Raphael ThysNational Ignition Facility (NIF) — NIF
Nuclear fusion has been the holy grail of climate technology since the late 50s. Theoretically, it should be ultra-compact, incredibly powerful, insanely clean and brilliantly safe. It promised to be the energy source of the future and beckon in a new era of near-unlimited planet-friendly energy. But setback after setback means that even after decades and decades of research, this energy source still remains elusive to us. But last year, the National Ignition Facility (NIF) broke a significant fusion milestone and was able to get a net gain in energy from their incredible reactor. Since then, they have struggled to even get close to replicating this monumental achievement. However, NIF recently announced that they have repeated this historic experiment, and it seems they have actually produced even more energy this time. So, does this mean we are closer to a fusion-powered future?
Before we look at this new experiment, let’s first recap what fusion is and what fusion is and how NIF works.
Nuclear fusion is the process that keeps the Sun “burning.” The Sun is made of mostly hydrogen, and at its core, the temperature and pressure are so high that the collisions between hydrogen atoms have enough kinetic energy to overcome the repulsive forces that keep atoms separate. The two hydrogen atoms collide, forming a single, larger helium atom, which is slightly lighter than the two hydrogen atoms, due to the smaller number of gluons in its nucleus. This excess mass is turned into energy and released. As Einstein stated in his famous E=MC² equation, a small amount of mass is equal to a vast amount of energy. This means that a single fusion reaction releases an unholy amount of power through radiation and heat.
Fusion is so potent that fusing 17 tonnes of hydrogen will release enough energy to power the entire US for a year! That equates to only 0.05 grams of hydrogen per US citizen! Even better, helium is the only gas emitted throughout this process. This incredible fuel efficiency and zero carbon emissions make fusion power one of the most eco-friendly energy sources on Earth.
Scientists and engineers have developed several different types of reactors capable of replicating those conditions in the core of the Sun. NIF is unique among these as it…