A systems engineering approach to integrated design of a steady-state fusion pilot plant

An integrated design study of a fusion pilot plant (FPP) is conducted, with an emphasis on accelerating the development cycle via mature design tools and an iterative workflow. This workflow is based on the systems engineering approach to product development, which prioritizes the strategic and technical requirements of such a facility from both the stakeholder and developer perspectives. Starting with the FPP requirements proposed in the NASEM 2021 report "Bringing Fusion to the U.S. Grid", this design study first outlines the necessary aspects of each major subsystem in the FPP via functional decomposition. A cost-based systems code optimization then narrows the reactor operating space, with a steady-state advanced tokamak (AT) solution shown to be the lowest cost path to a 200MW(e) pilot plant. Each FPP subsystem is modeled with high-fidelity physics and engineering computational tools to validate the integrated system performance, and functional conflicts between subsystems are resolved via iterative design evolution. A set of trade studies are conducted to down-select among critical design choices, and the sensitivity of the final FPP conceptual design parameters is discussed.