We can find the figure of nuclear fusion in many science fiction animations and movies. Scientists are working hard to create an energy field comparable to the sun on the earth, pursuing endless and clean power sources. However, reality seems to be a distance from the "full ideal". It may not be possible to see the nuclear fusion power plant after 2050.
In order to seek a stable source of power generation, people have been investing in nuclear fusion reactions for more than half a century. Nuclear fusion mainly imitates the method of generating energy within solar energy, combining the two isotopes of hydrogen, deuterium and tritium atoms to form a heavier atomic nucleus and a lighter nucleus, but deuterium and tritium are both positively charged elements, and it is not easy to integrate them.
Scientists must use powerful magnetic fields, high temperatures and high density to turn the nucleus into the plasma state, and then control and maintain it. As long as the plasma can maintain high temperature for a long enough time, a large number of nuclear fusion reactions can be triggered, and finally used for power generation or other purposes.
There are also some countries that are investing money to realize their ambitions of nuclear integration. New progress and plans have been released in recent months. For example, after the UK established two nuclear fusion research centers in 2017, it announced in 2018 that it would allocate 20 million pounds for nuclear fusion-related research in the coming year. Last month, it decided to spend 220 million pounds, bluntly stated that it would build a nuclear fusion power plant in 2040.
Italy is also planning a nuclear fusion experiment plan, and is expected to build the DTT (Diver Tokamak Test facility) in Frascati in 2022. It mainly studies how to control the large amount of caloric problems of nuclear fusion reactions. Recently, it has obtained a loan of 250 million euros from the European Investment Bank. The experiment will also hire a total of 1,500 scientists, researchers and employees.
lens has been transferred to Asia, and China is also tirelessly studying nuclear fusion technology, and is even considered the most ambitious challenger. So far, China has invested 6 billion yuan in nuclear fusion, and will invest another 6 billion yuan to build another reactor, hoping to conduct commercial power generation by 2050.
China's nuclear fusion equipment has also been setting new records. In 2017, China's advanced experimental superconducting tokamak experimental equipment (EAST) became the world's first facility that can maintain specific necessary conditions for nuclear fusion for more than 100 seconds. In November 2018, it successfully heated the plasma core temperature to 100 million °C, 6 times the temperature of solar core .
In addition to China, South Korea has also invested in nuclear fusion research. South Korea's KSTAR's nuclear fusion reactor also successfully heated the plasma core temperature to 100 million degrees in 2019 and maintained for 1.5 seconds, setting a world's first, and this year's goal is to maintain it for more than 10 seconds.
However, the world's largest nuclear fusion research institute is currently located in France. ITER (International Thermal Nuclear Fusion Experimental Reactor) is a project jointly funded by the EU, China, India, Japan, Russia, South Korea and the United States. As the organizer of the ITER facility, the EU invests about 45% of the funds, while the other six countries each contribute 9%. The multinational team started construction in 2017 and planned to conduct its first plasma test in December 2025, but this is also the third time ITER has extended the process.
Although ITER is mainly research-oriented, the goal is to produce stable plasma and run for at least 8 minutes. Even if there is a course in the experiment, it will not supply power to the power grid, but research can still assist other laboratories.
As for who can truly commercialize nuclear fusion in the end, it is hard to say at the moment. After all, there are countless countries and institutions that are studying nuclear fusion now, and many wealthy people have invested a lot of money to join the nuclear fusion competition and set up companies, such as Tokamak Energy in the UK. However, it is still too early to rank. Although some people expect results to be seen in 2030, Chris Warrick, public relations manager at the UK Atomic Energy Administration, believes that nuclear fusion power plants will not be put into commercial power supply after about 2050.
Therefore, although nuclear fusion cannot slow down the urgent need for climate change and high carbon emissions, it can still be expected to develop in the future.
(The first picture is ITER's empty photo taken in June this year, source: ITER)
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