Scientists are set to announce a major finding on fusion energy

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According to a story in the Financial Times, researchers at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory may have reached a new record high for fusion reactions, finally more energy output than input.



Nearly two hundred lasers are pointed straight at a tiny capsule of hydrogen as part of a "inertial confinement fusion" experiment run at the National Ignition Facility. Australian physicist Nathan Garland claims that fusion events can occur because the lasers generate a plasma around the capsule, triggering an implosion.

Our sun generates its energy through a fusion reaction, which involves the violent collision of two or more atoms. This calls for high temperatures and pressures, but it is "very tough," as Garland put it, to duplicate these circumstances in a lab.

"The energy released by fusing two atoms together is massive and, importantly, releases no carbon dioxide. Unlike fission -- splitting atoms -- used in nuclear power plants, fusion also leaves behind no radioactive waste and there's no risk of meltdown, either. In short, if we could harness fusion power, it would revolutionize energy, allowing us to generate clean power without pumping greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.

If the FT report and chatter on social media is correct, scientists at LLNL could have achieved "fusion energy gain" which is denoted by the letter Q. In a fusion experiment, if Q > 1, then we're on our way to a bona fide energy breakthrough, one that scientists have long been dreaming of reaching. "It is a big deal for sure, if true," Garland said.

But, as with all science, it's good to be cautious and not overhype results yet to be fully analyzed. We have been here before, after all. In 2013, reports swirled the NIF had achieved this exact feat. It wasn't the case."

The outcome will not magically provide us with an infinite supply of power. The NIF reaction probably lasted for only a few hundredths of a second at most. However, this is the beginning of the road toward fusion energy's viability and seriousness as a technology to power our globe. This demonstrates the feasibility of Q > 1 in fusion experiments.

Scientists are set to announce a major finding on fusion energy


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