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Page added on June 30, 2015
Nuclear fusion reactor prototype to be unveiled in the UK
A prototype nuclear fusion reactor will be unveiled during Britain’s Royal Society summer science exhibition, the country’s leading showcase for new research.
Start-up group Tokamak Energy, a subsidiary of the UK government’s Culham Laboratory, said it expected electricity to be produced from nuclear fusion within a decade, as Britain aims to shift towards green energies.
The prototype is understood to be an upgrade of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) that is currently being built in southern France, in a project funded by the European Union, US, Japan, India, China, Russia and South Korea.
Its construction started in 2013, and as of June 2015 the building costs were over $14bn, three times the original figure.
Based on the ‘tokamak’ concept of magnetic confinement, in which the plasma is contained in a doughnut-shaped vacuum vessel, the reactor aims to demonstrate the principle of producing more energy from the fusion process than is used to initiate it, something that has not yet been achieved in any fusion reactor.
Microsoft’s founder Bill Gates showed his commitment to renewable energies last week in an interview with the Financial Times, pointing out that he planned to double his personal investment in green technology, from nuclear and wind to batteries and synthetic photosynthesis, to $ 2bn over the next five years.
Gates also called for a tripling of public support for renewables research to help fight climate change.
UK Energy Research Centre research director Jim Watson urged caution about shifting public funding to research from the deployment of technologies such as solar photovoltaics and offshore wind.
“Of course I am not averse to putting more money into energy research but I would have a problem about shifting public funding to research from the deployment of technologies, ”he said.
17 Comments on "Nuclear fusion reactor prototype to be unveiled in the UK"
Lawfish1964 on Tue, 30th Jun 2015 8:51 am
“Start-up group Tokamak Energy, a subsidiary of the UK government’s Culham Laboratory, said it expected electricity to be produced from nuclear fusion within a decade.” Typically cargo-cult pie-in-the-sky hopium.
We already have a fusion reactor, but we keep it 93,000,000 miles away for safety reasons.
GregT on Tue, 30th Jun 2015 8:53 am
Green-technology. Yet another oxymoron from the age of denial.
penury on Tue, 30th Jun 2015 1:05 pm
At least this is promising electric power in 10 years rather than the routine twenty year dream. And the proto type only took 14 billion dollars. Let me know when we have something working. Otherwise MOS BS to keep the folks happy.
HARM on Tue, 30th Jun 2015 2:09 pm
How come they didn’t mention my perpetual motion “prototype”? It’s already operational, but it *does* cost taxpayers a lot more than $14 billion. In fact, the current tab since 2008 is well over $7 Trillion.
http://wallstreetonparade.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/Washington-and-Wall-Streets-Revolving-Door-Illustration.png
joe on Tue, 30th Jun 2015 2:17 pm
Can Iran have it? North Korea? All nations will need this tech to generate electricity, otherwise it will be just another complimentary strategic option for a world of oil and fossil fuels.
zoidberg on Tue, 30th Jun 2015 5:05 pm
One step at a time. Probably best way to spend 14 bill anyways. Wars and interest payments for instance wouldnt generate nearly the same economic output. Even if it doesn’t work the skills and experience and training people get from these projects is totally worth it, so maybe the next try works better. Because once fusion starts powering our economy all bets are off.
steve on Tue, 30th Jun 2015 6:14 pm
bill gates talking about climate change is like al gore talking about it as he flies all over the country in a huge private jet….utter bull shit
Makati1 on Tue, 30th Jun 2015 8:00 pm
“… it expected electricity to be produced from nuclear fusion within a decade,”
“…construction started in 2013, and as of June 2015 the building costs were over $14bn, three times the original figure.”
“…something that has not yet been achieved in any fusion reactor.”
Nuff said.
Makati1 on Tue, 30th Jun 2015 9:15 pm
A more important story…
http://oilprice.com/The-Environment/Global-Warming/Are-We-Headed-For-Global-Warming-Collapse.html
Still a bit optimistic, but…
Rodster on Tue, 30th Jun 2015 10:40 pm
“Still a bit optimistic, but…”
That article doesn’t account for the 7 million tons of plastics we humans dump in the ocean each. It doesn’t account for the toxic chemicals and pollutants we dump in the ocean floor, it doesn’t account for the millions of tons of garbage dumped in the ocean.
That article doesn’t mention the Bee die off around the world, the species we kill and drive to extinction for their fur or tusk.
He made no mention of phytoplankton die off of around 50 percent, the high acidification levels in the ocean. The author made no mention of dying oceans or dead zones. The oceans are also getting warmer each year. Overfishing is also a huge problem.
No oceans and Bees means no humans, with or without climate change or methane released into the atmosphere.
Davy on Wed, 1st Jul 2015 2:34 am
Zoid said “Even if it doesn’t work the skills and experience and training people get from these projects is totally worth it” Zoid, I would call it only marginally useful. It would have been far better employing some or all of that resource into an area that focuses on one of the major predicaments facing us like climate change or peak energy.
Anything like fusion that is 10-20 years off and based upon hyper complexity is a poor societal investment. Imagine if 14BIL was put into localized AltE networks adaptive to variability, resilient to supply-chain disruption and used to protect vital functions for collective welfare. This collective welfare could be a water system or waste system.
We are at a point in our global economic evolution that time, energy, and resources are at a critical point of marginal return. This is not because we don’t have allot of energy and resources but because our problems are overwhelming us. This is where time comes in. We are running out of time to confront our major challenges. We are slipping behind as new and more potent problems arise. The last thing we need now is poor investments. Fusion is a poor investment.
rand49er on Wed, 1st Jul 2015 8:44 am
The laser fusion project run by the National Ignition Facility in California exceeded the break-even point and reported on Oct 7, 2013, by BBC News’ science editor, Paul Rincon. Certainly this was ignored by this article. Personally, I’m a big proponent of any method that gives us fusion energy in abundance, after all, we’ll be entering another ice age in as little as a few hundred years.
Cassie on Wed, 1st Jul 2015 9:02 am
“after all, we’ll be entering another ice age in as little as a few hundred years.”
We won’t. You and I will be dead. The earth might cool off that way, but I doubt it; ice age may be a relative term,too, with a continued GHG load and oceans a bit higher.
And when did you get back from the future? Did you bring back pics or video? That fusion generator – how did it work out?
ghung on Wed, 1st Jul 2015 9:08 am
Yeah, Cassie, and folks like rand seem to think that humans will use a nearly unlimited supply of energy much more wisely than in the past. Can’t admit that we’re just children playing with fire; no concern about long-term consequences. Too bad a humility gene wasn’t included with our cleverness package.
joe on Wed, 1st Jul 2015 9:50 am
Yeah I mean if fusion is true then why bother with battery investments. Unlimited energy would mean unlimited economic growth. Think about it. Manna from heaven to keep us alive forever.
Newfie on Wed, 1st Jul 2015 4:36 pm
They “expected electricity to be produced from nuclear fusion within a decade”. They’ve been saying the exact same thing every year for the past 50 years.
Keith_McClary on Thu, 2nd Jul 2015 12:51 am
Check out their spiffy website:
http://www.tokamakenergy.co.uk/