Dr Ian Falconer

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Dr Ian Falconer School of Physics, University of
Sydney Some of the slides shown in this
presentation were provided by Dr
Joe Khachan, University of Sydney
Professor John OConnor, University of Newcastle
I gratefully acknowledge their permission
to use these slides
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Fusion our energy future
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• FUSION
• The energy that drives the stars
• Can it also be harnessed on earth to
  provide the energy our society needs?

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Why fusion? And what IS fusion?

• The world has real energy problems
• (And fusion energy MUST be a big part of
  the solution)
• What is fusion?
• How do we harness fusion energy?

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The world is running out of (cheap) energy - i.e.
fossil fuels
and CO2 from fossil fuels is a greenhouse gas
For these reasons, we URGENTLY need a energy
source to replace fossil fuels
(and it must be portable - like petrol so it
can be used in cars and trucks)
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The world has real energy problems

• We are fast running out of oil (and natural
  gas)
• Burning of fossil fuels generates carbon
  dioxide (CO2) For every tonne of oil
  or coal used for generating energy,
  around THREE tonnes of CO2 are generated
• Per capita energy consumption increases as
  nations become wealthier
  Think about India and China

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The case for fusion energy standard of living
Growth of Australias Primary energy consumption
and GDP
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The case for fusion energy standard of living
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The case for fusion energy standard of living
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How long will it last?
Oil
50-100 years Natural gas

60-100 years Nuclear fission energy (U235
burners) 50 to 100 years Nuclear
fission energy (breeder reactors)

Thousands of years Solar, wind, tidal energy

Renewable Fusion energy
Millenia
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Fusion energy MUST be part of the solution

• We have only limited oil and natural gas
  resources
• Not only do these fuels generate
  CO2, but are a valuable feedstock
  for the chemical industry
• The combustion of coal must necessarily
  generate the greenhouse gas CO2
• Nuclear energy is another limited
  resource, and waste disposal and
  proliferation are problematic at least
  politically
• The renewables are intermittent resources,
  which require extensive and expensive -
  energy storage capacity if the are to
  provide energy on tap

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What is fusion?
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Fusion energy powers the Sun
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What is fusion?

• The release of the energy stored in the
  nuclei of heavy hydrogen atoms -
  deuterium and tritium Hydrogen
  nucleus consists of 1 proton
  Deuterium nucleus consists of 1 proton and 1
  neutron Tritium nucleus consists
  of 1 proton and 2 neutrons

Chemically these isotopes are the same, but the
deuterium and tritium store considerable
energy in their nuclei this is the energy
that holds the nuclei together
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The Most Promising Fusion Reaction
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D-D Fusion Reaction
Proton
Neutron
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Where do the fuels come from?
Deuterium is present in all natural hydrogen.
There is 1 atom of deuterium for every 6,000
atoms of hydrogen. Water is thus an abundant
source of deuterium Tritium also occurs
naturally, but in a fusion reactor will be
created by bombarding a blanket of lithium
surrounding the core of the reactor Lithium is
also abundant in nature Australia has 60 of the
worlds proven lithium reserves
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Breeding tritium
Lithium neutron ? Tritium Helium ENERGY
Liquid lithium will be used as a coolant in
fusion reactors. It will absorb the energy of the
neutrons, and at the same time breed tritium
and produce more energy
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How do we harness fusion energy?
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How do we harness fusion energy?

• Bang a deuterium nucleus and a tritium
  nucleus HARD together so they fuse
• A mixture of deuterium and tritium gases must
  be heated to a very high temperature if the
  nuclei are to fuse about 100 million
  degrees! Under these conditions all the
  atoms are ionized and form a PLASMA
• These high temperatures can only be achieved
  if the gases are contained in a bottle
  constructed from a really strong magnetic
  field
• And a high density of colliding nuclei is
  required if we are to get more fusion
  energy from the reactor than we put into it

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Magnetic Confinement


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Toroidal field produces greater confinement
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Tokamak confinement
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Inside a TOKAMAK
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Tokamak Operating
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ITER the way International Thermonuclear
Experimental Reactor
An international project to produce a prototype
fusion reactor

• ITER partners
• European Union
• Japan
• China
• Russian Federation
• USA
• Korea
• India
• (and possibly Brazil and Canada, Mexico and
  Kazakhstan)

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ITER
Person
ITER the next generation tokamakDesign
completed construction has just commenced
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The pros and cons of fusion energy

• PRO
• Unlimited fuel supply
• Little waste produced
• CON
• Relatively expensive (High construction and
  maintenance costs)
• Structure highly radioactive for a short
  time

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The case for fusion energy fusion economics
internal costs costs of constructing, fuelling,
operating, and disposing of power stations
0.001 / kWhr
external costs estimated impact costs to the
environment, public and worker health,
Prospects for fusion electricity, I. Cook et al.
Fus. Eng. Des. 63-34, pp25-33, 2002
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Fusion a safe, relatively inexpensive source of
energy for which we have an inexhaustible supply
of fuel
ITER is undoubtedly the way
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Why isnt Australia pioneers in the field of
fusion physics - involved in the ITER project??
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THE END
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Comparison to CPU transistors