Comment on "ENN's roadmap for proton-boron fusion based on spherical torus" [Phys. Plasmas 31, 062507 (2024)]

Abstract

This comment discusses the feasibility of hot ion mode ${{T}_{i}}/{{T}_{e}}=4$ for proton-boron fusion which is critical for the roadmap proposed in Liu, M et al [Phys. Plasmas 31, 062507 (2024)]. The hot ion mode ${{T}_{i}}/{{T}_{e}}=4$ has been calculated to be far from accessible (${{T}_{i}}/{{T}_{e}}<1.5$ for ${{T}_{i}}=150\text{keV}$) under the most optimal conditions if fusion provides the heating (Xie, H [Introduction to Fusion Ignition Principles: Zeroth Order Factors of Fusion Energy Research (in Chinese), USTC Press, Hefei, 2023]), i.e., that all fusion power serves to heat the ions and that electrons acquire energy only through interactions with ions. We also discuss if hot ion mode of ${{T}_{i}}/{{T}_{e}}=4$ could be achieved by an ideal heating method which is much more efficient than fusion itself (near 20 times fusion power for ${{T}_{i}}=150\text{keV}$) and only heats the ions, whether it makes sense economically.