Chuck Darwin<p>Fusion power might be 30 years away but we will reap its benefits well before </p><p>The cliche is that human-engineered fusion on Earth is always “30 years away”. <br>But if we can make it work, it promises such quantities of clean energy that we will finally be able to leave fossil fuels behind.</p><p>Large, state-sponsored efforts and, increasingly, <a href="https://c.im/tags/private" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>private</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/startups" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>startups</span></a> are reporting breakthroughs that many in the industry now think will lead to viable <a href="https://c.im/tags/fusion" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>fusion</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/energy" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>energy</span></a>. </p><p>Underlining their optimism, in 2022 the UK government announced the site for the<br>🔸 Spherical Tokamak for Energy Production 🔸( <a href="https://c.im/tags/STEP" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>STEP</span></a> ) project, at West Burton in Nottinghamshire. <br>This demonstration plant aims to supply electricity into the national grid by the 2040s. </p><p>And in developing such fusion power plants, we are creating new technologies and solutions that can reach far beyond the task of energy generation.<br>For example, <br>🔸TAE Power Solutions 🔸is a spin-out from America’s <a href="https://c.im/tags/TAE" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>TAE</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/Technologies" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Technologies</span></a>, which was founded in 1998 to develop commercial fusion power. <br>Obliged to invent a way to collect and store 750 megawatts (the power needed to spark their experimental reactor into life) from <br>a commercial electricity grid only capable of delivering 2 megawatts, <br>the firm is now adapting its breakthroughs to provide more efficient <a href="https://c.im/tags/batteries" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>batteries</span></a> for the next generation of electric vehicles.</p><p>Mitsubishi built a prototype <a href="https://c.im/tags/MHD" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>MHD</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/ship" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>ship</span></a>, the Yamato 1, in the 1990s <br>– but the vessel’s top speed was only 15 km/h</p><p>“We don’t see these as side projects; we see these as happy byproducts that have very high intrinsic value on their own for problems and challenges beyond energy generation,” says Chua.</p><p>In the UK, the Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) has established the 🔸Fusion Cluster at Culham 🔸in Oxfordshire to stimulate the growth of a fusion industry.<br>Since its establishment in 2021, the cluster has grown from a handful of companies to 🔹more than 200. 🔹</p><p>While the key goal remains the development of the skills and technology necessary to build a UK commercial fusion power plant by the 2040s, 🔸commercialising the spin-offs is also a high priority.🔸</p><p><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/science/article/2024/aug/11/nuclear-fusion-research-tae-power-solutions-cancer-propulsion?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://www.</span><span class="ellipsis">theguardian.com/science/articl</span><span class="invisible">e/2024/aug/11/nuclear-fusion-research-tae-power-solutions-cancer-propulsion?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other</span></a></p>