/r/fusion

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Discussion and news on advancements in the field of nuclear fusion energy and related technologies.

Nuclear Fusion on Reddit

Focused on advancements in the field of nuclear fusion.

Submissions should be related to nuclear fusion or plasma physics as currently understood by the scientific community.


Nuclear fusion is a nuclear reaction in which two or more atomic nuclei collide together at a very high speed and form a new nucleus. For light elements like hydrogen or helium the fused nucleus weights less than the sum of the original nucleus. The missing mass is released as energy in accordance with Einstein's mass-energy equivalence equations. Fusion is the process that powers active or "main sequence" stars.

Primer on fusion power

Current mainstream approaches include:


Related:

/r/fusion

25,094 Subscribers

0

Could a low temperature/pressure plasma work as a flywheel?

I was thinking the rotating core of the flywheel could be a rare earth magnet, and the plasma could be confined near the edge just using regular magnets if the temperature and pressure is kept low. The mass of the plasma compared to the mass of the magnetic flywheel would be low, and the rotation of the magnets might help keep the plasma confined. Is anyone working with plasma that is at lower relative temperatures? Can we talk about plasma related technologies, or is this strictly for doing fusion with plasma?

7 Comments
2024/12/04
19:53 UTC

3

Overview of the physics design of the EHL-2 spherical torus

https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/2058-6272/ad981a/pdf

Although being criticized, ENN is still saying using hot ion mode to reduce Bremsstrahlung radiation in its papers

https://www.reddit.com/r/fusion/comments/1h1il7y/enn_scientist_finally_admitted_that_there_does/

0 Comments
2024/12/04
03:22 UTC

7

Implications of China ban on fusion industry

Last I checked (2022) about 50% of the Rare Earth's came from China. Thet are actually not rare, but the US DOD is still trying to stand up domestic suppliers in Texas and elsewhere.

MOST US fusion firms need the HTS wire and that means using rare earth's.

What do you guys think?

8 Comments
2024/12/03
23:24 UTC

17

Fusion question threads

Just curious if anyone would like to ask anything related to Fusion power? Currently doing a PhD in plasma physics and need some fresh air from Reddit 😁 If that's not allowed in this sub I will delete the post

Edit: many interesting questions here ☺️ but I am nowhere near expert in the field so I will just call it a discussion and hopefully breaking some information barriers

18 Comments
2024/12/03
14:28 UTC

11

Looking for research or job opportunities in plasma physics for international students

Hi everyone,

I’m currently studying Engineering Physics, and I’m deeply passionate about plasma physics, fusion, and related applications. I’m seeking research opportunities, internships, or jobs in these fields that are open to international students.

I have experience with numerical simulations, data analysis, and programming in Python and C. I'm also currently learning C++ and parallel computing to further enhance my technical skills.

If you know of any programs, institutions, or projects I could explore, I’d greatly appreciate your suggestions or guidance.

Thanks in advance for your help!

5 Comments
2024/12/02
17:31 UTC

9

$1.8B in Fusion Funding Deals in 2024 (repost with Y-axis correction)

0 Comments
2024/12/02
02:50 UTC

64

Helion’s CEO just tweeted “💡”

28 Comments
2024/12/02
02:10 UTC

2

Startorus' magnetic reconnection heating

https://startorus.com/technology/

Startorus Fusion harnesses multiple poloidal field coils in the spherical tokamak to produce two plasma rings via induction and promotes their merging into a primary plasma. In this process, magnetic fields created by the plasma rings undergo reconnection on a massive scale, heating the plasma to the temperature necessary for fusion reactions rapidly and efficiently.

Compared with mainstream tokamak approaches, this proposal requires nothing more than several sets of coils to complete the plasma heating. Therefore, it is far less complicated and difficult than high-power negative ion sources for neutral beam systems and high-power millimeter wave systems, with strong economic competitiveness and fewer operational difficulties.

Magnetic reconnection is a one-off process, the conclusion of which equals the stop of plasma heating. To sustain fusion power output, Startorus Fusion properly designs the power supply and renders the reactor to operate in an operation mode similar to that of multi-stroke internal combustion engines. Magnetic reconnection is thus repeated to regularly generate fusion power.

Although only one stroke does work, the control of working substance flows in this loop, combined with heat storage facilities, will ensure stable energy output. An alternative path for the same purpose would be to construct multiple fusion reactors (similar to multicylinder engines). This method averts the inevitable and unpredictable instabilities in long-pulse continuous operation, while reducing device complexity and construction costs.

13 Comments
2024/12/01
23:54 UTC

4

Is China striding past Europe, America and Japan on nuclear fusion?

14 Comments
2024/12/01
07:24 UTC

4

How long did it take you to initially grasped the concept of Debye length when you first learned about it?

1 Comment
2024/11/30
12:09 UTC

0

ENG8 created a news: ENG8 achieves another global first in the race for fusion energy

6 Comments
2024/11/30
05:04 UTC

6

Is Eng8 For Real or Snake Oil? (Any update?)

3 Comments
2024/11/29
12:53 UTC

5

LPP Fusion latest progress

It'll be interesting to see some results when they actually get some Boron fusion!

https://www.lppfusion.com/long-awaited-boron-tests-start/

2 Comments
2024/11/29
11:36 UTC

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