Fusion Message Board

In this space, visitors are invited to post any comments, questions, or skeptical observations about Philo T. Farnsworth's contributions to the field of Nuclear Fusion research.

Subject: Re: Crunch time for Big Fusion?
Date: Oct 17, 10:18 am
Poster: Richard Hull

On Oct 17, 10:18 am, Richard Hull wrote:


>I have read here by several that these fusors cannot achieve breakeven, let alone a net power production, exceeding breakeven.
>
>While I see nothing intrinsic in these designs that would limit to below breakeve, it is clear the amateur is not going to be able to afford the large scale shielding for a power producing facility.

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The shielding is a total non-issue.

I could get a million tons of the best shielding and pump the thousands of kilowatts of power into a 50 foot spherical fusor and it still would not approach unity by many orders of magnitude!

It is the physical embodiment and implimentation and not the theoretical idea that keeps the fusor back. It is not a mature system.

What you said about amateurs is most likely true. But agin it is not due to a shielding issue. Amateurs won't construct a break even device due to knwoledge, funds, etc. Hell, most won't get off their duffs to make even a demo system! How can one expect any amateur to even approach break even! This is probably a rather terse statement as one can't actually be an amateur fusioneer until one has actually stuck their toes into the water. (done something) Most here and elsewhere in the fusion discussion are amateur theorists or futurists. RH

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>
>Also as to the Tokamak's large size.... I was under the impression, that plasma behavior was far improved in the very large facilities.

Another misconception. Bob Hirsch has come to realize that the larger sizes were a mistake. The bloated infrastructure siphons off funds from other ideas which are deserving of investigation. Again, a smaller size leaves room for a lot more investigations by more people with more new ideas. The small size also allows for the "lean, mean" mentality of a truly gifted person (like Philo Farnsworth) to flower and push the project forward. The most promising systems can then be singled out for more funds or a small ramp up.

Richard Hull