Can Tritium Monitoring and Control Requirements for DEMO Be Met by Existing Technologies?

Abstract

The tritium inventory of future fusion power plants needs to be monitored in the fuel cycle for several reasons: to comply with limits imposed by environment and safety regulators, to adhere to practices required by nuclear regulators, and for process control purposes. Fulfilling all these requirements leads to a comprehensive list of locations in the fuel cycle where tritium monitoring needs to take place, each characterized by different measurement conditions and required accuracies. Meanwhile, existing tritium detection technologies all come with specific applicabilities such as accuracy, material phase, and ability to detect tritium in a continuous manner. These do not necessarily correspond to the required measurement conditions. As an example, one tritium detection technology will be matched up with the previously defined measurement conditions, which allows for the identification of gaps in the existing detection capabilities of this technology. This work leads to several recommendations, i.e., developments to expand the applicability of tritium detection technologies, experimental proposals to test detection techniques at more extreme conditions, and expansion of the regulatory framework regarding tritium handling and breeding. These developments are critical for a functioning tritium management and control system, and this paper outlines the first step in that process.