Fusion Power?

[begreen]

Local story of a new plant groundbreaking in Everett, WA. I had to check the date to make sure it wasn't April 1st.

Company searching for 'Holy Grail' of energy in Everett

The Helion Energy power plant is expected to have positive implications for the region's air quality and clean energy production.

www.king5.com

The company:

Helion | Building the world's first fusion power plant

Helion is building the world's first fusion power plant to deliver clean, reliable, and abundant electricity to the grid.

www.helionenergy.com

 

[clancey]

That's very interesting for the future...Hope they publish more information about it in the future to let us know how its doing? clancey

 

[woodgeek]

Looks like cool technology. Hard to say if its legit or not.

I like the kinetic approach to heating and the induction method for energy extraction.

 

[stoveliker]

I believe they have not demonstrated neutron production yet (which is the very first step). I would not hold my breath. There are quite a few of these start ups. Big media attention at the start, fizzle, silence. And investors out of their money.

Once I see neutrons - different story.

Also, the 95% recovery from only the magnetic field seems impossible given the incredible amount of energy radiated as photons from a million degree plasma.

Keep breathing, let folks gamble with their investment money. It's a free country. I won't.

 

[NoGoodAtScreenNames]

I’m all for investing in research into fusion power. But as far as I’ve heard they have not been able to produce a fusion reaction that is self sustaining and nets a positive amount of energy out. I think they need to slow their roll in calling this a “power plant” and not what it really seems to be - a research facility.

Trust me, when someone figures out cold fusion you won’t hear it first on hearth.com and someone is getting a Nobel prize in physics shortly thereafter.

 

[woodgeek]

I believe they have not demonstrated neutron production yet (which is the very first step). I would not hold my breath. There are quite a few of these start ups. Big media attention at the start, fizzle, silence. And investors out of their money.

Once I see neutrons - different story.

Very true. Sounds like they are aiming for D-3He reaction cycle, which is low neutrons (due to side reactions). While D-D is easier to achieve in principle, presumably their plasma accelerator has to be designed for a given fuel mixture, preventing side tests.

I won't be investing my money either!

 

[stoveliker]

Trust me, when someone figures out cold fusion you won’t hear it first on hearth.com

Well, for most of the folks on here, and given @begreen 's apparent scrounging the internet for green news, this might actually be the case: they'll hear it first here

 

[begreen]

I didn't have to look for this one. Local story on the local news. I have a friend that has been deeply involved in fusion research at the Univ. of Washington. Will contact him for more details. A lot of work on fusion is happening in the NW. Eventually, someone will crack this problem and I agree, if they pull it off, it will be Nobel Prize-worthy.

 

[peakbagger]

I remember Lockheed Martin coming out several year ago with a plan for commercial fusion. For awhile they were right on track but they would not say what the track was or when it ended.

 

[stoveliker]

if they pull it off, it will be Nobel Prize-worthy.

While mowing the lawn I thought about this a bit. The physics Nobel would be obvious, but I'd say if they don't patent it and give it to use for all, the Nobel peace prize would be possible too...

Quite in the line of thought of Alfred Nobel...