Patent Number: 046631100
Section: claims

1. A method of making fuel elements for a fission reactor by breeding fissile fuel in a tritium breeding fusion reactor having a blanket with an enrichment section comprising the following steps: (a) incorporating particles of fertile material and particles of a thermal neutron absorber into said enrichment section in such proportion that said particles of fertile maeterial make up less than 3% by volume of said enrichment section, said thermal neutron absorber functioning at least in part to suppress thermal fissioning of said bred fissile fuel,  (b) bombarding said particles with neutrons generated by fusion, and adding additional particles of said thermal neutron absorber as the fissile material content of said enrichment section increases to continue to suppress thermal fissioning of said bred fissile fuel,  (c) removing said particles from said blanket after sufficient time that the fuel particles are enriched to about 4%, said time being less than about eight months from the time the generation of neutrons by fusion is commenced,  (d) after said step of removing, mixing said particles to compensate for nonuniformities in enrichment introduced as a function of location of particles within the enrichment section, and  (e) fabricating said particles to form at least one fuel element.  (a) sintering aggregates of said particles to form pellets, and  (b) inserting aggregates of said pellets into fuel containers to form fuel elements for a fission reactor. 2. A method as set forth in claim 1 wherein said step of fabricating comprises the following substeps: