Where The Department of Energy Is Investing

[IsailedawayfromFR]

Where The Department of Energy Is Investing

The DOE has been flooding their sites with white-papers and latest Fusion Science and Technology Roadmap (FS&T Roadmap) are not just a scientific plan, but an industrial policy designed to transition fusion from the laboratory to the commercial market by the mid-2030s. The DOE has prioritized its actions to align with the aggressive “fast-track” development cycles of nuclear fission and fusion companies:

Near-Term (Next 2-3 Years): Digitalization & Infrastructure Prep

AI-Fusion Convergence: Launch the AI-Fusion Digital Convergence Platform to use machine learning to speed up materials discovery and predict plasma behavior.

Infrastructure Start: Build small-to-medium test facilities and complete the design for large-scale “First-of-a-Kind” (FOAK) facilities.

Regulatory Frameworks: Finalize licensing and safety standards to give investors, consumers, and citizens alike certainty on how these plants will be regulated.

Mid-Term (3-5 Years): Prototype Integration

Pilot Plant Construction: Support the private sector in constructing the first fusion pilot plants (FPPs).

Fuel & Materials Testing: Delivery of integration platforms for testing tritium fuel cycles and materials under intense radiation.

Supply Chain Seeding: Support domestic manufacturing for high-heat components and superconducting magnets.

Long-Term (5-10 Years): Grid Delivery & Scale-Up

Commercial Operation: The first fleet of pilot plants begins delivering power to the grid.

Commercial Maturity: Expand public infrastructure to support a global market, focusing on lowering the levelized cost of energy to make fusion competitive with other generation technologies today.

The Six Core Technical Challenge Areas
These are the gaps the DOE is prioritizing through its public research budget to ensure relevant companies succeed.

Structural Materials: Developing metals that won’t become brittle or weak after years of intense neutron bombardment. Metals such as Reduced Activation Ferritic Martensitic (RAFM) steels can withstand intense neutron damage without swelling or becoming brittle.

Plasma-Facing Components (PFCs): Creating “first walls” that can survive heat fluxes equivalent to the surface of the sun.

Confinement Systems: Optimizing magnets and lasers to hold the superheated fuel stable for long periods. Relevant companies: BRKR, COHR

Fuel Cycle & Tritium Processing: Establishing a closed loop fuel system to breed, recover, and recycle tritium fuel, as it is extremely scarce in nature. Relevant companies: OKLO, ASPI, BWXT

Blankets: Engineering the wrapper around the reactor that captures heat for electricity and breeds the fuel.

Plant Engineering & Integration: Linking a fusion reactor to standard turbines and maintenance via robotics. Relevant companies: NVDA, IBM https://www.zerohedge.com/technology/where-department-energy-investing

[Hoodat]

Where the Department of Energy should be investing:  NOWHERE

It isn't the government's job to invest.  Shut this department down and roll any necessary functions into the Dept of Interior.