In the United States, the modified NSTX device is in operation at the Princeton Plasma PPPL National Laboratory.
The establishment of the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory originated from a top-secret Cold War plan to control thermonuclear reactions - the "Matterhorn Project."
In 1961, after the Matterhorn Project was declassified, the laboratory related to the project was renamed the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory.
Here is the world's largest medium-sized spherical tokamak magnetic confinement nuclear fusion device---NSTX nuclear fusion experimental device.
This device can simulate the high-temperature, high-density plasma conditions in the center of the sun and achieve fusion reactions under controlled conditions.
According to the investigation in the United States, although it was not clear what Professor Xu had modified the German ASDEX device into, generally speaking, some information was obtained.
Judging from the intelligence collected, the spherical NSTX device at Princeton is the fusion device closest to the Dawn Fusion device modified by Professor Xu in China.
Coupled with the strong mathematical capabilities of the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton and Professor Fefferman's research on the NS equation, the US energy industry invested a large amount of scientific research funds into the pppl plasma laboratory.
Professor Charles Louis Fefferman of the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton and Halifax Bruce, director of the PPPL Plasma Research Institute, stood together and looked at the various data on the control screen.
Next to them, there was a middle-aged and elderly man in a suit and leather suit, Dan Brouillette, the director of the American Energy Industry.
Over time, the running NSTX device gradually stopped.
"How's it going?"
As soon as the NSTX device stopped running, Dan Brouillette asked impatiently.
Halifax Bruce shook his head and said: "It's not very good. It only managed twenty-two minutes of operation. This was done despite the damage to the first wall."
"Twenty-two minutes, why is the gap so big?" Dan Brouillette frowned and asked: "We have invested more than one billion in you, why can't even the record set by Professor Xu for the first time be recorded?"
Not even half of it?"
If two years ago, the NSTX nuclear fusion experimental device could run for 22 minutes, both the PPPL laboratory and the energy industry would be happy.
But now, twenty-two minutes is too short.
"Simply because the CNC models of superconducting materials and plasma turbulence are not perfect enough."
On the side, Fefferman shrugged and replied instead of Halifax Bruce: "If you weren't targeting Professor Xu, and based on the relationship between Princeton University and him, it should be nothing to purchase a batch of high-temperature copper-carbon-silver composite superconducting materials.
questionable."
Thanks to Xuchuan's efforts in the field of controllable nuclear fusion and the start of the Dawn Demonstration Reactor project, these gentlemen in the United States finally started to get anxious.
Funds from Capitol Hill have finally begun to flow to major controllable nuclear fusion institutions that had been almost abandoned, and the Princeton PPPL Plasma Laboratory is one of them.
But even so, Fefferman still has a lot of complaints about this group of congressional gentlemen.
When the two-hour high-density plasma operation was achieved at dawn, he suggested to PPPL Plasma Laboratory to purchase a batch of high-temperature copper-carbon-silver composite superconducting materials for use in transforming the NSTX nuclear fusion experimental device.
However, based on the agreement of the PPPL laboratory, the material that the Energy Research Institute was directly struggling with was gone.
Although they later purchased a batch of superconducting materials from other superconducting material manufacturers that were much better than niobium-titanium alloys, they were still not as good as Daybreak, or even as good as Germanic's Spiralite 7X.
Although stellarators are indeed better at controlling plasma than tokamak-like devices, pebble bed devices also have their own advantages.
Opposite, Dan Brouillette frowned and said: "There is no need to talk about these things that have passed. And it is your job to optimize the mathematical model. I don't care how you do it. I just want to know how close we are to the demonstration reactor."
How far is the road?"
Halifax Bruce said with a wry smile: "No one knows this. There are too many problems to be solved between the experimental reactor and the demonstration reactor."
"The running time of high-temperature plasma, the resistance of the first wall material to neutron irradiation, tritium self-sustainment, the tearing of the plasma magnetic surface, etc... These are all troubles."
Dan Brouillette took a deep breath and asked: "So why can China do it, but we can't?"
"Don't forget that two years ago, we were leading the way in the field of controllable nuclear fusion. Where did you spend your time and money?"
