Brainwave

It may be difficult to separate "theory" from "application," but let''s see if this helps facilitate the discussion.
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Tristan Beal
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Re: Brainwave

Post by Tristan Beal »

I am well aware of how fusion works tah.

This thread gets across my overall message even if some of the details are incorrect. D-D is an incredibly grainy energy source more so than any energy source we have ever used in the past.

So forcing it to release its energy gradually rather than in bursts is extremely energy inefficient.
Last edited by Tristan Beal on Mon Jul 27, 2015 12:18 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Brainwave

Post by Andrew Seltzman »

Yes, hydrogen has a research octane number, but it's irreverent for analyzing fuels for fusion use. The octane number, when used in internal combustion engine, determines the rated maximum compression ratio engine that a fuel can be used with before it will per-detonate during compression. This corresponds to the fuel's properties in a thermodynamic and chemical sense corresponding to the activation energy(temperature) required to spontaneously ignite.

In fusion uses, the reactions are entirely nuclear in origin with no hydrogen/hydrocarbon combustion (the term "burning plasma" is a euphemism for a self sustaining fusion reaction, it's not actually "burning" in the sense of reacting with oxygen). An equivalent figure of merit when analyzing a fusion fuel is it's cross section which determines it's reaction rate as a function of temperature (collision energy).

Look here under requirements:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_fusion

Edit: Dennis seems to have beat me to a similar answer while I was typing...
Last edited by Andrew Seltzman on Mon Jul 27, 2015 12:19 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Tristan Beal
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Re: Brainwave

Post by Tristan Beal »

Andrew Seltzman wrote:Yes, hydrogen has a research octane number, but it's irreverent for analyzing fuels for fusion use. The octane number, when used in internal combustion engine, determines the rated maximum compression ratio engine that a fuel can be used with before it will per-detonate during compression. This corresponds to the fuel's properties in a thermodynamic and chemical sense corresponding to the activation energy(temperature) required to spontaneously ignite.

In fusion uses, the reactions are entirely nuclear in origin with no hydrogen/hydrocarbon combustion (the term "burning plasma" is a euphemism for a self sustaining fusion reaction, it's not actually "burning" in the sense of reacting with oxygen). An equivalent figure of merit when analyzing a fusion fuel is it's cross section which determines it's reaction rate as a function of temperature (collision energy).

Look here under requirements:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_fusion
^^
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Nick Peskosky
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Re: Brainwave

Post by Nick Peskosky »

Dennis and Andrew beat me to de-muddying the waters between chemical and nuclear processes. You may understand Fusion Tristan, but your semantics within the scientific and engineering disciplines could use some refinement. Pulsed energy ("grainy" as you say) sources will always be difficult to capture and harness under the current power generation paradigm we use. Fusion energy has been in the research stages for over 60 years due to numerous physics and engineering challenges, not the least of which is a way to capture pulsed thermal/ion/neutron release in a way that translates to spinning a turbine connected to a generator (a square peg in a round hole). Ideally, we would like to release D-D fusion continuously but obviously in the near term scaling factors favor D-T reactors for this operation due to optimal cross section .
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Tristan Beal
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Re: Brainwave

Post by Tristan Beal »

Robert Stienhaus has a pulsed fusion design he calls the Mini-Mike.

It basically uses a small ball of frozen D-T as the catalyst for D-D fusion. All of the tritium used can be recovered after the D-D fusion stage.
Because most off the energy is generated from D-D fusion you could use a 500MJ laser as the driver and it would still be profitable.

The pulsed design mean thats the D-D fusion can be done up agaist the walls of the reactor cavity because the high tempratures would only need to be maintained for a very short time period.

The pressure levels created during operation of the device would obviously be high but this is negated by having thick reactor walls and by setting off the D-T cryosphere in a vacuum.

The walls of the device could be cooled with either water or preferably molten salt to recover energy.
Tristan Beal
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Re: Brainwave

Post by Tristan Beal »

How is recovering pulsed energy difficult? You could use a giant piston if you had to, thats the way we do it in engines.
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Andrew Robinson
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Re: Brainwave

Post by Andrew Robinson »

A Turbo Encabulator would work instead of a big piston.
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Tristan Beal
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Re: Brainwave

Post by Tristan Beal »

Well you can make fusion simple and cheap or complicated and expensive, upto you but I know how capitilism will vote.
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Re: Brainwave

Post by Frank Sanns »

Mr. Beal, please follow the rules and introduce yourself in the Intro forum. This is required.

I am also closing this thread as it has not gone in a useful technical direction.
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Re: Brainwave

Post by Richard Hull »

I was in this one but am now out of it. Nothing mentioned here will actually happen and zero energy will come out of it that will ever make electricity. Just more "fusion wind" over the decks.

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Progress may have been a good thing once, but it just went on too long. - Yogi Berra
Fusion is the energy of the future....and it always will be
The more complex the idea put forward by the poor amateur, the more likely it will never see embodiment
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