All new initiatives are good to take to produce green energy in the era of renewable energy. Among the solutions most favored by civil society around the world, as well as by governments, is nuclear power.
Fusion accelerates its progress, while fission continues its development. Regularly, new advances in this field reach us. For example, in early October we learned that artificial intelligence (AI) could speed up the creation of nuclear reactors.
A publication from Interesting Engineering dated last Saturday, November 2 informs us, this time, that a company based in Fremont (California) called Pacific Fusion has decided to explore an innovative approach to generate energy from from nuclear fusion. A process which, remember, has powered the sun for several billion years. By using the concept of pulsed magnetism, this company aims to create a fusion method that is affordable, practical to use and scalable.
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Pulsed magnetic fusion, for an artificial sun
Concretely, how does it work? Pulsed magnetic fusion relies on high-intensity electrical pulses to generate large magnetic fields. Then, these different fields compress and heat a mixture of deuterium and tritium, the two isotopes of hydrogen necessary to reach fusion conditions, details the science and technology news site, which is based on a press release published by the firm, as well as on the analysis proposed by the American Nuclear Society.
Pacific Fusion explains that its technology is based on proven principles of inertial fusion. These have already been tested in American national laboratories, with the aim of developing a system that could efficiently transform energy.
To carry out this process, the Californian company uses three main components: pulse modules, a small fusion chamber on a metric scale, as well as centimeter-sized fuel containers.
Pulse modules will store electricity in capacitors and release this energy in the form of rapid pulses. Secondly, these pulses will be routed to the fusion chamber via metal tubes, where they cause an implosion which compresses the fuel. for this. This is when the reaction begins.
The promise of clean, renewable energy
Furthermore, the Interesting Engineering article tells us that Pacific Fusion is also building a device called a “rapid pulser”, directly inspired by Sandia's Z machine, a proven technology in the field of fusion.
This machine has been optimized thanks to a number of recent advances, such as the impedance-matched Marx generator, which can achieve melting conditions reliably and efficiently.
The approach of this American company has several advantages, including a reduction in costs and complexity of the process. Also, the fusion chamber operated by Pacific Fusion is compact and incorporates water-based shielding. Features that make it easier to mass produce and maintain.
Now, the firm plans to design an energy production system made up of small modular units called “bricks”, which can be assembled and placed in transport containers.
Ultimately, the Fremont-based company would like to develop a pulsed magnetic fusion engine, which will be able to produce more energy than is needed to operate it. Interesting Engineering considers this approach promising, as it would be able to transform the energy landscape by providing societies with a sustainable and unlimited source of energy, while reducing our dependence on fossil fuels.
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