Latest news with #fusionreactor
Sustainability Times
08-08-2025
- Science
- Sustainability Times
'This Steel Won't Crack at -450°F': China's CHSN01 Super Alloy Triggers Global Race for Smaller, Cheaper Fusion Reactors and Next-Gen MRI Machines
IN A NUTSHELL 🔬 China's new CHSN01 super steel is engineered to withstand extreme conditions, revolutionizing future fusion reactor designs. is engineered to withstand extreme conditions, revolutionizing future fusion reactor designs. 🧲 Stronger superconducting jackets allow for higher magnetic fields, enabling more compact and efficient tokamak reactors. allow for higher magnetic fields, enabling more compact and efficient tokamak reactors. 💪 Durability and fatigue resistance of CHSN01 ensure long-term operation in fusion reactors, reducing the risk of material failure. of CHSN01 ensure long-term operation in fusion reactors, reducing the risk of material failure. 🌐 Beyond fusion, CHSN01's strength and versatility offer potential applications in industries like MRI machines and maglev trains. China's new CHSN01 'super steel' represents a significant leap in materials science, poised to revolutionize the future of fusion energy. This innovative alloy, designed to withstand extreme conditions, is set to play a crucial role in the development of smaller and more efficient tokamaks. By enabling reactors to operate under higher magnetic fields and endure extensive cycling, CHSN01 could dramatically reduce the size and cost of fusion reactors. This advancement not only holds promise for China's ambitious energy goals but also sets a new standard for the global fusion community. The Revolutionary Composition of CHSN01 The CHSN01 alloy stands out due to its unique composition, which enables it to function almost elastically at cryogenic temperatures. Engineers began with Nitronic-50, a nitrogen-strengthened austenitic steel, and meticulously adjusted its components. They reduced carbon content to below 0.01 percent, preventing brittle carbides from forming over time. Additionally, the nitrogen content was elevated to about 0.30 percent, accompanied by increased nickel levels. This combination maintains the metal in a tough, ductile austenite phase even at temperatures as low as -452°F. A trace of vanadium further strengthens the alloy by forming vanadium-nitride particles, enhancing strength without compromising toughness. By imposing strict cleanliness limits on elements like oxygen, phosphorus, and sulfur, the researchers ensured no impurities could initiate cracks under pressure. These precise chemical modifications result in an alloy capable of withstanding 1.5 gigapascals of stress while stretching over 30 percent before breaking, making it significantly stronger and more crack-resistant than previous materials. Former Nuclear Site Converted Into Giant Battery Set to Power 100,000 Homes in This Stunning Energy Shift The Importance of Stronger Superconducting Jackets In the world of tokamaks, superconducting magnets are essential, acting as the pulsating heart of the device. When current flows through these magnets, significant electromagnetic forces are generated. Engineers typically counter these forces by either reinforcing the structure with additional bulk or using a robust jacket to contain the conductor. China's decision to utilize CHSN01 highlights their preference for the latter approach. This material allows the jackets to sustain initial flaws significantly above the nondestructive testing detection limits, ensuring longevity and reliability. Consequently, manufacturers can reduce the weight, cost, and time associated with producing these components. Moreover, stronger jackets enable the use of higher magnetic fields, potentially increasing the confining pressure on plasma by a factor of four. This advancement allows for the design of more compact reactors, reducing construction costs and facilitating the possibility of modular fusion units, akin to modular fission reactors. Space Startups Declare 'Defense Projects Are Key' To Unlocking Massive Investment And Outpacing Global Competitors In The Race Durability and Fatigue Resistance Beyond sheer strength, CHSN01 boasts impressive durability, crucial for the long-term operation of fusion reactors. Fusion magnets undergo frequent pulsing, and any material used must endure this cycle repeatedly. Researchers conducted extensive fatigue-crack-growth rate testing at cryogenic temperatures to ensure CHSN01's durability. The results, verified with a high degree of confidence, indicate that the alloy can initiate with a flaw area of up to 1 mm² and still perform reliably throughout its expected lifespan. This robust performance provides inspectors with definitive criteria for nondestructive testing, an improvement over previous alloys. The ability to predict the material's life under real-world conditions ensures that the fusion reactors using CHSN01 can operate efficiently, with minimal risk of failure due to material fatigue. This reliability is a significant step forward in achieving sustainable fusion energy. 'Electric Cars Are Not Death Traps in the Car Wash': Why This Big Myth About Washing EVs With Water Refuses to Die Industrial Applications Beyond Fusion The potential of CHSN01 extends well beyond its application in fusion reactors. Zhao Zhongxian, a pioneer in cryogenics, foresees its impact across various high-stress, low-temperature applications. MRI machines, particle accelerators, maglev trains, and quantum-computing refrigeration systems all face challenges similar to those in fusion reactors. Incorporating a stronger and tougher steel like CHSN01 could lead to smaller magnet footprints, reduced maintenance intervals, and improved overall performance in these technologies. The alloy's versatility and strength make it an attractive option for industries seeking to optimize their systems for efficiency and longevity. By offering a material solution that addresses both strength and durability, CHSN01 could become a cornerstone in the advancement of multiple cutting-edge technologies, paving the way for innovations beyond the realm of fusion energy. China's development of CHSN01 represents a quiet yet significant advance in materials science. While fusion breakthroughs often capture attention with bold reactor designs or record-setting plasma shots, the true success of these technologies hinges on the materials that support them. By achieving a balance between high strength and toughness, Chinese researchers have set a new benchmark for fusion materials. As the global community observes China's progress, one question remains: how will other nations respond, and what innovations will this breakthrough inspire in the quest for sustainable energy solutions? This article is based on verified sources and supported by editorial technologies. Did you like it? 4.5/5 (24)
