POPS Paper

[93143]

I was referring to his idea regarding adding non-reactant bulk in order to increase the pressure. I'm not disputing that POPS is a good thing; I just don't think loading up the core with stuff that won't fuse is going to help the concept.

Am I wrong?

I really should read the papers, but it's nearly the end of term and I'm behind in my research...

[choff]

I admit its a long shot idea, extremely unlikely to work. It would mean having to ramp up the drive current in proportion to the added mass and would probably block reactions more than help. The machine would in all likelyhood run dirty (radioactive), if at all.
I was thinking though, if the fuel and electrons self organize into separate beams in a regular POPS operation, could the added mass form its own separate beam. If the fuel and dead weight rode into the core on separate wavefronts/harmonics, the heavy stuff could be tuned to arrive just after the fuel and compress it like a piston. It wouldn't be that different from using lasers to compress fuel pellets like the British are trying.

[hanelyp]

Adding non-reactant bulk is in my opinion a loosing proposition. More mass to be heated and to radiate. If your containment and drive system can handle the extra mass, I'm thinking more reactant is a better bet. More pressure and more reactant density to drive reaction rates.

[choff]

Fair enough, but above a certain atomic weight, material will require too much energy to fuse anyway, if at all. All it could do is work as a piston to drive up fuel pressure. I admit its an extreme longshot.