Nuclear Fusion as a Primary Energy Production Method

Missouri S&T’s Peer to Peer Volume 1 | Issue 2 Article 10 May 2017 Nuclear Fusion as a Primary Energy Production Method Joshua Eiswirth Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarsmine.mst.edu/peer2peer Part of the Nuclear Engineering Commons Recommended Citation Eiswirth, Joshua. 2017. "Nuclear Fusion as a Primary Energy Production Method." Missouri S&T’s Peer to Peer 1, (2). https://scholarsmine.mst.edu/peer2peer/vol1/iss2/10 This Article - Journal is brought to you for free and open access by Scholars' Mine. It has been accepted for inclusion in Missouri S&T’s Peer to Peer by an authorized administrator of Scholars' Mine. This work is protected by U. S. Copyright Law. Unauthorized use including reproduction for redistribution requires the permission of the copyright holder. For more information, please contact . Eiswirth: Nuclear Fusion as Primary Energy NUCLEAR FUSION AS PRIMARY ENERGY Eiswirth 1 Joshua Eiswirth Nuclear Engineering at Missouri University of Science and Technology NUCLEAR FUSION AS A PRIMARY ENERGY PRODUCTION METHOD Abstract Published by Scholars' Mine, 2017 1 Missouri S&T’s Peer to Peer, Vol. 1, Iss. 2 [2017], Art. 10 NUCLEAR FUSION AS PRIMARY ENERGY Eiswirth 2 In this paper, the possibility of using nuclear fusion as a primary energy producer will be analyzed. A brief overview of nuclear fusion is given as well as the drawbacks of nuclear fusion today. The human species, need to find a more abundant and renewable means to produce energy, because the non-renewable resources relied on today will be completely used up in as little a 100 years. Nuclear fusion, if perfected, offers a reliable and extremely abundant energy source. With commercial nuclear fusion plants more energy would be available than ever before. While no efficient fusion reactor design exists today, many steps are being taken towards efficient fusion and a few will be outlined in this research paper. The sources used come from accredited academic sites written by the organization as a whole or individual authors with degrees that pertain to the information collected. Nuclear fusion is often described as “always 15 years away”, but many innovations exist today that were often thought of as impossible. Any given day a breakthrough could occur in one of the many fields related to nuclear physics that serves as the missing piece to efficient fusion power generation. Nuclear Fusion as a Primary Energy Production Method The world's biggest producers of electricity in 2013 were China, with 5422.2 billion kWh, and the United States, with 4286.9 billion kWh produced (The World Bank). This https://scholarsmine.mst.edu/peer2peer/vol1/iss2/10 2 Eiswirth: Nuclear Fusion as Primary Energy NUCLEAR FUSION AS PRIMARY ENERGY Eiswirth 3 accounted for 41.6% of the entire world's electricity production, and both of these super-powers rely on non-renewable resources as their main sources of power. If no alternative energy sources are adopted, in 110 years the world’s coal supply will run dry according to the World Coal Association. If this happens, over 40% of the world's energy production means will disappear along with it. The best way to fix this problem is to avoid it altogether. It is crucial that a clean, reliable energy source be developed to replace the non-renewable sources relied so heavily on and cut back on the carbon emission that are proven to hurt the environment. There are many options when it comes to renewable energy production; however, none are without their drawbacks. Solar energy can only be collected when the sun is shining, wind turbines require a windy day, and nuclear fission leaves behind fission fragments that take years to decay and require special storage. The biggest drawback to nuclear fusion is that it cannot be done efficiently at this point in time. Nuclear fusion is a strong contender for the world's primary energy source if mastered. Efficient fusion power may still be impractical, but any day a major breakthrough could catapult the world into an age of cheap, plentiful energy for all. Methods As a student in the Nuclear Engineering field much of the information presented in the following research paper falls under “general knowledge”, meaning that a source was not necessary as the information is taught in fundamental Nuclear Engineering classes. While attending the American Nuclear Society national student conference, I was able to speak with many student researchers about my research proposal. Unfortunately, it is not possible for me to give credit to these people because the presentations given at the conference are not publically available. However, all statistics and numerical data are properly cited and come from accredited sources, either organizations in the energy production field or authors with degrees pertaining to my research. Published by Scholars' Mine, 2017 3 Missouri S&T’s Peer to Peer, Vol. 1, Iss. 2 [2017], Art. 10 NUCLEAR FUSION AS PRIMARY ENERGY Eiswirth 4 Because the topic of this paper is theoretical in nature, some information is estimated. using mathematical formulas or computer simulations. Basics of Nuclear Fusion Nuclear fusion is the process of combining the nuclei of two lighter atoms to create a heavier atom. During this process a small amount of mass is converted into a large amount of energy, by the famous equation E=mc^2. This energy must either be contained by strong magnetic waves generated with a superconductor, or by compression forces generated by a powerful laser (Carlton, 2017). A massive amount of energy is needed to force two atoms close enough to fuse, as well as a temperature in excess of 180 million degrees Fahrenheit (Carlton, 2017). With current methods, much more energy is required to achieve fusion than is obtained from the reaction. However, scientists all over the world are working to make this process more efficient in hopes that one day fusion will be what powers the world. Commercial fusion will most likely use deuterium and tritium, two isotopes of hydrogen, as fusion components. The fusion cross section between these two atoms is high, so they are easy to fuse. The product of the fusion reaction is a helium nucleus and a 14 MeV neutron. Deuterium can be distilled from seawater making it readily available. Tritium however, is not naturally occurring and must be produced by other means. A major problem which stood in the way of fusion research was finding a way to deal with the extremely powerful neutrons that are produced during the Deuterium-Tritium (D-T) reaction. Fortunately, the problem concerning the extremely powerful neutron can be used to solve the problem that tritium is not naturally occurring. The fast neutrons produced from the D-T reaction can be directed towards and absorbed by lithium, which can also be distilled from seawater, resulting in the reaction n + Li6 > He4 + T + 4.8 MeV where T is tritium and n is the neutron from the D-T reaction. Essentially, (...truncated)