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: Are we really at 80 keV effective energy?
Date: Jun 08, 4:46 pm
Poster: Ely Silk

On Jun 08, 4:46 pm, Ely Silk wrote:

If two deuterons are colliding head on in the center of my fusor, each with a velocity commensurate with 20 keV of kinetic energy, the collision dynamics are the same as if a deuteron with twice that VELOCITY struck a stationary deuteron. Twice the velocity means four times the energy! It therefore appears that our D-D collisions are the same as 80 keV collisions in a conventional accelerator-target arrangement.

Sounds like double counting. The velocity is proportional to the square root of the kinetic energy. Doubling the 20 kev to 40 kev (the equivalent of the accelerated deuteron hitting a stationary deuteron) yields a 1.414 times greater velocity, not twice. Squaring that, of course, gives you the doubling of kinetic energy.
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