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Chinese nuclear scientists have taken an important step in the global quest to harness the energy of nuclear fusion, a process that occurs naturally in the sun.
The team of scientists from the Chinese Institute of Plasma Physics announced this week that plasma, in its Advanced Experimental Superconducting Tokamak (EAST) – dubbed the "artificial sun" – had reached 100 million degrees Celsius , a temperature necessary to maintain a fusion reaction producing more power than it takes to run.
To put this in perspective, the temperature in the heart of the sun would be about 15 million degrees Celsius, which would make the plasma of the "artificial sun" Chinese more than six times hotter than the original.
The news comes after China shocked the scientific community last month by planning to launch an "artificial moon" bright enough to replace streetlights by 2020.
Addressing ABC, Matthew Hole, associate professor at the Australian National University, said this achievement was a milestone for the science of nuclear fusion.
"This is certainly a milestone for China's nuclear fusion program and an important development for the world," said Dr. Hole, adding that the development of fusion reactors could be the solution to global energy problems.
The advantage is simple in that it is a very important basic load [continuous] energy production, with zero greenhouse gas emissions and no long-lived radioactive waste.
"It provides a miracle energy solution … provided that we can exploit it."
He added that nuclear fusion reactors also avoid the risks associated with currently used nuclear fission reactors, which can be adapted to dangerous weapons and are subject to possible catastrophic collapses.
The news became viral on Chinese social media and most users were excited about the feat.
"China can not do anything," said a Weibo user.
Another proclaimed that "if this technology is used, the world will no longer be worried about the energy crisis".
So, how did China manage to get out of it?
While current nuclear power plants rely on nuclear fission – a chain reaction in which uranium atoms are split to release energy – nuclear fusion actually has the opposite effect by forcing the fusion of atoms.
One of the ways to achieve this goal on Earth is to use what is called a tokamak, a device designed to replicate the process of naturally occurring nuclear fusion in the Sun and stars to generate energy. .
The EST that made this feat of 100 million Celsius is 11 meters high, 8 meters in diameter and weighs about 360 tons.
It uses a ring to house the heavy and super-heavy isotopes – the atomic variations – of hydrogen called deuterium and tritium.
Isotopes are heated by strong electric currents in the tokamak, which tears the electrons from their atoms and forms a plasma charged with hydrogen ions.
Powerful magnets lining the inner walls of EAST then contain the plasma in a tiny area to maximize the risks of ion fusion.
When the ions fuse, they emit a large amount of energy, which can then be exploited to run a power plant and generate electricity.
The Chinese research team said it was able to reach record temperatures through the use of various new heating and plasma control techniques, but could only maintain the state for about 10 minutes. seconds.
According to the Institute of Plasma Physics of China, the latest advance has provided experimental evidence that it was possible to reach 100 million degrees Celsius.
Mr Hole said that while the energy potential of nuclear fusion as a source of clean energy has attracted significant investment from countries around the world – including China – Australia was lagging behind.
"As a country, Australia is on the verge of losing its fusion capabilities," said Dr. Hole, adding that many of his colleagues had changed fields or were looking for work at home. foreign because of a lack of investment in the science of fusion.
Australia used to invest well in this space, but it has been neglected in recent years. "
He said that the results obtained by EAST would be important for the development of the next major experiment in the science of global nuclear fusion: the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER).
Currently under construction in the south of France with the collaboration of 35 countries, including China, ITER should be the first fusion device to consistently produce clean energy, producing 500 megawatts of clean, sustainable energy.
Since EAST has a design similar to ITER but on a much smaller scale, it is likely to be an important test instrument in the development of ITER, according to the Chinese Institute of Plasma Physics.
ITER should be ready to create its first plasma and begin operations in 2025.
-ABC
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