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Page added on February 20, 2016
This $14-billion machine is set to usher in a new era of nuclear fusion power
The first and largest machine of its kind is currently under construction at the French scientific research center Cadarache, which specializes in nuclear power research.
It’s called ITER, Latin for “The Way,” and is expected to usher in a new era of nuclear fusion-powered electricity — something scientists and engineers have been working toward for over 40 years.
By fusing two forms of hydrogen, called deuterium and tritium, together, the machine would generate 500 megawatts of power. That’s ten times more energy than it would require to operate.
Once completed, ITER would measure 100 feet in diameter and height, representing a new breed of nuclear fusion device. If it reaches its energy output goals, it will be the first machine of its kind to bridge the gap from fusion research in the lab to readily available fusion power for cities.
As of June 2015, construction costs for the machine exceeded $14 billion. But, in the end, experts say it will be worth it. After all, nuclear fusion is the process that powers stars like our Sun and offers a number of advantages to current energy sources if we can harness that power here on Earth:
- Fusion generates non-radioactive waste that can be completely recycled within 100 years, unlike the toxic radioactive residue that today’s nuclear fission reactors produce.
- There’s no chance of a runaway reaction because any malfunction would halt the fusion process, meaning that fusion reactors don’t run the risk of a nuclear meltdown.
- It’s a clean source of energy compared to coal, natural gas, and crude oil.
- Fusion reactors can run on seawater, offering a relatively renewable source of energy.
The problem with fusion
Right now, the biggest one is this: Fusion machines in operation today use more energy to run than they put out, which is the exact opposite of what you want from a power plant.
The problem stems from the super-heated plasma that machines, called tokamaks, produce and where the fusion reactions takes place. Below is a schematic of the plasma, shown in purple:
While reaching these temperatures is a feat of engineering in and of itself, tokamaks can’t sustain the plasma flow for very long. The record for the longest sustained plasma is 6 minutes and 30 seconds, which a French tokamak achieved in 2003.
This pulsing behavior, which comes with turning the plasma repeatedly on and off in short bursts, is what scientists have been trying to bypass for decades because pulsing costs too much energy to be a viable approach for net energy gain.
Instead, the ideal approach is to build a machine that can produce a self-sustaining plasma. That’s where ITER comes in.
Below is a cross section of what the inside of ITER will look like where the rotating particles are deuterium and tritium atoms:
The plasma inside ITER will reach 150 million degrees, or ten times hotter than the center of the Sun and enough to fuse deuterium and tritium.
An important byproduct of the fusion is helium — specifically the nucleus of helium atoms. Once produced, these atoms bounce around, imparting energy in the form of heat, which helps to keep the plasma intrinsically hot, without the aid of additional, external energy input.
“That’s how it will be almost completely self sustaining,”Jonathan Menard, the program director of a major fusion facility at the Princeton Plasma Physics Lab (PPPL), told Business Insider.
This type of fusion burning is very similar to what’s happening in the core of our Sun.
The future of fusion
Science Magazine on YouTube
An illustration of Wendelstein 7-X’s main plasma generator.
Another machine in Germany called Wendelstein 7-X — which was recently turned on for the first time — is also expected to generate self-sustaining plasma.
However, Menard noted that it isn’t likely that this machine will generate enough surplus energy to serve as a potential nuclear fusion power plant, which is what ITER is being designed to do.
Still another form of fusion reactors use lasers instead of plasma, like the National Ignition Facility in California, but that area of research still has a ways to go before it can compete with the tokamaks of the world.
“So far, the laser based systems are pretty inefficient an we think the [plasma] fusion systems are closer to having net energy,” Menard said.
Construction began on ITER in 2007 and is expected to end in 2019 with the firing of its first plasma in 2020. The machine is expected to reach full deuterium–tritium fusion experiments for potential net energy gain by 2027.
In the mean time, fusion research facilities across the globe, like PPPL are exploring different aspects of how ITER will operate.
“Particularly [we’re investigating] how well those alpha particles or helium nuclei are confined,” Menard said.
17 Comments on "This $14-billion machine is set to usher in a new era of nuclear fusion power"
Go Speed Racer on Sat, 20th Feb 2016 1:55 pm
The leased a vacant lot next door. When ITER don’t work, they will start a tire fire, to produce some energy. Scrappers are already standing in line to chip up all that copper, and haul it to scrap yards.
pennsyguy on Sat, 20th Feb 2016 2:14 pm
Available at your local Walmart next week. Get one now for Mothers Day!
peakyeast on Sat, 20th Feb 2016 2:19 pm
When they say it produces 10x the energy to operate it I start wondering if they included the energy for the workforce, providing the fuel and the maintenance. I feel they have only included the direct electric energy to run the system when operating. But as someone said: Humans are two-legged SUVs – and scientists are the larger SUVs.
