Mkati mwa tsogolo la nyukiliya fusion mphamvu reactors adzakhala m'malo ovuta kwambiri omwe apangidwapo Padziko Lapansi. Ndi chiyani champhamvu chomwe chingatetezere mkati mwa fusion reactor ku kutentha kopangidwa ndi plasma komwe kumafanana ndi zombo zakuthambo zomwe zimalowanso mumlengalenga wa Dziko Lapansi?

Ofufuza a ORNL adagwiritsa ntchito tungsten yachilengedwe (yachikasu) ndikuwonjezera tungsten (lalanje) kuti afufuze kukokoloka, kunyamula ndi kuyikanso kwa tungsten. Tungsten ndiye njira yotsogola yopangira zida mkati mwa chipangizo chophatikizira.

Zeke Unterberg ndi gulu lake ku Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory pakali pano akugwira ntchito ndi munthu amene akutsogolera: tungsten, yomwe ili ndi malo osungunuka kwambiri komanso mpweya wochepa kwambiri wa zitsulo zonse zomwe zili pa tebulo la periodic, komanso mphamvu zamphamvu kwambiri zokhazikika— zinthu zomwe zimapangitsa kuti zikhale zoyenera kugwiritsa ntchito nkhanza kwa nthawi yayitali. Amayang'ana kwambiri kumvetsetsa momwe tungsten imagwirira ntchito mkati mwa fusion reactor, chipangizo chomwe chimatenthetsa maatomu opepuka mpaka kutentha kwambiri kuposa pakati padzuwa kuti agwirizane ndikutulutsa mphamvu. Mpweya wa haidrojeni mu fusion reactor umasinthidwa kukhala hydrogen plasma - mkhalidwe wa zinthu womwe umakhala ndi mpweya wopangidwa pang'ono - womwe umatsekeredwa m'dera laling'ono ndi maginito amphamvu kapena ma laser.

"Simukufuna kuyika china chake chomwe chimatenga masiku angapo," adatero Unterberg, wasayansi wamkulu wofufuza mu ORNL's Fusion Energy Division. “Mukufuna kukhala ndi moyo wokwanira. Timayika tungsten m'malo omwe timayembekezera kuti padzakhala mabomba ochuluka kwambiri a plasma. "

Mu 2016, Unterberg ndi gulu adayamba kuyesa tokamak, makina osakanikirana omwe amagwiritsa ntchito maginito kuti akhale ndi mphete ya plasma, ku DIII-D National Fusion Facility, malo ogwiritsira ntchito Ofesi ya DOE ya Sayansi ku San Diego. Iwo ankafuna kudziŵa ngati tungsten ingagwiritsiridwe ntchito kupangira zida za vacuum ya tokamak—kuitetezera ku chiwonongeko chofulumira chobwera chifukwa cha plasma—popanda kuipitsa kwambiri madzi a m’magazi. Kuyipitsidwa kumeneku, ngati sikunasamalidwe mokwanira, kumatha kuzimitsa kachitidwe ka fusion.

"Tinkayesa kudziwa malo omwe ali m'chipindamo omwe angakhale oipa kwambiri: kumene tungsten ikanatha kupanga zonyansa zomwe zingawononge plasma," adatero Unterberg.

Kuti apeze izi, ofufuzawo adagwiritsa ntchito isotopu yolemetsa ya tungsten, W-182, pamodzi ndi isotopu yosasinthika, kuti afufuze kukokoloka, kunyamula ndi kuyikanso kwa tungsten mkati mwa divertor. Kuyang'ana kayendetsedwe ka tungsten mkati mwa divertor - malo omwe ali mkati mwa chipinda chopumulira chomwe chimapangidwira kusokoneza plasma ndi zonyansa - chinawapatsa chithunzi chomveka bwino cha momwe amawotchera kuchokera pamwamba pa tokamak ndikugwirizanitsa ndi plasma. Isotope ya tungsten yolemeretsedwa ili ndi mawonekedwe akuthupi ndi mankhwala ofanana ndi tungsten wamba. Zoyeserera za DIII-D zidagwiritsa ntchito zoyikapo zitsulo zazing'ono zokutidwa ndi isotopu yolemetsedwa yomwe imayikidwa pafupi, koma osati, malo otenthetsera kutentha kwambiri, malo omwe ali m'chombocho omwe amatchedwa divertor kutali chandamale. Payokha, m'dera la divertor lomwe lili ndi kusinthasintha kwakukulu, malo omenyera, ofufuza adagwiritsa ntchito zoyikapo ndi isotopu yosasinthidwa. Chotsalira cha chipinda cha DIII-D chili ndi zida za graphite.

Kukonzekera kumeneku kunalola ofufuzawo kuti atolere zitsanzo pama probe apadera omwe adayikidwa kwakanthawi mchipindamo kuti athe kuyeza kutuluka kwa zonyansa kupita ndi kuchokera ku zida zankhondo, zomwe zitha kuwapatsa lingaliro lodziwika bwino la komwe tungsten yomwe idatsikira kutali ndi divertor kulowa mchipindacho. adachokera.

"Kugwiritsa ntchito isotopu yolemetsa kunatipatsa chala chapadera," adatero Unterberg.

