Nuclear Fusion a Feasible Source of Power Essay example

Cold fusion is only produced three out of ten times under the best conditions, but this is enough to justify continued research. The first transitors were only successful one out of a hundred times until the mechanisms were completely understood. The science of the reaction taking place in cold fusion is still not clear. When pieces of the puzzle begin to fit together better, the success rate will increase, and yields will go up.

     Fusion energy seems to be the most promising energy source of the not-too-distant future. It is safe, it uses an energy supply that is so abundant that it will never run out, it gives off harmless waste, and it produces energy comparable to the Earth's sun! But are there any problems with this hopeful energy source?

the sun is a great and appendant source of energy, it's called solar energy. Solar panels were

Presently, nuclear fusion and nuclear fission are being studied, and even used in some countries as a power generator. The enormous energy produced by nuclear fission and fusion could light up a big city for a hundred years or more and we do not have to worry about it polluting our environment because nuclear energy is a green energy. Moreover, in a long term, the cost to generate power using nuclear is far less than the cost of generating power using fossil fuel.

Not many people are aware of this, but we have the greatest source of energy that is sustainable, and better for the environment, and it has been right under our noses! Nuclear power, but not the nuclear power you’re thinking of. The common nuclear power plant uses uranium or a mix of uranium and plutonium, but the safest method substitutes the high use of uranium for thorium.

Although space is empty and vast, it contains the most amount of usable energy, the sun. However, even with something so mass and what appears infinite it has its limitations. “The amount of electrical power a spacecraft requires is dictated by the mission. Uninterrupted power must often be supplied for up to 10 years or more.” Solar power requires large equipment and must maintain line-of-sight with the sun, however, solar power has the most concentration of energy. Nuclear power can have large independent output while taking up less space. However, the power, though continuous, is not always constant. Both methods of power are able to sustain equipment energy needs for long journeys across the universe

As the world becomes more aware of the growing need for a more abundant energy supply, one energy source has been swept under the carpet and virtually ignored. This source is cold fusion. Cold fusion is:

Some may argue that when the sun isn’t out solar energy will not be able to produce

Nuclear fusion differs from fission in that fusion is when two atoms are smashed together, and fission is when atoms are split in half. Conventional nuclear reactors have always been fission and this is one of the first fusion reactors. “Nuclear fusion has the potential to produce nearly unlimited supplies of clean, safe, carbon-free energy. Fusion is the same process that powers the sun, and it can be realized in reactors that simulate the conditions of ultra hot miniature “stars” of plasma — superheated gas — that are contained within a magnetic field” (“New Record for Fusion”). This means that there could be a very good alternative for conventional nuclear power. Be that as it may, this technology is far from becoming a needed replacement for nuclear energy. This technology will benefit others years down the line, but for right now, it will stay in its experimental

However, nuclear fusion has a few issues. Currently, there has not been a method developed that continuously and reliably produces more energy than is used to power the reactor. The reactors themselves are also extremely expensive to manufacture and have very long construction times (19 years for the W7-X reactor). Additionally, there are no materials that can handle the heat that is required for fusion to take place (which is the purpose for electromagnetic containment

Nuclear power is presently a key way of providing energy for our world. As of 2011, power plants generated about 14% of the whole world’s electricity (Cole). Nuclear power also does not use fossil fuels and therefore is a low pollutant. However, there are significant costs of nuclear power. Nuclear power plants emit radiation and can leak causing environmental damage and significant health risks. Nuclear power plants are also expensive to build and maintain. Terrorists can easily turn the nuclear fission in the plant into a deadly weapon. There are also better alternatives to provide our world with power. The sun is a natural source that many are starting to use as a source of electricity. Water and wind

As our worlds most relied upon source of energy, fossil fuel, continues to deplete we are continuing to make advances in technology that can provide us with renewable energy; energy that is obtained from natural resources i.e. wind, solar, water, and can be constantly replenished. Whilst we already have some forms of renewable energy available in the form of wind farms and solar panels for example, there are a lot of obstacle that need to be overcome before they can be completely relied upon and for now it is unlikely that we are going to be able to render our fossil fuels obsolete just yet. The last innovation in terms of renewable energy comes in the form of nuclear fusion. Global security and aerospace company Lockheed Martin have made claims

Millions of people displaced, starving, and fighting each other to survive. This is the future of humanity in a world ravaged by climate change’s effects. This problem is so large in scale that even prevalent technologies, such as solar and wind energy, will be unable to save us from natural disasters, increasing temperatures, and rising sea levels. Arguably, the only possible solution to the largest problem facing humanity is nuclear fusion. Able to provide limitless energy to the world’s population without emitting radioactive or greenhouse gases, fusion may be our glimmer of hope in a future of ecological crisis.

In the world, there is enough uranium to last us for 80 years and then we have another substance that is called thorium. This substance is thorium and was found in 1828. It works just like uranium and comes out with the same output. Around the world, there already have been thorium power plants that are working so we have proved that they are good. Even though the power plants cost is around 6 million dollars but after you have built it you do not have to pay very much. With the good cost, you also don't use much

The motivation to overcome this obstacle is the fact that the materials are very easy to obtain. Lithium, the element that cell phone batteries are made from, is a very highly obtainable substance that is found in a larger percentage in the Earth’s crust than lead or Tin, and can be turned into tritium by simple nuclei reactions; deuterium, which is not very common, can be created in an almost limitless supply using the hydrogen in water (Provide). The only major problem, is that to mimic the reaction found in the sun, there needs to be intense heat and enormous amounts of pressure (Provide). Also, like the energy from the sun, the energy from the plant will dissipate and become less and less the further out from the initial reaction it goes, therefore, to get the most out of the energy, the pressure needs to not only condense but contain as well (Planet). The best way to get a confining pressure field is to create a magnetic field. To date, there are several reactors that use a magnetic field to contain the reaction, including the Joint European Torus (JET) and the Mega Amp Spherical Tokamak (MAST) (World). There is currently a project in France called the ITER (International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor), which will open in the 2020s and will be the largest tokamak built and will have 500 megawatts of energy