Editing Inertial confinement fusion (section)

==== Power extraction ====
ICF systems face some of the secondary power extraction problems as MCF systems. One of the primary concerns is how to successfully remove heat from the reaction chamber without interfering with the targets and driver beams. Another concern is that the released [[neutron]]s react with the reactor structure, mechanically weakening it, and turning it intensely radioactive. Conventional metals such as [[steel]] would have a short lifetime and require frequent replacement of the core containment walls. Another concern is fusion [[afterdamp]] (debris left in the reaction chamber), which could interfere with subsequent shots, including helium ash produced by fusion, along with unburned hydrogen and other elements used in the fuel pellet. This problem is most troublesome with indirect drive systems. If the driver energy misses the fuel pellet completely and strikes the containment chamber, material could foul the interaction region, or the lenses or focusing elements.

One concept, as shown in the HYLIFE-II design, is to use a "waterfall" of [[FLiBe]], a molten mix of [[fluoride]] salts of [[lithium]] and [[beryllium]], which both protect the chamber from neutrons and carry away heat. The FLiBe is passed into a [[heat exchanger]] where it heats water for the turbines.<ref>{{Citation |first1=Craig |last1=Olson |first2=Max |last2=Tabak |first3=Jill |last3=Dahlburg |first4=Rick |last4=Olson |first5=Steve |last5=Payne |first6=John |last6=Sethian |first7=John |last7=Barnard |first8=Rick |last8=Spielman |first9=Ken |last9=Schultz |first10=Robert |last10=Peterson |first11=Per |last11=Peterson |first12=Wayne |last12=Meier |first13=John |last13=Perkins |contribution=Inertial Fusion Concepts Working Group, Final Reports of the Subgroups |year=1999 |title=1999 Fusion Summer Study |publisher=Columbia University |url= http://sites.apam.columbia.edu/SMproceedings/6.InertialConcepts/6.IFE_Subgroups.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://sites.apam.columbia.edu/SMproceedings/6.InertialConcepts/6.IFE_Subgroups.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-09 |url-status=live |access-date=August 23, 2014}}</ref> The tritium produced by splitting lithium nuclei can be extracted in order to close the power plant's thermonuclear fuel cycle, a necessity for perpetual operation because tritium is rare and otherwise must be manufactured. Another concept, Sombrero, uses a reaction chamber built of [[carbon-fiber-reinforced polymer]] which has a low neutron cross section. Cooling is provided by a molten ceramic, chosen because of its ability to absorb the neutrons and its efficiency as a heat transfer agent.<ref>{{Citation |first1=I.N. |last1=Sviatoslavsky |first2=M.E. |last2=Sawan |first3=R.R. |last3=Peterson |first4=G.L. |last4=Kulcinski |first5=J.J. |last5=MacFarlane |first6=L.J. |last6=Wittenberg |first7=E.A. |last7=Mogahed |first8=S.C. |last8=Rutledge |first9=S. |last9=Ghose |first10=R. |last10=Bourque |contribution=SOMBRERO - A Solid Breeder Moving Bed KrF Laser Driven IFE Power Reactor |year=1991 |title=14th IEEE/NPSS Symposium on Fusion Engineering |publisher=Fusion Technology Institute, University of Wisconsin |url=http://fti.neep.wisc.edu/pdf/fdm862.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://fti.neep.wisc.edu/pdf/fdm862.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-09 |url-status=live |access-date=August 23, 2014}}</ref>

[[Image:Fusion target implosion on NOVA laser.jpg|thumb|right|upright|An inertial confinement fusion implosion in Nova, creating "micro sun" conditions of tremendously high density and temperature rivaling even those found at the core of the [[Sun]].]]