Zap Energy achieves 37M-degree temperatures in a compact fusion device

https://www.zapenergy.com//news/37-million-degree-temperatures-in-a-compact-device

by songeater • 2 years ago

12 9 2 years ago

songeater• 2 years ago

From article:

“These are meticulous, unequivocal measurements, yet made on a device of incredibly modest scale by traditional fusion standards,” describes Ben Levitt, VP of R&D at Zap. “We’ve still got a lot of work ahead of us, but our performance to date has advanced to a point that we can now stand shoulder to shoulder with some of the world’s pre-eminent fusion devices, but with great efficiency, and at a fraction of the complexity and cost.”

“Over many decades of controlled-fusion research, only a handful of fusion concepts have reached 1-keV electron temperature,” notes Scott Hsu, Lead Fusion Coordinator at the DOE and former ARPA-E Program Director. “What this team has achieved here is remarkable and reinforces ARPA-E’s efforts to accelerate the development of commercial fusion energy.”

PRL: https://journals.aps.org/prl/abstract/10.1103/PhysRevLett.13...

superkuh• 2 years ago

For a non-maxwellian temperature distribution plasma like in a z-pinch bragging about 3kev is weird. Other pulsed fusion mechanism like plasma focus have achieved 100kev.

You only brag about 30 million degrees if it's a thermal temperature distribution plasma (and moreso if it's steady state and not pulsed like this).

_3u102• 2 years ago

How many kelvin is 37 million degrees C?

snissn• 2 years ago

37 million Kelvin

foundry27• 2 years ago

The conversation is K = C + 273.15.

At high temperatures, it’s essentially a rounding error.

_3u102• 2 years ago

Oh nice, very easy conversion

hobotime2• 2 years ago

Basically, this is just a fancy version of a 1950's z-pinch experiment that works slightly better by stabilizing the pinch. Heck, the setup they have currently working is a rehash of the 40 year-old equipment they moved from the University of Washington.

They just made it work slightly better enough to keep Zap on the seed-round investor gravy train.

Z-pinch/Zap is so far away from break even it's not even funny, and they're nowhere near close to capturing enough energy from high-energy neutrons to even power itself. Basically right now it's a 99.99% useful energy loss in their whole system.

And it will stay that way. Just need to keep making pretty photos to keep the investors ignorant.

Notice how they polished the fuck out of all their equipment? Make it shiny.

asdfadsfgfdda• 2 years ago

or its shiny because vacuum hardware is routinely electropolished?

hobotime2• 2 years ago

Zaps shop floor and the exterior of the equipment doesn't need clean room conditions. Inside the chamber, they do a good job after a teardown, but even then it gets contaminated really quickly with the tiny amount of fusion byproducts.

They are working on a liquid metal container to help with keeping things clean, but frankly in my opinion its just something to keep investors away from asking why there's no possible roadmap to net-energy production.

Q: When are you going to be able to make energy? A: Good question! Have you seen our new animation... liquid metal!!!!1! it's awesome!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gswKKY1p2ps

Zap Energy achieves 37M-degree temperatures in a compact fusion device

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