General Fusion in the news
-
- Posts: 2484
- Joined: Fri Jun 19, 2009 5:53 am
- Location: Third rock from the sun.
Re: General Fusion in the news
So the have solved the piston sealing problem?
I am not a nuclear physicist, but play one on the internet.
Re: General Fusion in the news
Michel Laberge gave a presentation at the Schulich Leader Scholarships event and the talk is available on Youtube. Most of the video is actually introduction and questions at the end. Laberge mentions in his very popular and general presentation that they are still working on raising the funding for their prototype machine. He describes how hard work it is to talk to investors and to actually get some funding.
I hope that they will soon get the funding they need so they can go ahead and build the prototype.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5zzwnt0cNXM
I hope that they will soon get the funding they need so they can go ahead and build the prototype.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5zzwnt0cNXM
Re: General Fusion in the news
This is very good news!16 Dec General Fusion Closes $65M of Series E Financing
Posted at 04:13h in Featured, Most Recent, Press Releases Share
Funding Enables the Company’s Fusion Demonstration Plant
VANCOUVER, Canada – General Fusion announced that it has successfully closed USD$65 million of Series E equity financing. The financing was led by Temasek, a global investment company headquartered in Singapore.
This USD$65 million of new financing, together with the release of CAD$50 million in additional investment from Canada’s Strategic Innovation Fund, enables the Company to formally launch the program to design, construct, and subsequently operate its Fusion Demonstration Plant. This prototype facility is intended to confirm the performance of General Fusion’s magnetized target fusion technology in a power plant relevant environment. Pursuit of this next important step toward commercially viable fusion energy reflects the growing global collaboration between public and private stakeholders in this transformative technology. General Fusion has attracted more than USD$200 million in funding to develop its practical approach to fusion energy.
https://generalfusion.com/2019/12/gener ... financing/
Re: General Fusion in the news
I believe they still need another 100 million to actually build the demo reactor.
Re: General Fusion in the news
$100 million will no doubt get the long lead equipment ordered, engineering started, site acquired. Financing for the whole project to completion is not the way that such projects are done.
At this stage of the fusion project, investors are confident of success. Demo is just that, demonstration of the science.
At this stage of the fusion project, investors are confident of success. Demo is just that, demonstration of the science.
Counting the days to commercial fusion. It is not that long now.
-
- Posts: 2484
- Joined: Fri Jun 19, 2009 5:53 am
- Location: Third rock from the sun.
Re: General Fusion in the news
Burnaby, B.C.-based General Fusion says it has closed on a $65 million equity financing round that will spark the launch of a program to design, construct and operate a demonstration nuclear fusion power plant.
Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/tech-and- ... z6Ag96C29L
Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/tech-and- ... z6Ag96C29L
I am not a nuclear physicist, but play one on the internet.
Re: General Fusion in the news
Here is a recent paper by General Fusion:
https://doi.org/10.1088/1741-4326/ab74a2Stable compression of a spherical tokamak plasma
Abstract
An analysis of toroidal plasma compression by a collapsing flux conserver reveals linearly stable scenarios of operation to high compression ratios. The resistive and ideal MHD stability is calculated in full toroidal geometry using the asymptotic matching method in realistic conditions. A time dependent MHD simulation of the compression is conducted to confirm the conservation principles used to calculate the equilibrium states for the analysis. The near edge current profile, controlled by toroidal field ramping during compression, is shown to be critical to stability due to coupling between poloidal components of the least stable mode. Two cases with slight differences in edge current are examined, one with a stable corridor to high compression and one without.
Re: General Fusion in the news
General Fusion has published two articles on arXiv:
First results from plasma edge biasing on SPECTOR
https://arxiv.org/abs/1909.07463
Magnetic Levitation and Compression of Compact Tori
https://arxiv.org/abs/1907.10307
First results from plasma edge biasing on SPECTOR
https://arxiv.org/abs/1909.07463
Magnetic Levitation and Compression of Compact Tori
https://arxiv.org/abs/1907.10307
Re: General Fusion in the news
No one seems to be announcing demonstration machine build funding reached, and project initiation. Either investor cash has died of China Virus or performance targets have failed to have been reached. Smells like Fusion is in need of a China Virus ventilator and cure.
Counting the days to commercial fusion. It is not that long now.
Re: General Fusion in the news
I don't see the main issue being COVID or China or low oil price.mvanwink5 wrote: ↑Thu Jul 16, 2020 10:41 pmNo one seems to be announcing demonstration machine build funding reached, and project initiation. Either investor cash has died of China Virus or performance targets have failed to have been reached. Smells like Fusion is in need of a China Virus ventilator and cure.
The main issue existing reactors are having is that they are unable to improve performance targets due to technological/material constrains.
The only fusion related area where there has been noticeable "real" advancements in the last 20 years has been superconductors and related coils for magnetic field, which is the main reason of the majority of improvements in the performances of the test reactors out there.
There is now a dire need of new alloys and materials with more flexible properties if we want to advance reactors performances, but unfortunately investments into this area has been neglected by majority of governments and institutions that preferred to focus on materials like carbon fibers and polymeric fibers/resins. Interesting and useful fields in general, but not fundamental for the needs of fusion machines.