Yahoo
07-08-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Scientists Developed ‘Super Steel' That Could Take Fusion to the Next Level
Here's what you'll learn when you read this story: The central solenoid is the heart of a fusion reactor, and a "jacket" of meticulously crafted stainless steel—capable of withstanding extreme temperatures and magnetic fields—protects it. Chinese scientists say that a new super steel, called China high-strength low-temperature steel No. 1, (CHSN01), can operate at a maximum of 20 Tesla, which outperforms the steel jacket that will be used by ITER. China is incorporating CHSN01 into its Burning Plasma Experiment Superconducting Tokamak (BEST) and will likely play a role in future fusion projects well into the future. The biggest unknown in fusion energy isn't the physics powering gargantuan reactors known as tokamaks. Scientists are confident that if a reactor contains a superheated plasma, fueled by heavy hydrogen isotopes of deuterium and tritium, at temperatures approaching 100 million degrees Celsius, you will produce a self-sustaining reaction, generating near endless amounts of clean energy. Tokamaks around the world—not to the National Ignition Facility's successful fusion ignition in 2022—have proven this out time and again. The real problem is the materials needed to build the thing. 'You need a material solution. Give me the materials that can hold this thing together, at temperature, to be efficient,' Phil Ferguson, Ph.D., Director of the Material Plasma Exposure eXperiment (MPEX) Project at Oak Ridge National Laboratory told Popular Mechanics in 2024. 'We are still lacking a breakthrough in materials.' Not only does a fusion reactor need parts, such as the divertor, to handle the plasma's extreme heat, other parts of the very same machine need to withstand and operate at temperatures approaching absolute zero. One of these parts is the very heart of the reactor, called the central solenoid, which is responsible for a majority of the magnetic flux to generate the plasma and is powered by ultracold cable-in-conduit superconductors. The shield, or jacket, for the central solenoid needs to be a steel material that can retain superior mechanical and thermal properties at cryogenic temperatures while also withstanding intense magnetic fields. The International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER), the world's most advanced tokamak that's due for first plasma by 2034, uses a material known as 316LN stainless steel designed to operate at a maximum of 11.8 Tesla. Now, a new report from the state-run South China Morning Post (SCMP) suggests that Chinese scientists have come up with a new material that has even ITER's steel jacket of choice beat. This super steel, called China high-strength low-temperature steel No. 1, or CHSN01, can withstand up to 20 Tesla and 1,500-megapascal (MPa) of stress. Scientists detailed the 12-year process to create this particular steel jacket in the journal Applied Sciences this past May. 'While ITER's maximum 11.8 Tesla field design is enough for itself, future higher-field magnets will require advanced materials,' said Li Laifeng, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Sciences' (CAS), reports SCMP. 'Developing next-gen cryogenic steel isn't optional – it's essential for the success of China's compact fusion energy experimental devices.' CHSN01 will be in the central Solenoid of China's Burning Plasma Experiment Superconducting Tokamak (BEST), an intermediary reactor between the country's first-generation fusion reactors and the Chinese Fusion Engineering Test Reactor—the country's first fusion plant demonstrator. Scientists aim for the BEST reactor to achieve first plasma in late 2027. Having grasped the particulars of fusion physics, we're now crafting the materials to make it possible. You Might Also Like The Do's and Don'ts of Using Painter's Tape The Best Portable BBQ Grills for Cooking Anywhere Can a Smart Watch Prolong Your Life? Solve the daily Crossword
RNZ News
14-07-2025
- Science
- RNZ News
Our Changing World: A New Zealand approach to nuclear fusion
Inside OpenStar Technologies' fusion reactor near Wellington. Photo: OpenStar Technologies For Dr Ratu Mataira the problem he's tackling is simple: our reliance on fossil fuels as an energy source. But the solution he's working on is anything but simple. Follow Our Changing World on Apple , Spotify , iHeartRadio or wherever you listen to your podcasts Ratu founded Wellington-based OpenStar Technologies in 2021 with the goal of developing an efficient nuclear fusion reactor. Unlike nuclear fission, which creates long-lasting radioactive waste, fusion offers the promise of abundant clean energy - if scientists can get it right. The technological difficulties in achieving nuclear fusion on Earth are immense. But with their unique approach, backed by New Zealand scientific discoveries, Ratu thinks his company is in with a shot. Ratu Mataira, founder and CEO of OpenStar Technologies. Photo: OpenStar Technologies Nuclear fusion happens in the sun, and other stars, due to their massive sizes - gravity creates intense pressure that squeezes atoms in the star's core together, forcing them to fuse and release huge amounts of energy. The sun itself is a big ball of plasma - a heated, charged gas. Here on Earth, the approach favoured by many nuclear fusion scientists is to create plasma out of isotopes of hydrogen gas and then coax it to incredibly high temperatures - hundreds of millions of degrees Celsius - much hotter than the core of the sun. Under these conditions, the heat energy causes the atoms to collide, and at the right speed they can fuse together. When the two hydrogen isotopes fuse, they produce helium and release a high-energy neutron in the process. Nuclear fusion happens in stars like our Sun. Now scientists want to recreate that energy-producing process on Earth. Photo: NASA/Goddard/SDO In the blueprint for how fusion powerplants would work, 'blanketing' material is then used to capture this neutron and its energy. The energy is converted to heat and then used to power steam engines to produce electricity. Because of its promise as an energy source, there are many efforts internationally to investigate nuclear fusion, which can be broken down into two main approaches - using lasers or using magnets. For example, the US Department of Energy's National Ignition Laboratory uses lasers, and over the past few years they have achieved 'ignition' . This is a term for when the nuclear fusion reaction can sustain itself and create more energy than the energy put into the experiment. It was a big milestone - however their current approach is not suitable for developing energy powerplants . Physicist Dr Tom Wauters, standing where ITER's super-hot plasma will be generated, says fusion has the potential to provide limitless clean energy. Photo: Carl Smith / ABC Science One of the big international efforts using magnets, ITER , involves 35 different nations and is based in the south of France at a massive purpose-built complex. ITER was dreamed up in the 1980s, the collaboration formed in 2006 and construction began in 2010, with a focus very much on energy production. But last year, the project announced that the reactor would not turn on until 2034, nine years later than planned. It has been a slow-moving effort with issues, delays and growing costs . In the meantime, because of recent scientific advances, dozens of private companies have popped up around the world, each hoping to be the first to crack this tricky nuclear fusion powerplant problem. OpenStar Technologies team members make adjustments to the top magnet. Photo: Claire Concannon / RNZ "Publicly, you can find about 50 companies, there are probably a few more than that, and we all differ," says Ratu. "Just like any company in any industry, we all have our kind of unique advantages and our pitch as to why we exist… But the interesting thing is that none of us have a product yet. And so, we're really competing on our choice of technology and our ability to make that technology work." The US-based Commonwealth Fusion Systems (CFS), a 2018 spinoff from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, recently hit the headlines when they announced a new agreement with Google . The tech giant signed a power purchase agreement for half of the output of a yet-to-be-built nuclear fusion powerplant that CFS says will be online in the early 2030s. The 5.2-metre diameter chamber of the levitated dipole reactor is readied for delivery into OpenStar Technologies via its roof. Photo: OpenStar Technologies They use a magnet approach known as a tokamak, where the hydrogen plasma sits inside a doughnut shaped chamber built out of magnets. They have yet to achieve ignition, which they say they are aiming for in 2027. OpenStar Technologies' unique point of difference is their levitated dipole magnet design, in which a very powerful magnet floats within a vacuum chamber, creating a strong magnetic field that holds the fusion plasma in place. The vacuum chamber where they run their current experiments looks like a big steel spaceship. Measuring 5.2 metres in diameter, it sits supported by large metal beams in their warehouse space in Ngauranga Gorge. Off to the side is the magnet workshop, where the team can wind superconducting material into coils to build the all-important magnet in-house. Emily Hunter and the vacuum chamber at OpenStar Technologies. Photo: Claire Concannon / RNZ Some of the magnet materials and power supply design that they are using have stemmed from groundbreaking New Zealand research at the nearby Robinson Research Institute . Several of OpenStar Technologies' 60 staff members have previously trained or worked there. Ratu himself completed his PhD there, in superconducting magnet science. In their levitating dipole magnet plan, a magnet attached to the top of the chamber attracts the core magnet by a 'goldilocks' amount - not too much, not too little, so that it floats within the chamber. Schematic of OpenStar Technologies' levitated dipole design. Photo: OpenStar Technologies Hydrogen isotope fuel is put into the chamber, heated to create plasma, and then the plasma is held in a halo by the magnetic field of the core magnet while more heat energy is added, until fusion is achieved. The team reached a major milestone last year, called 'first plasma' . In late October they created a helium plasma in the chamber and heated and constrained it at 300,000 °C for 20 seconds using a supported magnet. Their next step is to attempt this again, but with the magnet fully levitating. OpenStar Technologies uses a levitated dipole magnet design to hold the plasma in place. Photo: OpenStar Technologies There is still a long way to go, but Ratu believes they are well in the race. "We think that we can effectively catch up to where some of the other concepts are as long as we can keep moving fast enough and make the progress that we need to." Sign up to the Our Changing World monthly newsletter for episode backstories, science analysis and more.
