The D–T Reaction in Detail
How deuterium and tritium fuse to helium-4 and a 14 MeV neutron — the breeder's power source.
- Products
- &sup4;He (3.5 MeV) + n (14.1 MeV)
- Total
- 17.6 MeV
Deuterium and tritium fuse to a helium-4 nucleus and a neutron, sharing 17.6 MeV between them. Conservation of momentum gives the light neutron 14.1 MeV and the helium 3.5 MeV. The neutron carries its energy out to the blanket to breed tritium and deposit heat; the charged helium stays confined and heats the plasma.
This split — most energy in the escaping neutron — is why the breeder is neutron-rich (79.7%) and why Kronos treats those neutrons as the product, not a nuisance.
Conservation of momentum hands the light neutron 14.1 MeV and the helium 3.5 MeV, and that split is the whole architecture of the breeder: the neutron carries its energy out to breed tritium and deposit heat, while the confined helium heats the plasma. It is also why the breeder is deliberately neutron-rich at 79.7%.
Common questions
Momentum conservation gives the light neutron 14.1 MeV and the helium nucleus 3.5 MeV. The neutron carries its energy out to breed tritium and deposit heat; the confined helium heats the plasma.
Because in the breeder those neutrons are the product — they breed tritium and helium-3 and enable isotope production. Its 79.7% neutron fraction is a feature of a machine built to make fuel, not electricity.