Latest news with #nuclearfusion
Sustainability Times
4 days ago
- Science
- Sustainability Times
America's Artificial Sun Is Here and It's Already Tearing the Country Apart Between Tech Elites, Climate Rebels, and Energy Giants
IN A NUTSHELL 🌞 The United States is working to create an artificial sun for limitless, carbon-free energy. for limitless, carbon-free energy. 🔬 MIT engineers have discovered materials that can withstand the extreme conditions of nuclear fusion reactors. have discovered materials that can withstand the extreme conditions of nuclear fusion reactors. 🤝 Collaborations with international projects like ITER and private sector firms are driving fusion advancements. and private sector firms are driving fusion advancements. 🌍 The successful development of fusion energy could significantly impact global energy independence and climate resilience. The United States is on the brink of a monumental breakthrough in nuclear fusion, a development that promises to revolutionize the energy sector. By creating an artificial sun, America aims to harness a limitless, carbon-free energy source. However, the journey is fraught with technical challenges, particularly in overcoming fusion-induced metal failures. The quest to find materials that can withstand the extreme conditions of nuclear fusion is central to realizing this vision. As scientists continue to push the boundaries, the potential to tap into the power of the stars becomes increasingly tangible. Fusion Energy: The Chance to Tap into the Energy's Potential Nuclear fusion, the process of combining light elements into helium, holds the promise of releasing clean, abundant energy. This process, unlike nuclear fission, does not emit greenhouse gases and primarily uses deuterium extracted from seawater. The ultimate goal is to use fusion to generate greener energy, but the challenge lies in replicating the sun's conditions on Earth. Fusion reactors must contain superheated ionized gas, or plasma, at temperatures exceeding 302 million degrees Fahrenheit. This plasma is typically contained within tokamaks, which are donut-shaped devices. The concept of achieving net energy gain—producing more energy than consumed—has been a significant hurdle. However, recent advancements have seen scientists make strides in materials that can endure the harsh conditions within a reactor. The structural integrity of the reactor's walls is crucial, as they are subjected to intense radiation and heat. Researchers at MIT are pioneering solutions to these challenges, focusing on developing metals that can withstand such extreme conditions without degrading over time. 'We Finally Made It Happen': World's Largest Stellarator Produces Historic Helium-3 in Unprecedented Nuclear Breakthrough MIT Engineers Making Groundbreaking Discoveries MIT engineers, under the auspices of the MIT Energy Initiative (MITEI), are at the forefront of identifying durable materials for fusion reactors. Led by Professor Ju Li, the team has discovered that integrating ceramic nanoparticles into the iron-based walls of a reactor can mitigate the destructive effects of helium atoms. These atoms, produced during fusion reactions, create microscopic gaps in the metal's crystal structure, leading to bubble formation and eventual material failure. To counteract this, Professor Li's team has formulated a method to replace helium atoms with stronger elements, dispersing them throughout the metal. Iron silicate, a ceramic compound, has shown promise due to its chemical compatibility and mechanical strength. Tests have demonstrated that even a small percentage of iron silicate can reduce helium bubble formation by approximately 50%, significantly extending the reactor's lifespan. This breakthrough has parallels in Japan, where researchers have achieved similar successes with tokamaks operating at extremities close to 180 million degrees Fahrenheit. 'Nuclear Fusion Just Got Real': Scientists Unveil Breakthrough That Could Deliver Endless Clean Energy and Erase Fossil Fuel Dependency A Move Towards Fusion Reactors The progress in fusion engineering is paving the way for America's journey toward energy independence and climate resilience. Professor Ju Li's team is exploring commercial applications, including 3D printing, to advance fusion technology. Their efforts are part of a broader initiative to support fusion projects across the United States, with collaborations spanning various private sector firms and a target launch date set for 2030. Major international collaborations, such as the ITER project in France, alongside U.S.-based startups, are crucial to these advancements. The future of fusion energy hinges on developing reactor walls that are resilient enough to withstand the harsh environment of plasma physics. America's commitment to creating its own artificial sun is becoming a reality, with technological advancements bridging the gap between ambition and achievement. 'We Slashed the Work by 99.9%': Scientists Achieve Fusion Reactor Analysis 15× Faster in Unbelievable Computational Breakthrough The Future of Fusion Energy As America forges ahead with its artificial sun project, the technical obstacles are steadily being overcome. The potential of fusion energy to provide an infinite, enclosed, and extremely hot power source is within reach. The successful creation of an artificial sun would mark a turning point in the quest for sustainable energy solutions, addressing past challenges, particularly those involving the durability of tokamak walls. With these breakthroughs, the future of energy shines as brightly as the sun itself. However, the journey is far from over. What new challenges and innovations will emerge as we venture further into the realm of fusion energy? 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Yahoo
