Advantages of Fusion
As a source of energy, fusion would have many advantages:
Abundant Fuel Supply The major fuel, deuterium, may be readily extracted from ordinary water, which is available to all nations. The surface waters of the earth contain more than 10 million million tons of deuterium, an essentially inexhaustible supply. The tritium required would be produced from lithium, which is available from land deposits or from sea water which contains thousands of years' supply. The world-wide availability of these materials would thus eliminate international tensions caused by imbalance in fuel supply.	Comparison of Coal and Fusion Power Plants
No Risk of a Nuclear Accident The amounts of deuterium and tritium in the fusion reaction zone will be so small that a large uncontrolled release of energy would be impossible. In the event of a malfunction, the plasma would strike the walls of its containment vessel and cool. No Air Pollution Since no fossil fuels are used, there will be no release of chemical combustion products because they will not be produced. No High-level Nuclear Waste Similarly, there will be no fission products formed to present a handling and disposal problem. Radioactivity will be produced by neutrons interacting with the reactor structure, but careful materials selection is expected to minimize the handling and ultimate disposal of activated materials. No Generation of Weapons Material Another significant advantage is that the materials and by-products of fusion are not suitable for use in the production of nuclear weapons. Summary The abundance of raw materials, their wide distribution, and the environmental acceptability of fusion are augmented by the expectation that fusion energy will be an economical source of electricity generation.

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Updated: 3 March 1999 Send questions or comments to: Anthony R. DeMeo at ademeo@pppl.gov