Germany just switched on a revolutionary nuclear fusion machine

[OrbitalDawn]

You probably didn't notice, but a few hours ago, the world took a huge step towards the goal of achieving clean, limitless energy through nuclear fusion.

Physicists in Germany announced that they've just fired up one of the world's largest nuclear fusion machines for the first time – and it was successfully able to contain super-hot blobs of helium gas, otherwise known as plasma.

The 16-metre-wide machine is the Wendelstein 7-X (W7-X) and it's a type of nuclear fusion device called a stellarator. Scientists have been talking about the enormous potential of stellarators for decades, but this is the first time a team has shown that it can produce and control plasma just as well as other fusion reactor designs.

Nuclear fusion occurs when atoms fuse together at incredibly high temperatures and generate energy, and the reason scientists are so excited about it is because it has the potential to produce an almost-unlimited supply of energy from little more than salt water. This is the same process that's fuelled our Sun for the past 4.5 billion years, and is predicted to continue doing so for another 4 billion years.

Unlike nuclear fission, which powers today's nuclear power plants, nuclear fusion also doesn't produce any radioactive waste, and is a whole lot safer.

But it's also been incredibly tricky for scientists to achieve, because it requires them to construct a device that can produce and control a 100-million-degree-Celsius blob of plasma.

The key to controlling plasma is using superconducting magnets, and scientists have already built several working doughnut-shaped fusion reactors known as tokamaks.

 

[P924]

In other words, we've already been able to achieve nuclear fusion, but it consumed way more energy than it generated.

That has always been the problem. The article also does not state that the new machine will be able to produce more energy than it consumes.

 

[Baxteen]

That has always been the problem. The article also does not state that the new machine will be able to produce more energy than it consumes.

it actually does. in a round about way.

But there's a big problem with tokamak reactors – they can only maintain plasma for a maximum of 6 minutes and 30 seconds at a time, which isn't long enough to harvest significant energy. In other words, we've already been able to achieve nuclear fusion, but it consumed way more energy than it generated.

And this is why the launch of the stellarator is so exciting, because it's predicted that the device will be able to control plasma for an unheard-of 30 minutes at a time.

 

[P924]

it actually does. in a round about way.

It alludes to it, but it still does not confirm that it will, and I do not think that it will be able to.

 

[Baxteen]

It alludes to it, but it still does not confirm that it will, and I do not think that it will be able to.

I think this answers that question:

To be clear, the point of W7-X has never been to produce energy. This device is simply a proof-of-concept to show that the stellarator concept actually works.

 

[Freshy-ZN]

100-million-degree-Celsius blob of plasma.

Feck me that is a China Syndrome waiting to happen....

 

[P924]

I think this answers that question:

Indeed. I think we are still a very long way away from a fusion power plant, but progress is always good.