The Southwestern Institute of Physics (SWIP) is located in Chengdu City, capital of southwest China’s Sichuan Province. They have just launched a key project to advance global nuclear fusion research. The project is called the Helium-Cooled Ceramic Breeder Test Blanket System (HCCB-TBS). It is a critical component of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) being constructed at Cadarache in southern France which is often referred to as the “artificial sun” project.
      Researchers say that the TBS is designed to validate “tritium breeding” blanket technologies. This is the basis for tritium self-sufficiency and the future needs of a large-scale fusion power plant. The SWIP stated that the first batch to TBS components will be delivered to the ITER project in France in 2029.
      Currently, nuclear power plants are based on the fission process where heavy unstable atoms of elements such as uranium and plutonium split into lighter elements and release energy which is converted to electricity. In a nuclear fusion reactor, lighter elements such as hydrogen and helium are fused to make heavier elements and release huge amounts of energy. The energy density is much greater than that of nuclear fission.
      The ITER project will use tritium and deuterium as fuel for its fusion reaction. ITER explained “While deuterium can be extracted from seawater in virtually boundless quantities, the supply of available tritium is limited, estimated currently at 20 kilograms.” 
      Wang Xiaoyu is the head of the HCCB-RBS project. Tritium can be produced inside a tokamak which is a donut shaped fusion reactor. A blanket of lithium can be placed around the containment chamber in a fusion reactor and neutrons produced by the fusion reaction will create tritium. Wang explained that “Now, fusion scientists have come up with the idea of using tritium breeding blanket to produce tritium and generate electricity in a fusion reactor.”
      The HCCB-TBS project is part of China’s participation in the research and design of the ITER which was launched in 2006. The ITER project is supported by scientists from thirty-five different countries including China, the U.S., Russia, Japan, South Korea and India.
      The purpose of the ITER project is to test whether nuclear fusion can be harnessed to provide abundant clean energy. In practice, the ITER uses a tokamak design to heat plasma to two hundred and seventy million degrees Fahrenheit. This is hotter than the core of our Sun. This is why the project is referred to as the “artificial sun”. The first phase of its operational test is scheduled for 2025 and it is expected to go into full operation in 2035.
      The SWIP is affiliated with the Chinese state-owned nuclear company China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC). It is one of the main supporting institutes supplying procurement package to the ITER. For decades, it has collaborated with domestic partners in China to work on research and development. It has worked on the development of Reduced Activation Ferritic/Martensitic Steel (RAFM), functional materials as well as the fabrication process of key components. All of these have helped to verify the feasibility of China’s HCCB-TBS project.
      In December of last year, the SWIP commissioned the new-generation Chinese fusion project referred to as the HL-2M Tokamak. It is able to generate plasma hotter than two hundred and seventy million degrees Fahrenheit. It is expected to enhance the research and development of important technologies is plasma physics research in China.
      Luo Delong is the head of China International Nuclear Fusion Energy Program Execution Center. He said that the successful launch of the HCCB-TBS project will establish a solid foundation for its future manufacturing, delivery and test operations on the ITER equipment. He added that “If it succeeds, power generation through fusion will help address all existing problems of energy supplies for the humankind, in a safer and more environmentally friendly way.”