Abstract
The use of aneutronic fusion fuels, such as D-3He, is shown to require much higher values of plasma beta and much longer confinement times, in a system of smaller size, than for the conventional D-T fuel. It has been suggested that direct conversion might help to offset these disadvantages. We discuss generic features of the conversion process. We conclude that direct conversion at high efficiency, required for aneutronic fuels, appears to be feasible only in open field line configurations, which do not have adequate plasma confinement qualities.