Opening Paragraph
Scientists in the United Kingdom have made a significant stride in the production of nuclear fusion energy, mirroring the process by which energy is generated in the Sun. This achievement in nuclear fusion energy offers promising prospects for producing low carbon, safer energy that can far surpass the efficiency of traditional energy production methods.
Understanding Tokamak and Nuclear Fusion
Nuclear fusion energy was produced at the Joint European Torus (JET) facility, the world’s largest operational site of its kind. The energy was generated using a tokamak, a doughnut-shaped machine designed to confine plasma with magnetic fields, thereby creating a torus – a donut shape that scientists prefer.
To produce energy, deuterium and tritium, both isotopes of hydrogen, were heated to temperatures ten times hotter than the Sun’s core to create plasma. Superconductor electromagnets then held the plasma in place as it spun around, fused, and released a significant amount of heat energy.
The experiment’s outcomes and scientific data offer valuable insights for ITER, a larger and more evolved version of the JET operating further in this direction.
Defining Nuclear Fusion
Nuclear fusion is a process whereby several small nuclei combine to form one large nucleus, releasing vast amounts of energy in the process. This reaction is opposite to fission, where heavy isotopes are split apart.
Fusion reactions occur in a state of matter known as plasma, which is a hot, charged gas composed of positive ions and free electrons. When exposed to high temperatures, electrons separate from atoms’ nuclei forming a plasma or ionized state of matter – also referred to as the fourth state of matter.
The Benefits of Nuclear Fusion
The advantages of nuclear fusion are manifold. For starters, it produces abundant energy, approximately four million times more than chemical reactions like burning coal, oil, or gas and four times as much as nuclear fission reactions.
Moreover, fusion fuels are sustainable and nearly inexhaustible, with deuterium being distilled from all forms of water while tritium is produced during fusion reactions as they interact with lithium.
Fusion energy production doesn’t emit harmful greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide. Its primary by-product is helium, an inert and non-toxic gas. Additionally, nuclear fusion reactors do not generate high-activity, long-lived nuclear waste.
Global Initiatives on Nuclear Fusion Energy
Several global initiatives to harness fusion energy are currently underway. For instance, the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) Assembly, aims to build the world’s largest tokamak to prove the feasibility of fusion as a large-scale and carbon-free source of energy. The ITER members include China, the European Union, India, Japan, South Korea, Russia, and the United States.
Additionally, China’s “Artificial Sun” project uses the Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST) device to replicate the Sun’s nuclear fusion process.
Difference Between Nuclear Fusion and Nuclear Fission
While both nuclear fusion and nuclear fission involve changes in atomic nuclei, the procedures they follow differ significantly. While fission involves splitting heavy isotopes into smaller ones, fusion follows an opposite process, combining smaller nuclei into a larger one resulting in massive energy release.