22-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Nuclear fusion start-up claims to have cracked alchemy
The promise of turning base metals into gold has transfixed some of the greatest minds in history, from the ancient Egyptians to Sir Isaac Newton. But now a Silicon Valley start-up claims to have finally cracked the millennia-old riddle of alchemy – by using nuclear fusion technology. Marathon Fusion claims to have discovered a method of converting mercury into gold by bombarding mercury isotopes with high-energy neutrons. The neutrons are released during nuclear fusion, when two hydrogen isotopes are forced together to form helium. This means the alchemy process can be carried out alongside power generation. 'Unlike previous attempts, our method is massively scalable, pragmatically achievable, and economically irresistible,' Marathon Fusion said. 'This marks the beginning of a new golden age.' The company, which is developing ways of processing and recycling fuel for the nascent fusion industry, has published a scientific paper on the proposed transmutation method. It has not yet been peer-reviewed. The history of alchemy stretches back thousands of years and has long focused on transforming metals into gold and seeking an elixir of immortality. Over thousands of years, it has captivated thinkers such as Newton, the English physicist who developed the mathematical law of universal gravitation in the late 17th century. Many dreamed of creating a 'philosopher's stone' that would be used as a catalyst for transmuting base metals such as lead into gold. Marathon's idea relies on substituting materials used in the well-understood process of nuclear fusion instead. Fusion takes place when two isotopes of hydrogen, deuterium and tritium, are forced together to create helium, releasing high-energy subatomic particles called neutrons. It is accomplished by heating the deuterium and tritium atoms to extreme temperatures of more than 100 million degrees Celsius and then confining them into a tight space so that they collide. The process becomes self-sustaining when helium atoms collide with the fuel particles, transferring their energy and ensuring the reaction keeps going. But fusion reactors typically contain other materials, including isotopes of beryllium, lead, or lithium, to ensure there is continuously enough tritium in the mix. These are known as 'multipliers' because when they are hit by a neutron, they release two neutrons in their place. These extra neutrons then react with lithium to produce tritium. Radical transformation Marathon's method uses mercury-198, a common form of mercury, as a multiplier. When hit by a neutron, these atoms change into a less stable form called mercury-197. Over a few days, those atoms then naturally break down into a stable form of gold. Marathon claims this means the fusion process can be used to generate supplies of gold as a byproduct, 'without any compromise to fuel self-sufficiency or power output'. Using the new approach, the company says a fusion power plant with a capacity of about one gigawatt could generate 5,000 kilograms of gold per year. The gold produced by the reaction is stable, but could contain some radioactive gold isotopes, potentially meaning it must be stored for up to 18 years, according to the company. The start-up added: 'Marathon's techno-economic modelling suggests that fusion plants could create as much economic value from gold production as they do from electricity production, potentially doubling the value of these facilities, radically transforming the economics of fusion and of energy more broadly.' Beyond gold, it also claimed the transmutation process could be used for making precious metals such as palladium, synthesising medical isotopes, or producing materials for 'nuclear batteries'. Marathon was founded by Adam Rutkowski, a former engineer at Elon Musk's rocket company, SpaceX, and Kyle Schiller, who was a fellow at ex-Google boss Eric Schmidt's research foundation, Schmidt Futures. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Telegraph
18-07-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
Miliband bets on nuclear fusion in bid to lead clean power race
Ed Miliband has taken a bet on nuclear fusion one day powering Britain by making it easier for developers to build new reactors with minimal planning restrictions. Fusion plants are to be included in the UK's national infrastructure planning system, meaning they can be built in any part of Britain without needing consent from local authorities and with little opportunity for local people to object. Mr Miliband said the aim was to ensure fusion, if it ever works, could rapidly become part of the UK energy system. The Energy Secretary predicted that the first generators could be under construction within a decade and said the technology would help the UK 'to become a clean energy superpower'. Mr Miliband said: 'These changes would ensure fusion projects get built quicker. We are giving developers the clarity they need to build the fusion industry in Britain, creating highly skilled jobs and driving growth.' Fusion is the process that powers the sun and works by using extremely high temperatures and