Why Nuclear Fusion Is Important
Dec 27, 2022 7:01 am
Why Nuclear Fusion Is Important
2 min read
On the 13th of December 2022, the US Department of Energy announced a huge breakthrough in nuclear energy. For the first time ever, a nuclear fusion reaction that emitted more energy than it took in (called fusion ignition) was completed. This is the first step in taking nuclear energy net zero. The ideal use case would be for the input energy to come from renewable energy sources, and then for the output to be a multiple of the input energy in the form of nuclear energy.
Nuclear fusion reactions happen when hydrogen atoms rapidly collide and combine to produce helium atoms. Thus, we can use sea water (which is high in hydrogen) to power these nuclear reactions instead of renewable energy. This process gives off a large amount of energy, which can then be converted to electricity through a process called fusion.
This is how fusion works:
- The reaction mentioned above takes place inside a nuclear reactor.
- The atoms in the reaction bounce off the walls on the inside of the nuclear reactor. This creates kinetic energy.
- The kinetic energy is converted into heat.
- The heat is then converted into mechanical power by a heat engine.
- The mechanical power is then converted into electrical energy using generators.
Nuclear fusion energy is fully clean as it does not emit any carbon or produce any nuclear waste.
Nuclear energy can be used in the following ways:
- Generating electricity for commercial use.
- Power desalination plants.
- Supplying heat used in metal refining.
- Provide hydrogen gas for hydrogen fuel cell vehicles.
Critics say that we are still a long way away from nuclear fusion energy being commercially used. Some of the issues they cite include net energy losses in the laser systems of nuclear plants which may decrease the output energy, efficiency of the process of converting heat into energy in nuclear plants not being very efficient, and the cost of electricity produced from nuclear energy being high.
At the end of the day, nuclear fusion has huge potential to be an endless supply of clean energy.
What are your thoughts on nuclear fusion energy? Do you think that it will become widely, commercially used anytime soon? Share your thoughts by replying to this email!
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Scientist explains successful nuclear fusion experiment
