Nuclear Fusion

In a forested region in the south of France, the largest science project on record is being constructed. Six main modules will be moved by crane and assembled together to form a machine that will stand taller than a ten-story building and weigh 23,000 tonnes. The project, called the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor, or ITER, is to date the most ambitious attempt to make nuclear fusion viable – an energy source that may possibly meet the world’s total energy needs in perpetuity.

Unlike nuclear fission, which splits atoms, nuclear fusion smashes particles together with such intensity that new ones are formed. One such occurrence can provide a return on energy 1,000 times the size of the original input. The process works by circulating hydrogen atoms at super-high speeds in a donut-shaped “tokamak” vacuum device at the heart of the reactor. It then applies heat at 150 million degrees through intense radiation and massive electric currents, causing the colliding hydrogen nuclei to form helium, which releases an explosive energy. The tokamak has been designed to contain that astrononical energy blast. It uses 10,000 tons of superconducting magnets to stabilize the plasma swarm of colliding hydrogen atoms.

But putting aside the mind- boggling potential, the construction of ITER, a $20 billion, 35-country effort, will need to be flawless in order to meet the intended 2020 launch. Organizing workflow has proved incredibly trying as bureaucracy and inter-governmental politics hamper progress. The E.U.-led project has suffered funding cuts from European members. In October of last year, the U.S. threatened to withhold a portion of its funding until ITER’s merits were proven. The jury is still out on whether nuclear fusion is the ultimate energy source or just a starry-eyed dream.

albertaoilmagazine.com