3. WHY FUSION?
Pollution and global warming
• Advantages
– No carbon emission
– Helium as only by product
– Deuterium and tritium (sources) are virtually inexhaustible
– No nuclear waste
– Very efficient (1 kg fusion fuel = 10 million kg fossil fuel)
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5. WHAT IS FUSION
Fusion power is the generation of energy by nuclear fusion. Fusion reactions are high energy reaction
in which two lighter atomic nuclei fuse to form a heavier nucleus. When they combine, some of the mass is lost.
This is converted into the energy through E=mc2.Fusion power is a research effort to try and harness this energy to
large scale cleaner energy. It is also a major part of the plasma physics research.
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6. WHAT IS THE REACTION?
• Loss of mass and
total binding energy
• E=Mc2
• isotopes of hydrogen, namely
deuterium 2H and tritium 3H
• Products are Helium, 4He, and a neutron, with 17.59 Me V
release in the energy.
9. Positive charge and repulsive effect
Need for very high kinetic energy
Plus very high density
T needed, 2 to 4 x 108 K
Stars as self sustaining thermonuclear
What’s the Problem
10. 10
• Cold Fusion
• electrolysis of heavy
water on the surface
of
• a palladium (Pd)
electrode
• Recent research over
the topic
19. REFERENCES
• Grand Challenges - Provide Energy from Fusion. (n.d.).
https://www.engineeringchallenges.org/challenges/fusion.aspx
• Ball, P. (2023, July 25). What is the future of fusion energy? Scientific American.
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/what-is-the-future-of-fusion-energy/
• PPPL researcher’s work yields a breakthrough for a promising fusion-energy device.
(2022, March 3). Princeton University.
https://www.princeton.edu/news/2022/03/03/pppl-researchers-work-yields-
breakthrough-promising-fusion-energy-device
PRESENTATION TITLE 19
