According to the media, more energy was generated than consumed in a US laboratory for the first time. Details should be known on Tuesday.
Scientists at a US laboratory have apparently made important progress in nuclear fusion research. US Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm will announce “a significant scientific breakthrough” on Tuesday, the US Department of Energy and the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) in California announced on Sunday. According to the media, for the first time an experimental fusion reactor has produced more energy than is consumed during the process.
A “net energy gain” of 120 percent was achieved, reported the British “Financial Times” on Sunday, citing three people involved in the research. Also the “Washington Post‘ reported the alleged breakthrough, quoting a fusion scientist as saying, ‘For most of us, it was only a matter of time.’
Details on Tuesday
The US Department of Energy and the laboratory initially did not want to confirm the reports because the “analysis was still ongoing”. However, they announced a statement from the minister for Tuesday.
In nuclear fusion, atomic nuclei are fused together at extreme temperatures. Enormous amounts of energy are released in the process. Conventional nuclear power plants generate energy from the fission of atomic nuclei.
In order to bring about nuclear fusion, a considerable amount of energy is required. Nuclear fusion, according to its supporters, could eventually become an alternative to burning fossil fuels and controversial nuclear fission. Although dozens of experimental reactors have been built since the 1950s, none have succeeded in generating more energy than is needed for the process.
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