JET Plasma

Joint European Torus (JET) plasma.

Nuclear Fusion is the process powering the Sun and stars. In the core of the Sun, at temperatures of 10-15 million Kelvin, Hydrogen is converted to Helium by fusion - providing enough energy to keep the Sun burning - and to sustain life on Earth.

A vigorous world-wide research programme is underway, aimed at harnessing fusion energy to produce electricity on Earth. If successful, this will offer a viable alternative energy supply within the next 30-40 years - with significant environmental, supply and safety advantages over present energy sources.

To harness fusion on Earth, different, more efficient fusion reactions than those at work in the Sun are chosen - those between the two heavy forms of Hydrogen : Deuterium (D) and Tritium (T). All forms of Hydrogen contain one proton and one electron. Protium, the common form of Hydrogen has no neutrons, Deuterium has one neutron, and Tritium has two. If forced together, the Deuterium and Tritium nuclei fuse and then break apart to form a helium nucleus (two protons and two neutrons) and an uncharged neutron. The excess energy from the fusion reaction (released because the products of the reaction are bound together in a more stable way than the reactants) is mostly contained in the free neutron.

The use of transformer action for producing the large plasma current means that the JET machine operates in a pulsed mode. Pulses can be produced at a maximum rate of about one every twenty minutes, and each one can last for up to 60 seconds in duration. The plasma is enclosed within the doughnut shaped vacuum vessel which has a major radius of 2.96m and a D-shaped cross section of 4.2m by 2.5m. The amount of gas introduced into the vessel for an experimental pulse amounts to less than one tenth of a gram.

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• JET
• plasma
• nuclear
• fusion

[danydevil123]

isn't it tru that at the moment the best fusion reactors actually use up more energy than they actually create

[BrunoTheQuestionable]

No fusion reactors have been designed to generate electrical power so far - that's the next step after ITER. The JET reactor does generate a self-sustaining fusion reaction however.

[HipHopJun]

is this the stuff they shoot wit the plasma pistols in Halo?

[BrunoTheQuestionable]

This would be it.

Its NASTY stuff.

[kurtilein3]

lithium is one of the most common chemical elements. regular iron is more rare than lithium, aluminium is more rare than lithium, ...  deuterium and tritium will cause more problems.

note that the plasma that has the right temperature for fusion is invisible. no light emission without electrons. the electrons are present in small quantities in the cooler outside regions of the plasma, there the glow comes from.

[BrunoTheQuestionable]

The Lithium is only used to breed Tritium in a blanket surrounding the reactor. Its the Deuterium and Tritium that are fused. As for sourcing Deuterium - its not a problem.

[didaloca]

A nuclear fusion reactor works by heating the isotopes of hydroden untill they change into plasma (the 4th state of matter). Plasma is so hot, that the paricles are moving very very fast. When they collide they fuse, releasing a proton(?) as the proton(?) is released it releases a huge amount of energy.

[didaloca]

The plasma must be contained in a toroid, or a donut shaped cylinder so the paricles keep moving. Magnetic fields are used to contain the plasma and keep it in place. If the plasma escaped, through a leak or some other way. It would cool down very fast and turn back into hydrogen.

[KillaGoza]

@didaloca

A neutron is released when a Deuterium and a Tritium-atom are fused together. Because these neutrons carry that much energy, they will make the inner wall of the fusion reactor get radioactive. It's not the same as nuclear waste, which has to be stored for thousands of years to get it back to 'normal', the inner wall of the fusion reactor will only have to be stored for about 100 years to get back to 'normal'.(sorry for my bad English;))

[KillaGoza]

@BrunoTheQuestionable

You say that the JET reactor does generate a self-sustaining fusion reaction but how come that the reaction stops after about one minute? I know it stopped because the temperature went under the needed temperature(which is about 150 million degrees celsius, right?), but than it isn't a self-sustaining fusion reaction..

[sandustanBrasov]

SandustanBrasov

The test for nuclear fusion realisation on Tokamak's installations and with LASER cannot bring anything new for the energetics' future. I bind the thermonuclear controlled reactor schedule by the Sun model , by the reactive electromagnetic motor schedule from Palenque stone's tombe. You see the my project for thermonuclear controlled reactor.

[sandustanBrasov]

SandustanBrasov

My brethren, you have capacity of to construct the thermonuclear controlled reactor, only that, you must needs let construct something functional. The tokamak were invented in 1950 by physicists Igor Tamm and Andrei Sakharov inspired by idea of Oleg Lavrentyev, when he studyed realization of the hydrogen bomb, which has not need of magnetic trap, and thus,all the experiments were finished with the destruction of the tokamak instalations in the central zone.

[kazimann]

Cool!

[TheArmo1]

@noxxrun please please please. SHUT UP. Your stupidity...IT HURTS!!!

[TheArmo1]

@Roguestar182 cut the shit, you did not work on JET

[Zyloflex]

That was the best and most scientific 1 minute of my life. Nuclear fusion FTW!!!