Range of blanket concepts from near term solutions to advanced concepts

Breeding blankets are key components of fusion power plants and determine to a large degree their attractiveness. There is a large range of possible blanket concepts, characterized by breeding material, structural material, coolant, and geometrical arrangement. On one extreme side there are concepts requiring only a modest extrapolation of the present technology, but with limited attractiveness. On the other side there are concepts with the potential for very attractive plants, but involving a considerable development risk. Therefore, the selection of blanket concepts depends on the overall strategy for fusion power plant development. To ensure sufficient support over the long development time, it has to be shown in a credible way, that (a) there are feasible blanket concepts for fusion power plants which can be developed with a high confidence of success, and (b) the final product will be an attractive power plant which can be operated safely, with minimum impact on the environment, and at an acceptable cost of electricity. This requires an evaluation of the entire range of blanket concepts, starting from near term solutions and reaching up to very advanced designs with a potential for exceptionally high performance. Typical examples of candidate blanket concepts are compared in this study. The blanket development strategy developed in the EU is described as an example.