New Publication: Design trends and challenges in Fusion Reactor Remote Handling Systems
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fusengdes.2026.115986
Sarah Louise Reade, Alexandr Klimchik, Mini Chakravarthini Rai, Manu Harikrishnan Nair, Marc Hanheide, Béchir Tabia, Alice Cryer, Emil Jonasson, Kaiqiang Zhang
Summary
This review explores how robotics have developed for fusion energy, from their historical beginnings to today’s state-of-the-art systems. It examines the key engineering challenges of operating robots in the extreme conditions of fusion reactors and highlights solutions and technologies from related industries that could help overcome these constraints.
What is Fusion Energy?
Fusion energy takes two hydrogen isotopes and fuses them together to get out heat, a neutron and helium. Fusion has the potential to provide a clean and sustainable source of energy, but making it work on a practical scale comes with some major engineering challenges, particularly when it comes to operating and maintaining equipment inside such an extreme environment.
Why do we need Robotics?
There are many reasons why we need remote handling in a fusion reactor. The reactor must be kept clean of all contaminants, the reaction happens in vacuum, at high temperature, and with large magnetic fields, and inputs and outputs to the reaction are harmful to humans. However, these reasons also pose challenges to the robotics. In this paper 11 challenges for robotics in this environment are detailed.
What solutions are there?
There are many solutions for facing these challenges, a lot of which come from industries facing similar challenges. This review discusses mature, emerging and unsuitable technologies, which can help improve the performance of the remote handling systems for fusion and, therefore, improve the viability of commercial fusion energy.