[Borg3]

Thats least of your problem imo. Neutron corrosion is bigger problem. There is trick to use Lithium shielding, with create Tritium needed for Fussion. But not sure how effective it is, especially for long term reactor lifetime. Those reactors are very expensive, not sure if its worth to shut it down every year and replace entire Li shielding...

[throwup238]

I think beryllium is a better candidate. It can be grown as a single crystal and there’s lots of research into using it for shielding in nuclear lightbulb reactors.

[perihelions]

You're overlooking the other requirement of the blanket—that it captures fusion neutrons to breed tritium, and provides a self-sustaining, closed fuel cycle. Lithium is mandatory for a D+T reactor blanket, because of these reactions:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tritium#Lithium

(Do you have a link about that beryllium nuclear lightbulb rocket? It sounds interesting).

[rnhmjoj]

Beryllium is a good plasma facing material (low Z, low retention, low activation) and acts as a neutron multiplier, but it's highly toxic: only a few months ago ITER announced they scrapped the design of the first wall because working with beryllium was causing too many complications and slowing the project even more.

It's also so rare to be completely unsuitable for a power plant: a single DEMO-like reactor with a ceramic blanket (HCCB design) would require 70% of the world beryllium output to build and then burn through 200kg/year. Essentially you could only build a couple of these.

[LargoLasskhyfv]

Who is researching nuclear lightbulb reactors?

[defrost]

Thomas Latham was, in 1991 ... today, not so much.

https://ntrs.nasa.gov/api/citations/19920001892/downloads/19...

https://arc.aiaa.org/doi/10.2514/6.1991-3512