Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
A fusion energy gain factor, usually expressed with the symbol Q, is the ratio of fusion power produced in a nuclear fusion reactor to the power required to maintain the plasma in steady state. The condition of Q = 1, when the power being released by the fusion reactions is equal to the required heating power, is referred to as breakeven , or ...
Fusion is the rate of fusion energy produced by the plasma; Number density is the density in particles per unit volume of the respective fuels (or just one fuel, in some cases) Cross section is a measure of the probability of a fusion event, which is based on the plasma temperature; Energy per reaction is the energy released in each fusion reaction
In other words, fusion ignition is the point at which the increasing self-heating of the nuclear fusion removes the need for external heating. [1] This is quantified by the Lawson criterion. [2] Ignition can also be defined by the fusion energy gain factor. [3]
The Fusion Energy Research section incorporated a milestone-based, ... Fusion energy gain factor: 2022: 1.54: NIF [286] Discharge time (field reversed configuration)
The US National Ignition Facility, which uses laser-driven inertial confinement fusion, was designed with a goal of achieving a fusion energy gain factor (Q) of larger than one; the first large-scale laser target experiments were performed in June 2009 and ignition experiments began in early 2011.
With the goal of breakeven (a fusion energy gain factor equal to 1) now in sight, a new series of machines were designed that would run on a fusion fuel of deuterium and tritium. These machines, notably the Joint European Torus (JET) and Tokamak Fusion Test Reactor (TFTR), had the explicit goal of reaching breakeven.
Get AOL Mail for FREE! Manage your email like never before with travel, photo & document views. Personalize your inbox with themes & tabs. You've Got Mail!
Comparing the driver energy input to the fusion energy output produces a number known as fusion energy gain factor, labelled Q. A Q value of at least 1 is required for the system to produce net energy. Since some energy is needed to run the reactor, in order for there to be net electrical output, Q has to be at least 3. [6]