Anuclear fusion reactor in the uk has set a new world record for energy output

1 min read

PHYSICS

WORDS JOANNA THOMPSON

GLOBAL EYE

Inside the JET tokamak, with a superimposed image of hot plasma

Anuclear reactor in the UK has just broken a new fusion record. On 8 February 2024, representatives from the Joint European Torus (JET) facility declared that the reactor’s final tests yielded 69.26 megajoules of heat from just 0.21 milligrams of fuel, the equivalent of burning two kilograms of coal. This is more total energy – though not more net positive energy – than any other fusion reaction has produced thus far. Tests such as this could help unlock fusion as a viable source of clean near-limitless energy.

JET first fired up in 1983 in Oxfordshire. Its doughnut-like shape, known as a tokamak, allows scientists to whip modified hydrogen atoms into hot plasma by accelerating them to breathtaking speeds using a magnetic field. This creates the necessary conditions for nuclear fusion, the combination of two light atomic nuclei into one heavier one, releasing enormous amounts of energy in the process.

Over the course of its 40 years of operation, JET has produced numerous fusion milestones, including becoming the first reactor to use a 50/50 mixture of deuterium and tritium atoms, now considered a standard fusion fuel. “We can reliably create fusion plasmas using the same fuel mixture to be used by commercial fusion energy power plants, showcasing the advanced expertise developed over time,” sa

This article is from...

How It Works Magazine

14 March 2024

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