[OT] Another step towards nuclear fusion

[William Ronald]

I thought I would post this for anyone using a science fiction setting. Hmm, maybe this might also be useful for anyone playing D20 modern. (Trying to protect the research project or its scientists would be a good scenario for Spycraft.)

Alternative fusion machine limbers up

I hope that they can get a more powerful success to the Z machine up in a few years. Does anyone have more information on the project?

 

[WayneLigon]

*crosses fingers* See, this is the kind of stuff we should be tossing money at. :/ A sustainable fusion reaction.. can't wait!

 

[Alzrius]

Fuuuu...

...sion...

...HA!



To be slightly more serious, this sounds like a good breakthrough. Let's just hope it doesn't get its funding shut down or diverted when one of those scientists develops radioactive powers.

 

[DerianCypher]

I thought the problem was always containing the reaction..

 

[gunter uxbridge]

From what I understand, containing the reaction is easy (things out of control??? Just twist the knob and shut off the deuterium supply.) Its getting the reaction started and sustained that is the hard part. When this works, and it will eventually, its going to change a lot of things on this little planet called Earth.

I just wish someone would wisen up and propose a Manhattan Project or Apollo Program type effort to perfect fusion power.

 

[Pbartender]

[pedantry]
There are two real obstacles toward creating a fusion reactor...

1. Creating a controlled fusion reaction.
2. Creating a sustainable fusion reaction.

At this point, remember, there are only two places you will commoly see a fusion reaction.

One is within a star, which is currently the only natural, sustainable fusion reaction. It requires an incredible amount of hydrogen to even get the reaction going. And it is only sustained by the immense pressures and temperatures created by such combined gravity of such a large amount of mass.

The second can be witnessed within certain types of nuclear weapons. It is normally produced from introducing deuterium into the intense pressure and heat of a nuclear fission explosion. And even though that is a man-made fusion reaction, it is hardly controlled or sustained, is it?
[/pedantry]

I wish these guys good luck, and hope it helps out the fusion crowd.

However, I don't think there will much public funding for fusion reactors anytime soon. We're nowhere near the real thing yet, and there are other experiments and projects that produce more consistent and useful results.

 

[Esiminar]

As of three years ago a european fusion project had succeeded in sustaning a plasmic fusion reaction for seven seconds befor they lost magnetic containment.

 

[Dash Dannigan]

As of three years ago a european fusion project had succeeded in sustaning a plasmic fusion reaction for seven seconds befor they lost magnetic containment.

*chuckle* sounds...messy that. The whole losing magnetic containment part.

 

[s/LaSH]

"Lost magnetic containment"... that's the cue for starships to start blowing up in military scifi. Three-kilometer superdreadnaughts like leaves on the wind, that sort of thing.

But this Z-machine thing sounds rather interesting. Electrically-initiated fusion, and no titanic tokamak torus in sight... although it could be interesting to see what happens in such an open design once they do achieve ignition of the deuterium mass. But that's easily controlled with a deuterium feed system, I guess. The great thing about hypercomplex modern gadgets is that yet another weird high-energy insertion beam isn't all that difficult to implement.

 

[Tonguez]

I thought I would post this for anyone using a science fiction setting. Hmm, maybe this might also be useful for anyone playing D20 modern. (Trying to protect the research project or its scientists would be a good scenario for Spycraft.)

Actually you know reading this my mind was thinking - its the Philosophers Stone! The Alchemists failed because they weren't using magnetic containment to create the plasma pellet!

Imagine what this tech could do in a Mediveal DnD setting!

and on a related note does anyone know what happened with the Magnetic Lift generator that was invented a few years back (ya know small peice of superfrozen carbon fibre that had zero friction and floated on a magnetic feild (or something)...)

Oh and yeah I think these should definately be funded (afterall its more useful than NASA and its Space Scuttles )...