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EU Intent on Hosting International Fusion Reactor
Raunch writes "The BBC says that EU is determined to be one of the sites that host the multi-billion-dollar International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor Even if they have to do so less-than-internationally: 'If there is no agreement at six we are determined to do it with fewer.' Not only that, but 'The EU wants an agreement on the project before the end of the year'"
No, it's not the US putting up a fight. No, it's not the US that would probably be shut out in the cold. This is a threat against Japan and to a lesser extent China. Can we please keep the US vs. Europe flamewar out of this thread?
This is all wrong. Its not a nuclear reactor. Its a fusion reactor. It has million and million C hot plasma in it(4th state of materials). The shape of the reactor is called tokamak (at least in hungarian, not sure about the correct english writing of it). The really good thing about this reactor that its not dangerous. While in nuclear reactors, some events can lead into a chain reaction. No such thing can happen in a fusion reactor, since If the reaction gets more input(materials, heat, etc) its just shuts itself down, on the contrary to the exponential reaction observed in nuclear reactions. The fusion reactor is one of the cleanest if not the cleanest known way to produce energy.
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I don't think European science administrators are worried about the Japanese building well-engineered, consumer-oriented compact reactors. Furthermore, ITER will be closely modelled on CERN - meaning that the scientists, administrators and engineers involved will come from dozens of countries.
No, the reason why the EU wants to have ITER is because the world's major fusion research centre has always been in Europe. The Joint European Torus in Culham, UK is the reactor which has thus far come closest to generating energy (sustaining a reaction for several minutes - almost long enough to generate more energy than is needed to start the reaction off), and is also a European project. Culham has gone as far as it can go, though, and ITER is to be its replacement. So it's no surprise that the European Commission and the European governments that have funded this extremely successful project want to keep it in Europe.
The main sticking point is really in the US: can the current administration overcome their disdain for the French and back the European proposal...?
Sorry to reply to my own post, but here are some interesting things: There is already a working fusion reactor in the UK. This one though, not generates but consumes power. It's because the reactor is too small, it needs to have a big enough size for the reaction inside to be self-sustaining, and its not big enough for that. The first reactor which would actually produce power, is what the debate about atm.
It takes a man to suffer ignorance and smile
Be yourself no matter what they say
I'd much prefer to live in beautiful France than in the sparsely populated bit of North Japan where ITER would be built
Hrmmm. You've probably never been to northern Japan-- it is some of the most beautiful countryside with wonderful small towns that I have ever seen-- much more attractive than France (IMHO). I can almost guess that the Japanese Govt would go off the deep end in terms of providing the coolest facilities for the scientists-- not so sure the French would do the same.
Yes, I have lived in Europe. Yes, I live in Tokyo.
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Actually, the French in Ivory Coast aren't acting as an imperial power, they are acting as peacekeepers to end the civil war there. With a UN mandata, unlike certain other people... Of course the fact that they are actually taking action against the government when it violates the terms of the ceasefire doesn't make them popular there, but it is effective.
As for principles and opposition to the war: The war had nothing to do with principles in the first place. Get over it. You might also have to accept the idea that just because someone is your ally in important matters doesn't mean they have to ask "How high?" every time you say "Jump".
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One of the results of fusion is free neutrons, going off into whatever material surrounds the fusion process. In the case of the tokamak, neutrons can't be confined by magnetic fields because they are electrically neutral. The neutrons make the tokamak itself become highly radioactive over time, and will cause it to eventually be decommissioned because it is too dangerous to work around.
Now, granted, the tokamak can be stored unused for a hundred years or so and then recommissioned (it is a hell of a lot better than the thousand-years half-lives of fission wasteproducts), but it is still a problem that needs to be addressed.
-molo
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