1. N U C L E A R F U S I O N
WHAT IS THIS
ABOUT?B Y N O R M A H U E R T A
2 0 1 6
2. WHAT IS FUSION?
• Fusion is the process which powers the sun and
the stars. It is energy that makes all life on earth
possible.
• It is called 'fusion' because the energy is
produced by fusing together light atoms at the
extremely high temperatures which exist at the
Centre of the sun!
3. WHAT FUSION IS IMPORTANT FOR?
• The greatest increase in demand for energy is envisaged to come from developing
countries where, with rapid urbanization, large-scale electricity generation will be
required.
• With environmental requirements for zero or low CO2 emission sources and the need
to invest in a sustainable energy mix, new energy sources must be developed.
• Fusion will be available as a future energy option by the middle of this century, and
should be able to acquire a significant role in providing a sustainable, secure and safe
solution to tackle European and global energy needs.
4. WHAT IS PLASMA?
• At the high temperatures experienced in the sun any
gas becomes plasma, the fourth state of matter
• Plasma can be described as an ‘electrically-charged
gas’ . Although plasma is rarely found on earth, it is
estimated that more than 99% of the universe exists
as plasma.
5. WHAT SCIENTISTS HAVE DONE?
• In order to replicate this process on earth, gases need to be heated to
extremely high temperatures
• Scientists have built devices able to produce temperatures more than
ten times higher than those in the sun!
• magnetic “cage” made by strong magnetic fields which prevent the
particles from escaping
6. THIS IS STELLARATOR FROM
GERMANY
Assembly of the Wendelstein 7-X - the
world's largest stellarator-type fusion
device - at the Max Planck Institute for
Plasma Physics in Germany,
completed in April 2014.
7. THIS IS TOKAMAK FROM CHINA
Tokamak (EAST, internal
designation HT-7U) is an
experimental superconductor
magnetic fusion energy
reactor in Hefei, China. The
Hefei-based Institute of
Plasma Physics is conducting
the experiment for
the Chinese Academy of
Science. It has operated since
2006. It was later put under
control of Hefei institutes of
Physical Science.
9. BIG NEWS ON FEBRUARY 2016
• Just last week, we reported that Germany’s revolutionary nuclear fusion machine
managed to heat hydrogen gas to 80 million degrees Celsius, and sustain a cloud of
hydrogen plasma for a quarter of a second. This was a huge milestone in the decades-
long pursuit of controlled nuclear fusion, because if we can produce and hold onto
hydrogen plasma for a certain period, we can harness the clean, practically limitless
energy that fuels our Sun.
• Now physicists in China have announced that their own nuclear fusion machine, called
the Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST), has produced hydrogen
plasma at 49.999 million degrees Celsius, and held onto it for an impressive 102
seconds.
10. • Fusion has been a kind of holy grail for physicists. If successfully harnessed,
it could be a source of safe, clean nuclear energy.
• A nuclear fusion reactor could be capable of producing abundant, sustainable
energy
• There are thousands of scientist around the world working on creation of new
energy sources. These announcements have brought a really breakthrough in
pursuing of the holy grail of the energy
By Norma Huerta February 2016
11. CREDITS
• Images and content from:
• http://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/new-experimental-fusion-reactor-powers-
germany-180958058/?no-ist
• http://fusionforenergy.europa.eu/understandingfusion/
• http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NN-German-fusion-reactor-achieves-first-plasma-
1612154.html
• http://english.hf.cas.cn/ic/ip/east/
• http://www.sciencealert.com/china-s-nuclear-fusion-machine-just-smashed-germany-s-
hydrogen-plasma-record
• Music from
• http://freemusicarchive.org/search ketsa
• normadhuerta@live.com 2016
