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Experts were able to simulate the mechanism that stabilizes plasma in fusion reactors. This development could take humankind one step closer to a clean, unlimited source of fusion energy.
So...practical commercial fusion is still 50 years way (just like it's been for the past 60 years), right?
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Scientists Discover How To Stabilize Plasma In Fusion Reactors
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"The subspace _W inherits the other 8 properties of _V. And there aren't
even any property taxes."
-- J. MacKay, Mathematics 134b
(Score: 2) by DannyB on Monday July 23 2018, @06:31PM (7 children)
Yep. And I think that is the key insight.
All of our energy came / comes from the sun. Just via less efficient transfer means. Research should be on more efficient means to go straight to the source. Maybe even from orbit with energy transferred down to earth safely by carrier pigeons or something.
The lower I set my standards the more accomplishments I have.
(Score: 2) by acid andy on Monday July 23 2018, @09:11PM
Ah but what would you feed the carrier pigeons? You're not thinking this through, man.
If a cat has kittens, does a rat have rittens, a bat bittens and a mat mittens?
(Score: 2) by The Shire on Tuesday July 24 2018, @01:13AM (5 children)
Even if we had operational fusion reactors right now, we still would only pull energy from it indirectly the same way all other power generation plants do it - heat water into steam to drive a turbine to spin a magnet to make the electrons move. From wood burning steam trains all the way to nuclear reactors, that's how it's done. Power from fusion via solar is no less decoupled than fusion reactor to steam.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by dwilson on Tuesday July 24 2018, @02:48AM (4 children)
Fusion reactor -> steam -> electricity almost has to be much more efficient than sun-fusion -> solar panel -> electricity. This holds true even with a magical 100% efficient solar panel.
The energy density of the sun is roughly the same as your average lizard or compost pile, by volume [abc.net.au]. To achieve sustainable fusion in something that fits in a building rather than something the size of a star, the energy density is going to have to be a lot higher than the sun's.
Can we build a fusion reactor that actually works? I don't know. Lots of smart people seem willing to try. But if they do pull it off, the whole "solar is just fusion from the sun so we should all just use solar instead of worrying about fusion" stops being a serious argument. If it ever was.
- D
(Score: 2) by The Shire on Tuesday July 24 2018, @11:17AM
All i said was that we are already tapping fusion for energy. i made no efficiency claims. It's also pretty pointless to refer to efficiency when the power source is ubiquitous. I will say this though, regardless of efficiency it's safe to say solar is providing infinitely more power than man made fusion energy.
That being said, I'd much rather eee us focused on gen iv nuclear which at least is a known clean and abundant power source.
(Score: 2) by Murdoc on Tuesday July 24 2018, @09:38PM (2 children)
I looked at that article, and I'm sure I have no grasp of the complex math behind this, but it looks like total BS to me.
"The answer is surprising. The Sun does do nuclear burning of hydrogen atoms, but only very occasionally. How occasionally? On average, any given hydrogen atom will run into another hydrogen atom only once every five billion years."
Once every 5 billion years?!? Given that the sun is 4.7 billion years old, that means that there is a less than 100% chance that it has even happened once so far! And yet:
"Every second, the Sun burns 620 million tonnes of hydrogen and turns it into about 616 million tonnes of helium."
That's an awful lot of matter being converted into helium yet somehow without hydrogen fusing into each other. How in the world is that supposed to work?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday July 25 2018, @12:41AM (1 child)
Now multiply by the number of hydrogen atoms in the sun and you’ll have your answer.
(Score: 2) by Murdoc on Wednesday July 25 2018, @04:59AM