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MIT tests unique approach to fusion power


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An MIT and Columbia University team has successfully tested a novel reactor that could chart a new path toward nuclear fusion, which could become a safe, reliable and nearly limitless source of energy.

Begun in 1998, the Levitated Dipole Experiment, or LDX, uses a unique configuration where its main magnet is suspended, or levitated, by another magnet above. The system began testing in 2004 in a "supported mode" of operation, where the magnet was held in place by a support structure, which causes significant losses to the plasma--a hot, electrically charged gas where the fusion takes place.

LDX achieved fully levitated operation for the first time last November. A second test run was performed on March 21-22 of this year, in which it had an improved measurement capability and included experiments that clarified and illuminated the earlier results. These experiments demonstrate a substantial improvement in plasma confinement--significant progress toward the goal of producing a fusion reaction-- and a journal article on the results is planned...

--David Chandler// MIT News Office

(Excerpt from main article)
(Full story at link)

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"Great Scott!"
Hawkmang

18 responses // MIT tests unique approach to fusion power

  • what are those images?? poor, poor,poor
    ace_ofgabriel
    1 response to this
  • Outstanding development. Let us hope that this is a repeatable experiment within the bounds of the scientific method.
    seeker561
  • I am reading this article while listening to the BACK TO THE FUTURE soundtrack... strange?

    Any chance for cleaner energy is a pleasant choice. However... what sort of polution or waste products is there with this? We need to explore all areas before producing on a mass scale.
    alexhansen
    1 response to this
  • We need to imbrace new technology to better mankind and the planet, and keep the capatalist pigs out of it.
    Be_A_MythBuster
    1 response to this
  • Now, all we need is for the so called "scientist" over at M.I.T. or any other scientific institution to make a "flux capacitor".
    PatrioticAstronaut
  • We'll see this implemented when they figure out a way to over charge the populous for it. Great News though.
    Enjoy_Cannabis
  • Are they ganna name it Mr. Fusion?
    ivxx
  • The pics are from Back To the Future . The car ran on this type of energy. Also it looks like they have already named it Mr Fusion.
    jeffreyak
  • http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2008/ldx-enlarged.jpg
    Here's an image of the real LDX for anyone that didn't see Back To The Future (or is just curious to see what it looks like)... "Heavy!" ;-)
    Hawkmang
    3 responses to this
  • Nice!

    I was reading fast, so please tell me if I missed it, but what's the waste (if any) created?

    I'm curious of the environmental impact of this fuel production.
    onechance
  • Oops, sorry onechance! Here's what I could find on the safety and waste management of fusion:

    "The likelihood of a catastrophic accident in a fusion reactor in which injury or loss of life occurs is much smaller than that in a fission reactor. The primary reason is that the fission products in a fission reactor continue to generate heat through beta-decay for several hours or even days after reactor shut-down, meaning that a meltdown is possible even after the reactor has been stopped. In contrast, fusion requires precisely controlled conditions of temperature, pressure and magnetic field parameters in order to generate net energy. If the reactor were damaged, these parameters would be disrupted and the heat generation in the reactor would rapidly cease.
    There is also no risk of a runaway reaction in a fusion reactor, since the plasma is normally burnt at optimal conditions, and any significant change will render it unable to produce excess heat. Runaway reactions are also less of a concern in modern fission reactors, as they are typically designed to immediately shut down under accident conditions. In fusion reactors the reaction process is so delicate that this level of safety is inherent; no elaborate failsafe mechanism is required. Although the plasma in a fusion power plant will have a volume of 1000 cubic meters or more, the density of the plasma is extremely low, and the total amount of fusion fuel in the vessel is very small, typically a few grams. If the fuel supply is closed, the reaction stops within seconds. In comparison, a fission reactor is typically loaded with enough fuel for one or several years, and no additional fuel is necessary to keep the reaction going."

    "The half-life of the radioisotopes produced by fusion tend to be less than those from fission, so that the inventory decreases more rapidly. Furthermore, there are fewer unique species, and they tend to be non-volatile and biologically less active.[citation needed] Unlike fission reactors, whose waste remains dangerous for thousands of years, most of the radioactive material in a fusion reactor would be the reactor core itself, which would be dangerous for about 50 years, and low-level waste another 100. By 300 years the material would have the same radioactivity as coal ash."
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fusion_reactor
    Hawkmang
    1 response to this

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