Production of synthetic fuels - An important civilian application of laser fusion

It is suggested that direct utilization of fusion radiations to generate hydrogen/methane can provide an effective alternative to the generation of electricity. In laser fusion the simple geometric arrangement in which fusion occurs in a small pellet of about 1 mm in diameter will produce very large fluxes of 14-MeV neutrons emanating in all directions. These energetic neutrons can interact with chemical systems in a radiolysis process, combining radiolysis and thermally driven reactions. Hydrogen can then be incorporated into methane for pipeline use or into methanol for use in automobiles.