Pulsed laser-ignited thermonuclear reactor

Claim 2

The reactor system set forth in claim 2, wherein said top inlet to said pressure vessel is provided with a plurality of internal energy attenuating baffles to reduce the force of said blast waves in a direction toward said fuel pellet injecting system and said laser beam system, and said lithium feeding inlet is positioned in the side of said pressure vessel for feeding said lithium tangentially thereinto.

Claim 3

The reactor system set forth in claim 3, wherein said pulsed laser beam has an energy of a selected value from 2 X 103 to 107 Joules, with a duration of less than 10 9 second, and said frozen pellets have a diameter of about 0.10 inch.

Claim 4

The reactor system set forth in claim 4, wherein said liquid lithium is circulated through said reactor pressure vessel at a rate of 1400 gallons per minute, and the resultant energy release into said blanket from said fusion reactions is of a value from 104 to 109 Joules per pulse depending upon the size of the pellet and the input energy of said laser beam pulse.

Claim 5

The reactor system set forth in claim 3, wherein a plurality of upwardly directed jets arranged concentrically about said bottom lithium outlet are substituted for said side inlet with said pump being connected to said jets, and an internal hollow diverter mounted within said pressure vessel adjacent to the opening of said top inlet, whereby said liquid lithium injected into said pressure vessel through said jets is diverted by said diverter to form said centrally disposed void area.

Claim 6

The reactor system set forth in claim 3, wherein a plurality of upwardly directed jets are arranged concentrically about said bottom outlet, said jets also being connected to said pump such that said liquid lithium is pumped from said heat exchanger into said pressure vessel by way of said side inlet and said jets, and a flow diverter mounted within said pressure vessel for diverting the flow through said jets away from said void area.

Claim 7

The reactor system set forth in claim 3, wherein said tritium recovery and electrical generating system includes providing said heat exchanger with niobium tubing such that the tritium formed in said liquid lithium while it is in said pressure vessel is removed in said heat exchanger by diffusing through said niobium tubing, said tritium recovery and electrical generating system further including a potassium boiler associated with said heat exchanger, a potassium turbine coupled to said potassium boiler, a first potassium condenser coupled between said potassium boiler and turbine, a steam boiler, a steam turbine coupled to said steam boiler, a steam condenser coupled between said steam turbine and said steam boiler, said first potassium condenser and said steam boiler functioning as a second heat exchanger which is provided with alloy steel tubing, a second potassium condenser coupled to said first potassium condenser, a tritium window, an aspirator coupled between said window and said second potassium condenser, a tritium storage unit, and tritium pumps coupled between said storage unit and said window, whereby said potassium boiler provides a potassium vapor which is mixed with said tritium which has diffused through said niobium tubing in said first heat exchanger and said mixture drives said potassium turbine, said tritium being adapted to flow as a noncondensable from said first condenser to said second condenser and finally to said window through said aspirator, and said potassium turbine and said steam turbine both being adapted to drive electrical generators for producing electricity.

Claim 9

The method set forth in claim 9, and further including the step of injecting inert gas bubbles into said liquid lithium before it is fed into said pressure vessel.