Operations & Commissioning
Operating the Fuel Cycle
Breeding, extracting, purifying and re-injecting tritium in steady operation.
- Loop
- Breed → extract → inject
In operation the breeder continuously breeds tritium in the blanket, extracts and purifies it, accounts for every gram, and re-injects it — a closed loop running at TBR 1.8 to make 4.0 kg/yr while exporting the surplus. It is the operational heart of the breeder's product.
Tritium accountancy is a continuous, regulator-relevant operation.
Common questions
What does operating the fuel cycle involve?
Running the closed tritium loop on the breeder — breeding, extracting, purifying, accounting and re-injecting — while keeping inventory low and every gram tracked. It targets ~4.0 kg/yr/yr.
Why is it operationally demanding?
Because tritium is mobile and radioactive, so accounting and containment are continuous safety-critical activities, not periodic checks.