Aka kanali koyamba kuyesa kotereku kuchitidwa mu chipangizo chophatikizira. Cholinga chimodzi chinali kudziwa zida zabwino kwambiri ndi malo a zida izi zopangira zida za m'chipinda, ndikusunga zonyansa zomwe zimayambitsidwa ndi kuyanjana kwazinthu za plasma zomwe zimakhala ndi divertor komanso osayipitsa plasma yotsekeka ndi maginito yomwe imagwiritsidwa ntchito kupanga fusion.

Vuto limodzi pamapangidwe ndi magwiridwe antchito a opatutsa ndikuyipitsidwa kwachidetso m'madzi a m'magazi obwera chifukwa cha mitundu yam'mphepete, kapena ma ELM. Zina mwa zochitika zachangu, zopatsa mphamvu kwambiri, zofananira ndi ma solar flare, zitha kuwononga kapena kuwononga zida zotengera monga ma divertor plates. Mafupipafupi a ELMs, nthawi pa sekondi zochitika izi zimachitika, ndi chizindikiro cha kuchuluka kwa mphamvu zomwe zimatulutsidwa kuchokera ku plasma kupita ku khoma. Ma ELM othamanga kwambiri amatha kutulutsa plasma yocheperako pakuphulika, koma ngati ma ELM sakhala ocheperako, plasma ndi mphamvu zomwe zimatulutsidwa pakuphulika ndizokwera kwambiri, zomwe zimatha kuwonongeka. Kafukufuku waposachedwa wayang'ana njira zowongolera ndikuwonjezera kuchuluka kwa ma ELM, monga jakisoni wa pellet kapena maginito owonjezera pamiyeso yaying'ono kwambiri.

Gulu la Unterberg lidapeza, monga momwe amayembekezera, kuti kukhala ndi tungsten kutali ndi kugunda kwamphamvu kwambiri kumawonjezera mwayi woipitsidwa ukakumana ndi ma ELM otsika kwambiri omwe amakhala ndi mphamvu zambiri komanso kukhudzana kwapamtunda pa chochitika chilichonse. Kuphatikiza apo, gululi lidawona kuti dera lomwe lapita patsogololi limakonda kuwononga SOL ngakhale nthawi zambiri limakhala ndi zotsika pang'ono kuposa zomwe zimamenyedwa. Zotsatira zowoneka ngati zotsutsana izi zikutsimikiziridwa ndi zoyeserera zopitilirabe zoyeserera zokhudzana ndi polojekitiyi komanso zoyeserera zamtsogolo za DIII-D.

Ntchitoyi inaphatikizapo gulu la akatswiri ochokera ku North America, kuphatikizapo ogwira nawo ntchito ku Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratories, ORNL, General Atomics, Auburn University, University of California ku San Diego, University of Toronto, University of Tennessee-Knoxville, ndi University of Wisconsin-Madison, popeza idapereka chida chofunikira pakufufuza kwa plasma-material. Ofesi ya Sayansi ya DOE (Fusion Energy Sciences) idapereka chithandizo pa kafukufukuyu.

Gululo lidasindikiza kafukufuku pa intaneti koyambirira kwa chaka chino m'magaziniNuclear Fusion.

Kafukufukuyu atha kupindulitsa nthawi yomweyo Joint European Torus, kapena JET, ndi ITER, yomwe tsopano ikumangidwa ku Cadarache, France, onse omwe amagwiritsa ntchito zida za tungsten pa divertor.

"Koma tikuyang'ana zinthu zoposa ITER ndi JET-tikuyang'ana zomwe zidzachitike m'tsogolomu," adatero Unterberg. "Ndi pati pamene kuli bwino kuika tungsten, ndipo simuyenera kuika tungsten? Cholinga chathu chachikulu ndikuvala zida zathu zophatikizira, zikabwera, mwanzeru. ”

Unterberg adati gulu lapadera la ORNL la Stable Isotopes Group, lomwe linapanga ndikuyesa zokutira za isotopu zolemetsa asanaziike m'njira yothandiza pakuyesa, zidapangitsa kafukufukuyu kukhala wotheka. Isotope imeneyo sikadakhalapo kulikonse koma kuchokera ku National Isotope Development Center ku ORNL, yomwe imasunga mulu wa pafupifupi chilichonse chosiyana, adatero.

"ORNL ili ndi ukadaulo wapadera komanso zilakolako zapadera za kafukufuku wamtunduwu," adatero Unterberg. "Tili ndi cholowa chachitali chopanga ma isotopu ndikugwiritsa ntchito omwe ali mumitundu yonse ya kafukufuku m'machitidwe osiyanasiyana padziko lonse lapansi."

Kuphatikiza apo, ORNL imayang'anira US ITER.

Kenako, gululi liwona momwe kuyika tungsten m'matembenuzidwe amitundu yosiyanasiyana kungakhudzire kuipitsidwa kwa pachimake. Ma geometri osiyanasiyana osinthira amatha kuchepetsa kuyanjana kwazinthu za plasma pa plasma yapakati, iwo adaganizapo. Kudziwa mawonekedwe abwino kwambiri a divertor—chinthu chofunika kwambiri pa chipangizo cha plasma chokhala ndi maginito—kungapangitse asayansi kuyandikira pafupi ndi plasma reactor yotheka.

"Ngati ife, monga gulu, tikunena kuti tikufuna mphamvu ya nyukiliya ichitike, ndipo tikufuna kupita ku gawo lotsatira," adatero Unterberg, "kusakanikirana kukanakhala koyera."