LLNL "at threshold of fusion ignition"

Point out news stories, on the net or in mainstream media, related to polywell fusion.

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Ivy Matt
Posts: 711
Joined: Sat May 01, 2010 6:43 am

LLNL "at threshold of fusion ignition"

Post by Ivy Matt »

LLNL has announced that on August 8 the National Ignition Facility achieved a fusion yield of more than 1.3 megajoules. This is not quite ignition, but it is getting there. Omar Hurricane is quoted as saying, "To me, this is a Wright Brothers moment," which is what's making the headlines, but he also clarifies, "It's not practical, but we got off the ground for a moment."

According to Hurricane, the fusion energy generated was about 5 times the energy absorbed by the capsule and about 70% of the laser energy shot at the target. Fusion Industry Association CEO Andrew Holland is quoted in the CNBC article saying fusion ignition, which NIF has not yet achieved, would be "the 'Kitty Hawk Moment' for fusion energy."

The results will be published in a peer-reviewed journal, but LLNL decided to make the announcement now because rumors were already spreading.

It seems to me that the number LLNL is focusing on is 1.9 megajoules, which from what I've read is the total laser energy fired at the target. Total electrical energy used to generate the laser is something like 500 megajoules, last I heard. But NIF, like ITER, is already technologically obsolete. I wonder what the efficiency of NIF would be if it were built using the latest laser technologies.
Temperature, density, confinement time: pick any two.

mvanwink5
Posts: 2143
Joined: Wed Jul 01, 2009 5:07 am
Location: N.C. Mountains

Re: LLNL "at threshold of fusion ignition"

Post by mvanwink5 »

This is not privately funded, so what this is is a funding moment. With all that is happening in the real world the big fusion Gruberment projects are worried.
Counting the days to commercial fusion. It is not that long now.

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