion energy. In preparing the report, please consider three time-scales: near-term, e.g., 5 years; mid-term, e.g., 20 years; and the longer term. It would also be useful to have an assessment of the technical status of the various elements of the existing program. This document should not exceed 70 pages and should be completed by the end of December 1998, if at all possible. I would expect to use this work, as it progresses, as input for the upcoming SEAB review of the magnetic and Inertial Fusion Energy Programs. A FESAC Panel was set up to prepare the document. The Panel decided to follow the approach used in the preparation of the reports from the Yergin Task Force on Strategic Energy Research and Develop- ment of June 1995 and from the National Laboratory Directors on Technology Opportunities to Reduce U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions of October 1997. As a first step, a two-page description of each of the main topical areas of fusion energy sciences was obtained from key researchers in that area. The descriptions give the status and prospects for each area in the near-term, midterm, and longer term, discussing both opportunities and issues. These two-pagers are published as a separate report. The two-pagers were used as background information in the preparation of this overview, Opportunities in Fusion Energy Sciences Program. FESAC thanks all of those who participated in this work. These two reports have been published and appear on the World Wide Web at the following URL: http://wwwofe.er.doe.gov/More_HTML/FESAC_Charges_Report.html. This document is the 70-page summary of these reports. The preparation of this summary document was undertaken mainly by C. C. Baker, R. Goldston, R. D. Hazeltine, J. D. Lindl, C. K. Phillips, D. Rej, N. R. Sauthoff, and J. Sheffield. iii Page Intentionally Blank CONTENTS Page PREFACE............................................................................................................................................ iii EXECUTIVE SUMMARY................................................................................................................. vii 1. INTRODUCTION........................................................................................................................ 1-1 1.1 THE SCIENCE OF FUSION .............................................................................................. 1-1 1.2 THE STRATEGIC ROLE OF FUSION ENERGY RESEARCH..................................... 1-1 1.3 TWO PATHWAYS TO FUSION ENERGY ..................................................................... 1-2 1.4 THE DOE AND WORLD FUSION PROGRAMS............................................................ 1-3 1.5 THE FUTURE PROGRAM ................................................................................................ 1-4 2 FUSION ENERGY SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY.............................................................. 2-1 2.1 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................... 2-1 2.1.1 Fusion Fuel Cycles ............................................................................................... 2-1 2.1.2 Environmental and Safety Aspects of Fusion Energy Production...................... 2-2 2.1.3 Progress in Fusion Energy Research.................................................................... 2-2 2.2 MAGNETIC FUSION ENERGY ....................................................................................... 2-4 2.2.1 Introduction........................................................................................................... 2-4 2.2.2 Physics of Magnetic Confinement ....................................................................... 2-5 2.2.3 Path to Magnetic Fusion Energy.......................................................................... 2-10 2.2.4 Opportunities in MFE........................................................................................... 2-19 2.3 THE INERTIAL FUSION PATHWAY TO FUSION ENERGY ..................................... 2-25 2.3.1 Introduction........................................................................................................... 2-25 2.3.2 ICF Target Physics ............................................................................................... 2-26 2.3.3 An IFE Development Pathway for Lasers and Ion Beams ................................. 2-35 2.3.4 IFE Drivers ........................................................................................................... 2-37 2.3.5 IFE Fusion Target Concepts and Design ............................................................. 2-41 2.4 TECHNOLOGY OPPORTUNITIES.................................................................................. 2-43 2.4.1 Overview and Recent Progress ............................................................................ 2-43 2.4.2 The Technology Portfolio .................................................................................... 2-45 2.4.3 IFE Chamber and Target Technology R&D........................................................ 2-48 3. SCIENTIFIC CONTEXT OF FUSION RESEARCH ................................................................ 3-1 3.1 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................... 3-1 3.1.1 Plasma Science ..................................................................................................... 3-1 3.1.2 Conceptual Tools.................................................................................................. 3-1 3.1.3 Evolution of Fusion Science ................................................................................ 3-2 3.2 MAJOR TOPICAL AREAS IN PLASMA SCIENCE....................................................... 3-2 3.2.1 Hamiltonian Dynamics......................................................................................... 3-2 3.2.2 Long Mean-Free Path Plasmas............................................................................. 3-3 3.2.3 Turbulence ............................................................................................................ 3-3 3.2.4 Dynamo and Relaxation ......................................................................................