pressures to force hydrogen atoms to fuse, creating helium and releasing vast amounts of energy. The process can be harnessed to build weapons such as the hydrogen bomb, but controlling it to produce energy has proved impossible, despite seven decades of research. This is because fusion plasmas are 15 times hotter than the sun and would melt all known materials so they have to be contained by magnetic fields. The challenge has been to design reactors and magnetic containment systems that can hold such plasmas for long periods while releasing the heat they generate to drive turbines. The advent of AI combined with a plethora of new designs for fusion reactors is driving hopes that such challenges can now be solved. The UK already has some of the world's leading fusion science and engineering teams and successive governments have pledged to support them with £2.5bn of investment. That money is now funding the construction of a prototype fusion power plant at West Burton in Nottinghamshire. Many private companies are also looking at alternative pathways to achieving fusion. Kerry Turner, minister for climate, said fusion did not need to be so tightly regulated as existing nuclear power stations because the process produced very little radioactive waste. She said: 'The UK aims to build a prototype fusion power plant in the UK by 2040. Private fusion companies in the UK and overseas are also quickly developing demonstrator fusion facilities. 'To deliver these facilities, sites for fusion energy facilities will need to be identified and construction started this decade.' The move was welcomed by those leading the UK's nascent fusion industry. Tim Bestwick, chief executive of the UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA), said: 'Fusion promises to be a safe, sustainable part of the world's future energy supply and the UK has an opportunity to become a global hub for fusion technology. 'These new fusion-specific planning rules will help provide certainty about investing in UK fusion developments.' A similar system is already in place for wind farms, solar farms and other controversial energy developments.
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.
Yahoo
14-07-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Construction workers break ground on first-of-its-kind nuclear facility: 'The most significant development'
Across the world, investment in renewable energy is evident. Now, advances in Romania are pushing the needle closer to a clean energy future. According to Romania Insider, construction of Europe's very first tritium removal facility began in early June 2025. This would put the facility in a great position for future nuclear fusion processes. The work is happening at a nuclear power plant in Cernavodă and was called "the most significant development in Romania's nuclear sector since the commissioning of Cernavodă's Unit 2 reactor" by Sebastian Burduja, the Minister of Energy in Romania, according to Romania Insider. In simple terms, nuclear energy works by harnessing the energy contained in an atom's nucleus — either by splitting the atom (in nuclear fission) or by combining atoms (in nuclear fusion). "Nuclear fusion is the process by which two light atomic nuclei combine to form a single heavier one while releasing massive amounts of energy," the International Atomic Energy Agency has stated. By removing tritium from the water used in existing nuclear fission reactors, the water can, in turn, be reused, and the tritium stored for fuel in future nuclear fusion reactors — as Romania Insider explained. This process conserves two vital resources at once. "This project positions Romania among the few countries capable of producing and exporting tritium — seen as the fuel of the future for fusion energy programs …" Energy Minister Burduja said to the news outlet. Nuclear energy is the largest source of "clean energy" in the U.S, according to the Department of Energy (defining it as clean energy because it produces almost no carbon pollution). It can supply energy on demand — unlike wind and solar, which rely on the weather or time of day — making the move away from dirty fuel sources more seamless. Nuclear fission, which generates electricity today, does create radioactive waste and has a history of uncommon but significant disasters. By comparison, nuclear fusion, which is still in development for producing electricity, has advantages that include not creating long-lived radioactive waste while producing abundant clean energy. Investing in renewable energy for your home is another way to tap into the benefits of pollution-free energy — such as cleaner air, a smaller carbon footprint, and cheaper utility bills. A straightforward way of doing this is the installation of rooftop solar panels. Should we be pouring money into nuclear fusion technology? Yes — it'll pay off It's worth exploring Not from our tax dollars No — it's a waste Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. Not only can these panels bring your personal electric bill down to at or near $0 a month, but they also don't release the toxic, heat-trapping fumes that are produced by power plants that rely on coal, gas, or oil. EnergySage provides a free service that makes it easy to compare quotes from vetted local installers and save up to $10,000 on your new solar installations. Join our free newsletter for weekly updates on the latest innovations improving our lives and shaping our future, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
