The Korea Fusion Energy Institute (KFE) has achieved a significant breakthrough with its Superconducting Tokamak Superconducting Advanced Research Reactor (KSTAR), also known as the “artificial sun,” by reaching temperatures seven times those of the Sun’s core. This milestone, achieved between December 2023 and February of this year, represents a record for nuclear fusion.
The KSTAR fusion reactor record
The KSTAR team has succeeded in sustaining the plasma at 100 million degrees Celsius for a period of 48 seconds, significantly exceeding the 15 million degrees Celsius of the solar core. In addition, they have managed to keep the plasma in the high-confinement mode for more than 100 seconds, indicating more efficient plasma confinement than in previous states.
This achievement adds to a string of successes and good news for KSTAR, including holding plasma at one million degrees for 30 seconds in 2021. Nuclear fusion, which replicates the energy process of stars, is considered a potential source of unlimited energy with no carbon emissions. carbon emissions .
Use of tungsten for nuclear fusion
Korea’s NST emphasizes the importance of developing technologies capable of maintaining high temperature and density plasmas to optimize fusion reactions. A key advance in this effort has been the introduction of tungsten diverters at KSTAR, replacing the carbon previously used. Tungsten, with the highest melting point among all metals, has significantly improved reactor performance.
Tungsten diverters have proven to be critical, withstanding thermal loads better and showing only a 25% increase in surface temperature under similar heat conditions compared to carbon diverters. This change has resulted in better handling of reactor impurities and waste gases and could influence the design of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER), a global fusion project under development in France. a global fusion project under development in France.
With a budget of $21.5 billion, ITER aims to be operational by 2035 and will also use tungsten in its diverters. KSTAR’s research offers a “green light” towards the development of crucial technologies for future demonstration power plants (DEMO) and for the success of the ITER project.
This progress in nuclear fusion not only underscores South Korea’s leadership in cutting-edge science, but also highlights international collaboration in the search for sustainable energy solutions. As the world moves toward cleaner energy sources, nuclear fusion emerges as a promise for meeting future energy needs without compromising the environment. This collective effort reinforces the importance of global cooperation in overcoming technological and environmental challenges, paving the way for a more sustainable energy future.
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Source: interestingengineering.com
Photo: shutterstock
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