Engineering news
Set shortly before the Oxfordshire facility closed in December last year, the record-breaking final experiment produced high fusion power consistently for five seconds, generating 69MJ (megajoules) using a mere 0.2mg of fuel.
Opened in 1983, the Jet is a tokamak device, a design which uses powerful magnetic fields to confine a plasma in the shape of a doughnut. Deuterium and tritium are fused together to produce helium and vast amounts of energy.
That same fuel mixture will be used in commercial fusion energy powerplants, said Dr Fernanda Rimini, Jet senior exploitation manager. The findings will also have critical implications for Iter, a fusion ‘mega-project’ being built in the south of France, and the UK’s Step and European Demo powerplants.
Sir Ian Chapman, UKAEA CEO, said: “Jet has operated as close to powerplant conditions as is possible with today’s facilities, and its legacy will be pervasive in all future powerplants. It has a critical role in bringing us closer to a safe and sustainable future.”
Over 300 scientists and engineers from the Eurofusion consortium of researchers across Europe contributed to the landmark experiments.
Dr Emmanuel Joffrin from the French Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) said: “Not only did we demonstrate how to soften the intense heat flowing from the plasma to the exhaust, we also showed in Jet how we can get the plasma edge into a stable state, thus preventing bursts of energy reaching the wall. Both techniques are intended to protect the integrity of the walls of future machines. This is the first time that we’ve ever been able to test those scenarios in a deuterium-tritium environment.”
Dr Pietro Barabaschi, Iter director general, said: “Throughout its lifecycle, Jet has been remarkably helpful as a precursor to Iter: in the testing of new materials, in the development of innovative new components, and nowhere more than in the generation of scientific data from deuterium-tritium fusion. The results obtained here will directly and positively impact Iter, validating the way forward and enabling us to progress faster toward our performance goals.”
Want the best engineering stories delivered straight to your inbox? The Professional Engineering newsletter gives you vital updates on the most cutting-edge engineering and exciting new job opportunities. To sign up, click here.
Content published by Professional Engineering does not necessarily represent the views of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.