"I need a specific time to explain to Congress and citizens!"
Halifax quickly retorted: "This is impossible. It is impossible for us to break through so many problems in a short period of time."
"If Congress keeps funding for us, maybe in 2025, we can hope to start construction of a demonstration reactor."
........
While the debate rages on at the PPPL Plasma Laboratory in Princeton, on the other side, Jinling, China.
Xu Chuan is in his office, waiting for the verification results from the supercomputing center, while dealing with matters related to the construction of the demonstration reactor.
After collecting the data on the liquid lithium molten salt breeding tritium system from EAST, he re-analyzed the data.
Judging from the data collected, this path is indeed correct.
Liquid lithium is mixed with silicon carbide, aluminum oxide, beryllium oxide, or silicon dioxide... and other materials to form dispersed particles, forming a lithium molten salt material.
This new type of lithium molten salt material will liquefy in a high temperature environment close to 1,500 degrees, but because it has lost its metallic properties, it will not generate current, so it will not generate a magnetic field to interfere with external constraints.
The magnetic field will not harm the control of plasma turbulence.
This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! In addition, in the extraction process of tritium, hydrogen is used to replace the tritium in the liquid lithium molten salt material, and the extraction of tritium is also quite smooth.
The only problem is that there are some problems with the intelligent calculation method he designed before to improve the tritium reproduction ratio of the tritium cladding produced by the fusion reactor.
This resulted in the formation of tritium being less than originally ideal, and the utilization of neutrons not being so perfect.
However, when designing it, Xu Chuan used supercomputing and previous liquid lithium tritium self-sustaining experimental data to create a model. It is normal for imperfections to be imperfect.
Therefore, after returning, Xu Chuan began to re-optimize the calculation method, and then asked the Mathematical Physics Model Laboratory to rebuild a model based on his optimized mathematical formula.
Now, we only need to wait for the verification results from the supercomputing center to come out, and we can almost determine whether the new model can be applied to the liquid lithium molten salt breeding tritium system.
.......
The black pen in his hand signed an acceptance report for the steam generator, and Xu Chuan opened another acceptance report.
With the construction of the Nuclear Industry Group, the Dawn Demonstration Reactor project is gradually coming to an end.
This is a super project involving more than a hundred research institutes, companies, and public institutions. Even with the help of Gao Hongming, Peng Hongxi, and others, he still has to deal with a lot of things every day.
For example, signing various completed equipment acceptance reports, coordinating the work of various departments, assigning project priorities, checking the progress of research projects, etc.
At this moment, the red phone on the desk rang.
Xu Chuan casually found the phone and answered it.
Opposite, Director Pan Yuansheng, who is responsible for managing the supercomputing center, gave a report.
"Academician Xu, the Supercomputing Center has completed the verification of the new model of the liquid lithium molten salt multiplication tritium system, and the results have been sent to your email via the intranet."
Xu Chuan clamped the phone and quickly signed his name on another document with the signature pen in his hand while replying: "Okay, I'm sorry to trouble you."
After saying that, he hung up the phone before the person on the other end could say a polite word in return.
"Let me see how it turns out."
After pushing the documents on his desk aside, Xu Chuan turned on the phone with some excitement in his eyes.
Rather than dealing with boring management tasks, he prefers to study some difficult problems.
After all, only by exploring the unknown can people make progress.
In the mailbox, an email passed from a confidential intranet was marked with a star rating. Xu Chuan clicked on it and read it carefully.
A long time passed, and his eyes sparkled.
"It turns out that by modifying the particle tracking principle and neutron-related parameters of Serpent-2, and using helium purge carrier technology, the tritium in the liquid lithium molten salt material can be transformed into a new form..."
Looking at the supercomputing verification data on the screen, Xu Chuan's mouth curved slightly. He found the problem and confirmed the optimization direction of the new model.
If there are no accidents, the ignition time can be advanced much earlier!
Originally he planned to carry out the ignition at the end of 2021 or the first half of 2022, but now it seems that the time may be at least one or two months earlier.
Thinking about it, he took out a pile of letter paper from the drawer.
It’s time to give the above another surprise!
.......
PS: Second update, please give me monthly tickets.