Independent scientists have confirmed a major advance in nuclear fusion announced by the National Laboratory a year ago Lawrence Livermore. As required by modern science, three peer-reviewed papers confirmed that the US lab got “ignition”. This essentially means that the reaction alone has produced enough energy to be self-sustaining, a crucial step in the future production of electricity through nuclear fusion.

The invasion of Ukraine confirmed – in case of doubt – that the world must definitely bet on alternative methods of energy production. Europe cannot continue to depend on the tap of gas and oil that comes from Putin’s Russia. And not one that comes from Africa and the Middle East from countries with equally untrustworthy governments, including dictatorships that embarrass us but which we support for interests… as always.

On the other hand, it is urgent to pull the planet out of the abyss to which the economic and life model based on the burning of fossil fuels has led. The transition from a high-carbon economy to a more sustainable one is possible and desirable Renewables in the short term and Fusion in the medium term must be the key to other ways of producing the energy the Earth needs. Of course, there are billionaire interests against him.

Ignition: the key breakthrough in nuclear fusion

A year ago, LLNL scientists managed to record an energy yield of more than 1.3 megajoules (MJ) in the process of nuclear fusion. It was only for a few nanoseconds, but it counted scientific breakthrough which is now confirmed by independent research.

“Achieving the conditions necessary for ignition is a long-term goal of all inertial confinement fusion research and opens the door to a new experimental regime in which the self-heating of an alpha particle overcomes all cooling mechanisms in space. fusion plasma”explains the person in charge of the laboratory.

In experiments conducted to achieve ignition, scientists heat and compress a central “hot spot” of deuterium-tritium fuel (hydrogen atoms with one and two neutrons) using a surrounding dense piston also made of deuterium-tritium to create a super-hot. , overpressure hydrogen plasma.

Ignition occurs when the adsorption of α particles is heated [dos protones y dos neutrones estrechamente unidos] formed in the fusion process “overcomes the loss mechanisms in the system over a period of time”they explain.

The big goal is the one we discussed above, to ensure that the fusion process itself generates enough energy to be used globally as a practical energy source. unlimited, cheap and cleaner energy than using fossil fuels and less dangerous than nuclear fission.

Nuclear fusion, star energy on Earth

The theory of how nuclear fusion works is well known. The problem is that right now we don’t have the technical capabilities to use this power. Scientists around the world are currently working to achieve this.

For the uninitiated. It should be said that Fusion has been investigated since 1950 and is considered a so-called “star energy” because it powers stars like our Sun Fusion involves the release of energy by joining atomic nuclei, as opposed to that which causes nuclear fission used in nuclear power plants and atomic bombs.

The advantages of fusion as a method of generating energy are remarkable, starting with the necessary fuel, essentially deuterium, an isotope of hydrogen that we have on Earth. unlimited supply. They are also important safety benefits. Faced with the risks of fission, fusion is not a chain reaction, so it can be controlled and canceled simply by removing the fuel.

His reasoning for “clean energy” is due to the fact that it does not produce gases that contribute to global warming because the helium produced in the reaction is not harmful. It must be said that nuclear fusion is not harmless because it produces radioactive tritium and the walls of the reactor become radioactive due to the plasma.

The still-unsettled deal on radioactive tritium and huge investments in fusion have led environmental groups to insist that the same clean and cheap energy goals can be achieved by combining renewables (wind, geothermal, hydro, tidal, solar) in less time and at a lower price. In each case, Fusion has nothing to do with burning fossil fuels or the fission problemtaking into account that any method of energy production has some degree of impact on the environment.

Various research groups are working on nuclear fusion around the world. ITER (International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor) is undoubtedly the most important. It is the most difficult engineering project a human being has faced for a device on Earth. It is being built in Cadarache in the south of France and 35 countries are participating, including the European Union, India, Japan, Russia, the United States, South Korea and China. There is certainly no other international project so supported in the block war world.

ITER is an experiment to create the first commercial nuclear fusion reactor the world. The colossal device features the world’s largest superconducting magnets, necessary to create a magnetic field that will contain plasma with temperatures of 150 million degrees Celsius.

A very complicated and long-term project, but necessary to achieve one day safe, plentiful and environmentally responsible energyin a project that “It does not benefit the partner or the country, but the whole of humanity”, as highlighted in their advertising. The operation of the reactor should begin in 2025, and if it is not prevented by the energy lobby, the most powerful on the planet, it will one day be a model reactor for obtaining the energy of stars on Earth.

The ignition achieved in an American laboratory a year ago and now scientifically confirmed is considered a crucial step.