1. This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this site, you are agreeing to our use of cookies. Learn More.

General News Clean energy: new record for fusion

Discussion in 'Current Events, World News, & LGBT News' started by Quem, Oct 23, 2016.

Thread Tools

Thread Tools

  1. Quem

    Quem
    Full Member

    Joined:
    May 1, 2014
    Messages:
    1,288
    Likes Received:
    0
    Location:
    The Netherlands
    Gender:
    Male
    Gender Pronoun:
    He
    Sexual Orientation:
    Gay
    Out Status:
    Out to everyone
    More here

    -

    Uplifting news! What do you think? I personally like reading about these kind of developments, let me know what you think of it. =] I'm guessing some of you are interested in these kind of things as well.

    Cheers,

    Quem
     
    #1 Quem, Oct 23, 2016
  2. Joelouis

    Joelouis
    Full Member

    Joined:
    Jan 25, 2013
    Messages:
    707
    Likes Received:
    0
    Location:
    Great Britain
    I'll just have to look into this now you've brought it to my attention. Science is a field I wish I'd paid more attention to at school.

    Brilliant news though!
     
    #2 Joelouis, Oct 23, 2016
  3. Kira

    Kira
    Full Member

    Joined:
    Sep 9, 2014
    Messages:
    1,623
    Likes Received:
    16
    Location:
    Georgia
    Gender:
    Female
    Gender Pronoun:
    She
    Sexual Orientation:
    Lesbian
    Out Status:
    Some people
    I'm glad this has been recorded before any of these oil companies could destroy it.... I hope it means science will soon solve the energy crisis for good.

    If later optimized further, I could see such working well as sustainable spacecraft fuel.
     
    #3 Kira, Oct 23, 2016
  4. Joelouis

    Joelouis
    Full Member

    Joined:
    Jan 25, 2013
    Messages:
    707
    Likes Received:
    0
    Location:
    Great Britain
    It's strange how everything on Star Trek seems to be turning out to be possible and achievable!
     
    #4 Joelouis, Oct 23, 2016
  5. Quem

    Quem
    Full Member

    Joined:
    May 1, 2014
    Messages:
    1,288
    Likes Received:
    0
    Location:
    The Netherlands
    Gender:
    Male
    Gender Pronoun:
    He
    Sexual Orientation:
    Gay
    Out Status:
    Out to everyone
    It's strange right? :stuck_out_tongue_closed_eyes: But I'm glad though, this is exactly the kind of progress we need. =] Really curious to see where all of this is going to.

    Definitely, it has many possibilities indeed. I'd be so glad when we can replace oil and coal (and eventually also gas and others) with greener alternatives. =]
     
    #5 Quem, Oct 26, 2016
  6. Caecilian65

    Caecilian65
    Regular Member

    Joined:
    Jul 13, 2015
    Messages:
    82
    Likes Received:
    0
    Location:
    North Burnett, Queensland
    Gender:
    Male
    Gender Pronoun:
    Other
    Sexual Orientation:
    Questioning
    Out Status:
    A few people
    Hmm, I think we will need to take whatever kind of possibilities we can get for clean energy. Although I am not happy about how this will turn out for mining in the outback. I don't think we fully understand the impact of radiation and mining for nuclear on the local ecosystems and communities. Sometimes so much of this I feel comes from an almost obsession with science solving everything. Don't get me wrong I am happy with the developments to a degree but I do think that we should make good planning is put in place too. Lets start the planning no so when it's ready we can get it started!

    I personally though hope that Wind, Wave, Solar/Solar thermal and Geothermal get off the ground so we can have diverse mix of renewable and clean energy sources. I don't really like the idea of using something up for energy which still need to be used for medical uses and has a finite lifespan.

    Hope that makes sense. I may need to clarify some of this but will do that tomorrow/morning depending on where in the world you are :slight_smile:.
     
    #6 Caecilian65, Oct 26, 2016
  7. baconpox

    baconpox
    Regular Member

    Joined:
    Jun 22, 2014
    Messages:
    963
    Likes Received:
    1
    Gender:
    Male (trans*)
    Gender Pronoun:
    He
    Sexual Orientation:
    Bisexual
    Out Status:
    Out to everyone
    I'm very excited about this.
     
    #7 baconpox, Oct 26, 2016
  8. Quem

    Quem
    Full Member

    Joined:
    May 1, 2014
    Messages:
    1,288
    Likes Received:
    0
    Location:
    The Netherlands
    Gender:
    Male
    Gender Pronoun:
    He
    Sexual Orientation:
    Gay
    Out Status:
    Out to everyone
    Is it possible that you may be confused with the nuclear reactors making use of fission? This is specifically about fusion power, which is very different from fission.

    With fission, you're essentially bombaring existing materials (such as uranium) with e.g. neutrons. Then you get a reaction which produces a lot of energy (which is what you're after). Fusion is not like this (think of the Sun for instance). For fusion you're not going to use uranium or plutonium. Rather, you'd be using elements with very few neutrons (like hydrogen).

    We do need a mix of renewables, definitely. The biggest challenges facing us today is the lack of proper storage options of e.g. solar energy and wind energy. We need to be able to meet energy demands and, right now, it's not an option to switch to solar and wind only. Gas could theoretically "kick in when the demand exceeds supply", but ideally we want to go for 100% renewables.

    ---------- Post added 26th Oct 2016 at 04:56 PM ----------
    Me too. =]
     
    #8 Quem, Oct 26, 2016
  9. greatwhale

    greatwhale
    Full Member

    Joined:
    Feb 12, 2013
    Messages:
    6,582
    Likes Received:
    413
    Location:
    Montreal
    Gender:
    Male
    Gender Pronoun:
    He
    Sexual Orientation:
    Gay
    Out Status:
    Out to everyone
    Well, after reading the article, it is indeed an impressive achievement, but, we still have a very long way to go...

    I wonder really what the socio-economic-political consequences would be...this is an incredibly expensive and complex technology, those who have it will most likely be the richest countries...they will have more than just power of the electrical variety...
     
    #9 greatwhale, Oct 26, 2016
  10. Quem

    Quem
    Full Member

    Joined:
    May 1, 2014
    Messages:
    1,288
    Likes Received:
    0
    Location:
    The Netherlands
    Gender:
    Male
    Gender Pronoun:
    He
    Sexual Orientation:
    Gay
    Out Status:
    Out to everyone
    Definitely, greatwhale, we have a looong way to go. I read once that this kind of technology still has many more years to go, but it's interesting to see where it's going.

    You raise an important issue. Yet, I think that the huge amount of cost of the necessary research that still needs to be done is what prevents countries from fully going for it. After all, knowledge spillovers will happen between countries (and firms).

    I think that, contrary to e.g. oil, fusion technology will not stay in few countries. I think that many countries can join in, eventually..
     
    #10 Quem, Oct 27, 2016
(You must log in or sign up to post here.)