Anyway: (500MW*24h*365d*0.15$) = 657E9 $ per year.
The 0.15$ is the consumerprice – I dont know the actual KWh price without taxes and all the other additions.
Anyway – seems like a significant contribution to the economy.
penury on Sat, 20th Feb 2016 2:31 pm
When there is at least one that is available and producing commercially available energy let us know.
onlooker on Sat, 20th Feb 2016 2:51 pm
They have been talking about fusion for decades. Now is an energy restricted world how you even going to have the money to build even one? Pipe dreams like going out into space. We had our chance we screwed it. Too little too late.
twocats on Sat, 20th Feb 2016 3:44 pm
The machine is expected to reach full deuterium–tritium fusion experiments for potential net energy gain by 2027. [article]
so it won’t net a single joule of energy gain until 2027, and it’s unclear whether they think that’s the 500 MW or just, slightly not negative. I’m betting it’s the latter. Not that we shouldn’t be pursuing these avenues, hell, I’m still supportive of a space program, but to think these hail-marys are going to save our collective asses – makes me think these decisions are made at 2:00 am in a local tavern after a night of heavy consumption by Particle Physics PhDs.
Go Speed Racer on Sat, 20th Feb 2016 4:12 pm
By 2027 lots of the ‘research professors’ will have retired at full benefits. So who cares what happens to the moneypit they pretended it would produce energy.
you have to pronounce it correctly. it is not ‘researchers’. It is ‘rasoichers’. You have to get the pronounciation right.
Pally, we iz doin da rasoich. We iz da rasoichers. if youze got any complaint, Vinny will blowze youze kneecaps loose wit da violinz so why don’t youze stop youze complainin an go for a stroll in da park.
This is the correct pronounciation for the fusion researchers.
Go Speed Racer on Sat, 20th Feb 2016 4:14 pm
I iz all for da fuzion rasoichin. I paidz my protection moneyz to da rasoichers.
Apneaman on Sat, 20th Feb 2016 4:27 pm
“In the computer industry, vaporware (also spelt vapourware) is a product, typically computer hardware or software, that is announced to the general public but is never actually manufactured nor officially cancelled. Use of the word has broadened to include products such as automobiles.”
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vaporware
Alfonse on Sat, 20th Feb 2016 5:18 pm
Limitless energy from fusion power is only ten years away. And it always will be…
bug on Sat, 20th Feb 2016 7:52 pm
The best part of this crap with fusion and super devices is that when one is critical, that person is called antiscience and stuck in the old ways.
As we all head to our doom.
Anonymous on Sun, 21st Feb 2016 2:03 am
If this facility ever produces a single watt of net-energy(and I am talking over the decades of energy spent on the facility itself and ALL activities related to it), it would the most expensive watt of energy ever produced. Funny thing is, you can stick a solar panel up in your yard, and produce net power faster, and far, far, cheaper than any phantom fusion power. But no one is interested in that kind of power.
We want ‘Big Science'(tm) levels of power. Nothing else will do.
John Tech on Sun, 21st Feb 2016 2:38 am
A simulated cartoon for a cartoon project…..what a joke……imagine the maintenance and breakdowns if it ever woks…which it never will…..an endless money hole for the over engineered morons.
HARM on Mon, 22nd Feb 2016 4:29 am
Golly, this is sure to be a game changer. Can’t wait until it ushers in the shiny new era of flying cars, light sabers and cheap interstellar spaceships.
Kenz300 on Mon, 22nd Feb 2016 9:05 am
Wind and solar power are safer, cleaner and cheaper….
PracticalMaina on Mon, 22nd Feb 2016 9:39 am
I am no fan of nuclear but I can’t help but feel the world should build one fission reactor that can extract energy from nuclear waste from conventional reactors. We temporarily have the resources and cheap commodities right now. Build it with a multinational team to highlight international cooperation, and then get the same international team to use robotics to begin to clean up Fukushima and relocate the spent fuel there to the new reactor.
Instead of the international powers trying to stimulate economy buy dropping bombs, how about building some useful shit that could be used to make ed-comishoning old reactors easier safer and cheaper.
PracticalMaina on Mon, 22nd Feb 2016 9:40 am
de-commisioning that would be