Phys.org May 3, 2018, US Department of Energy A simulation shows (a) a disruptive instability in the DIII-D tokamak, a cross-section (b) of orbits of trapped energetic ions (black) interacting with the magnetic instability (colors), and the dependence of the critical stability threshold (c) in the ratio of thermal to magnetic energy, βc, as a … Read more
IAEA Nuclear energy can also be produced by fusion reactions of light nuclei. This technique promises many advantages and has attracted global research and development efforts. The IAEA has supported fusion energy research since its inception and helps Member States exchange and build knowledge on fusion science and technology. Worldwide research has made impressive progress … Read more
Fusion for Energy 16 April 2018 Positioning the SPIDER Beam source with the handling tooling to its final location, ITER Neutral Beam Test Facility, Consorzio RFX, Padua, Italy The final countdown for the operation of SPIDER has started. All its systems are connected and engineers together with scientists are getting ready to turn the switch … Read more
IAEA Modelling Damage in a Fusion Reactor Motivation Nuclear fusion is the process by which the nuclei of two light atoms combine to produce a single nucleus whilst releasing a large amount of energy. A star like our own Sun shines because of energy released from a set of fusion reactions which convert hydrogen to … Read more
A critique of the MIT & Commonwealth Energy Compact Fusion Energy Reactor By Daniel Jassby, Ph.D. New Jersey, 3/29/2018 Prepared for the National Academy of Sciences public input on fusion energy In March 2018 a collaboration of MIT and CFS (Commonwealth Fusion Systems) announced that it would build a compact high-field experimental fusion reactor called … Read more
Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists Daniel Jassby | 19 April 2017 Fusion reactors have long been touted as the “perfect” energy source. Proponents claim that when useful commercial fusion reactors are developed, they would produce vast amounts of energy with little radioactive waste, forming little or no plutonium byproducts that could be used for nuclear … Read more
ITER Kirsten Haupt 16 Apr, 2018 To achieve maximum fusion efficiency in a tokamak device it is essential to limit the impurities in the plasma. But this can be a challenge, as interaction between the hot plasma and the material surfaces of the vacuum vessel causes material particles to detach and enter the swirling cloud … Read more
IEEE Spectrum By Tracy Staedter | 18 Apr 2018 Commonwealth Fusion Systems has pledged to build a commercial fusion reactor based on new superconducting magnets Image: Ken Filar, PSFC Research Affiliate Fusion power is always two or three decades away. Dozens of experimental reactors have come and gone over the years, inching the field forward … Read more
The following analysis is based on the review of publicly available scientific journal papers written and published by scientists at each of the identified companies as well as recent “poster presentations” at meetings such as the October-November 2016 American Physical Society Division of Plasma Physics, conference held in San Jose, CA, and others. The following … Read more
BBC By Stephen McDonell BBC News, Anhui Province | 18 April 2018 China says it’s ahead in the global race for nuclear fusion In a world with an ever-increasing demand for electricity and a deteriorating environment, Chinese scientists are leading the charge to develop what some see as the holy grail of energy. The BBC’s … Read more