And because all of them more or less depend on the same physics to reach a sustainable fusion point, they are all stuck waiting for such improvements.
I wonder how a Polywell machine would have performed with coils upgraded to latest tech.
A society of dogmas is a dead society.
Re: General Fusion in the news
General Fusion is raising the money for their next fusion relevant machine and they have gotten sizeable funding during the last year.mvanwink5 wrote: ↑Thu Jul 16, 2020 10:41 pmNo one seems to be announcing demonstration machine build funding reached, and project initiation. Either investor cash has died of China Virus or performance targets have failed to have been reached. Smells like Fusion is in need of a China Virus ventilator and cure.
TAE Technology has the best track record of fund raising and they are also planning their next machine Copernicus and also the one after that Da Vinci.
CFS is developing their magnet technology in addition to plannig their first tokamak. CFS has raised very fast the funding they have gotten.
Tokamak Energy is developing nicely their magnet technology and working upgrades to their ST-40 tokamak as well as planning their magnet test device and their next tokamak,
At least these four companies have continued to raise serious money and they are working on devices with interesting goals, so I think the situation looks quite promising in spite of the corona virus situation.
Re: General Fusion in the news
Here are some General Fusion related abstracts from the 62nd Annual Meeting of the APS Division of Plasma Physics. The are studying interesting plasma wall interactions.
Abstract: CP19.00023 : Effects on Stable MHD Region of a Magnetized Target Plasma Compression http://meetings.aps.org/Meeting/DPP20/Session/CP19.23
Abstract: GO13.00010 : Plasma-wall interaction on the SLiC spherical tokamak device with large-area, dynamic liquid lithium free surface http://meetings.aps.org/Meeting/DPP20/Session/GO13.10
Abstract: JO09.00010 : Consequences of Flux Diffusion in a Liner Compression Fusion Reactor http://meetings.aps.org/Meeting/DPP20/Session/JO09.10
Abstract: JP19.00011 : Design and Initial Results from the Dynamic Lithium Corrosion Test Bed http://meetings.aps.org/Meeting/DPP20/Session/JP19.11
Abstract: PP12.00015 : 2D Lagrangian Code for Resistive Evolution of Plasma Equilibrium and Its Application to MTF Studies at General Fusion http://meetings.aps.org/Meeting/DPP20/Session/PP12.15
Abstract: ZP07.00011 : Confinement Physics on Plasma Injector 3 http://meetings.aps.org/Meeting/DPP20/Session/ZP07.11
Abstract: CP19.00023 : Effects on Stable MHD Region of a Magnetized Target Plasma Compression http://meetings.aps.org/Meeting/DPP20/Session/CP19.23
Abstract: GO13.00010 : Plasma-wall interaction on the SLiC spherical tokamak device with large-area, dynamic liquid lithium free surface http://meetings.aps.org/Meeting/DPP20/Session/GO13.10
Abstract: JO09.00010 : Consequences of Flux Diffusion in a Liner Compression Fusion Reactor http://meetings.aps.org/Meeting/DPP20/Session/JO09.10
Abstract: JP19.00011 : Design and Initial Results from the Dynamic Lithium Corrosion Test Bed http://meetings.aps.org/Meeting/DPP20/Session/JP19.11
Abstract: PP12.00015 : 2D Lagrangian Code for Resistive Evolution of Plasma Equilibrium and Its Application to MTF Studies at General Fusion http://meetings.aps.org/Meeting/DPP20/Session/PP12.15
Abstract: ZP07.00011 : Confinement Physics on Plasma Injector 3 http://meetings.aps.org/Meeting/DPP20/Session/ZP07.11
Re: General Fusion in the news
This is the first serious news I have seen on **building** a real prototype. I take this as finally solid evidence that commercial fusion is about to happen.We are on the fastest path to commercializing #fusionenergy – and we need help to get there. We’re looking to add nearly 100 new members to our team in the coming year. Join us on this exciting journey and apply! #cleantechjobs
Counting the days to commercial fusion. It is not that long now.
-
- Posts: 485
- Joined: Mon Aug 24, 2009 10:44 pm
Re: General Fusion in the news
"Nuclear fusion tech developer General Fusion now has Shopify and Amazon founders backing it"
https://techcrunch.com/2021/01/14/nucle ... acking-it/
Bezos (Amazon) has been a backer for years, but Shopify is a new development. Also interesting:
https://techcrunch.com/2021/01/14/nucle ... acking-it/
Bezos (Amazon) has been a backer for years, but Shopify is a new development. Also interesting:
https://generalfusion.com/2020/07/gener ... investors/Indeed, General Fusion kept adding cash throughout 2020 as it looked to develop its demonstration fusion reactor.
Re: General Fusion in the news
It is very good news that General Fusion has raised more funding and is able to move forward with their demonstration plant. It still remains to be seen which concept(s) will work in the end and which concept(s) will not. The KSTAR tokamak in Korea run at 100 MK for 20 s, so there is still a lot of ground to cover for all the private fusion enterprises to reach this level of performance https://phys.org/news/2020-12-korean-ar ... -long.html. Literally the fusion race is heating up in a good way.