US-based energy company Type One Energy has published the world’s first detailed and self-consistent physics basis, with conservative design margins, for a practical fusion pilot power plant.
It establishes the scientific foundation for Type One Energy’s Infinity Two stellarator fusion power plant project, which the company is developing for the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) utility in the US.
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The design prioritises a realistic approach to plasma performance, construction and economic viability, informed by actual power plant operations.
The physics design basis leverages the advantageous operating characteristics of highly optimised stellarator fusion technology, utilising modular superconducting magnets, an approach successfully demonstrated by the W7-X science machine in Germany.
The Infinity Two stellarator plant, fuelled by deuterium-tritium, generates 800MW of fusion power and delivers 350 megawatts electric (MWe) to the grid.
The plant’s plasma is resilient and stable, with minimal heat loss and manageable direct energy losses to the first wall.
The design includes island divertors for helium ash exhaust and a blanket for shielding and tritium breeding, providing a baseline configuration for the pilot plant.
Type One Energy CEO Christofer Mowry stated: “The physics basis for Infinity Two is grounded in the knowledge of what is required for application to, and performance in, the demanding environment of reliable electrical generation for the power grid. We have an organisation that understands this is not about designing a science project.”
Type One Energy’s stellarator configuration is designed to meet technical requirements and address the commercial aspects of fusion power plants.
The design facilitates maintenance solutions that improve power plant capacity factors and the levelised cost of electricity, while also meeting regulatory standards for manufacturing and construction, aiming for a reasonable overnight cost.
Chris Hegna, a theorist in stellarator technology at Type One Energy, spearheaded the high-fidelity computational analyses that significantly reduce the risk associated with the Infinity Two power plant’s functional and performance requirements.
This global development programme involved contributions from scientists worldwide and utilised top-tier US Department of Energy supercomputers for stellarator physics simulations.
Type One Energy chief science and engineering officer John Canik stated: “The team was able to efficiently develop deep plasma physics insights to inform the design of our Infinity Two stellarator, by taking advantage of our access to high-performance computing resources.
“This enabled the Type One Energy team to demonstrate a realistic, integrated stellarator design that moves far beyond conventional thinking and concepts derived from more limited modelling capabilities.”
In July 2024, the company completed an $82.4m seed financing round to advance the commercialisation of fusion power.
