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.