We Have to Try
Mankind is facing a storm. From shrinking water, energy and resources - we have problems. Climate change does not help this. Neither does the population boom. To solve this, we must try some new ideas.
Fusion power would be a tool; like a hammer or a gun. Like them, this tool can have a big impact. Like them, it can be used to help or to hurt us. Our goal is to get this to mankind. But our other hope is that we use it wisely.
The team is testing model 1. This is a single tungsten or rhodium wire bent into a diamond shape . Attached to it, is a cooling system, power supply and voltage source. This is placed inside a cylindrical vacuum chamber, about the size of a trash bin . Four electron emitters sit around model one . They may align with the device’s corners. There is also a Langmuir probe. The probe may be a simple wire, or a fancy tool with software. The probe is critical. It proves the concept. If everything works correctly, it should measure a negative voltage. The chamber is also connected to a pump and a gas supply. One possible chamber configuration is shown below.
Inside the chamber is model one. It is the most unique device in the chamber. It is shaped like a diamond, shown below.
This is a single wire. With only one pass, a lot of current will be needed. At full power, 1,500 amps flow through this wire; creating a 1,000 gauss field at the corners . This current, heats up the wire . The team tried to re-snake this many times – but the heat still built up . As you will see, heat is a common problem with model one. Hot wires create problems, like arching. Moreover, this problem grows as the device runs “long-term”. Tests could have been longer - if they could just keep the thing cold!
The chilling system is rather elaborate. The first cooling loop uses a Fluorinert. This is a liquid, often used to cool electronics. The fluid does not conduct; lowering its negative impacts on electric conduction . The fluid moves in a closed loop: from the pump, near the device, and into a heat exchanger. The exchanger moves heat into a second water and glycol loop. This flows into a giant open tank. A sketch and model of the cooling system is shown below . This coolant system can pull about six kilowatts of heat from model one . Estimates (using joule heating) show that this is probably more than they need.
CSI examined three ways to make electrons . The first is field emission. Electrons can spontaneously leave metals in a vacuum. This can happen at room temperature and may have happen inside CSI’s chamber . However this can easily avoided by engineering. The effect amplifies as the temperature rises. This is known thermionic emission. If you heat the wire, more electrons will leave. CSI purposely used four heated nichrome wires to do this. Nichrome is a common emitter . In addition, these wires can be part of a proper electron gun. This was CSI third method . The company altered an e-gun design from the Sydney team . A schematic and picture of their electron gun is shown below .
CSI ran experiments from January to late summer 2012 . Many tests were done. These included: several geometries, various emitters and even a fusor/polywell hybrid. Tests meant several steps. First, the vacuum chamber was prepared. The chamber was filled with helium, to check for leaks. Once sealed, nitrogen was pumped in. Next, they pumped down the chamber. It reached pressures between 1.3 and 0.04 Pascals . The next step is turning on the coolant system. This makes the chamber, low pressure and cool. Next, the voltages are applied. From here the test can start. The device and emitters are turned on. Runs typically lasted for 35 seconds . CSI states that for 20 of those seconds, it measured a steady, constant voltage drop.
The magnetic and electric fields need to be modeled. They create a Lorentz force which guides the electrons in. CSI gives some of specifications of model one. It lists the plasma volume as 1.4E-3 cubic meters . If this is the total volume, than model one is fourteen centimeters per side. We take the current to be 1,500 amps with a 1,000 gauss field at the corners. The electrons modelled as flying into the face of the diamond. The emitters are 30 centimeters from device center. This is the geometry to simulate.
There was no time to look at the other path into model one. Here, the particles enter through the corners of the diamond. They reach the device sooner, and pass through the biggest magnetic field possible. This occurs at the tiny gap between the two wires. After this, they see a very sharp decline in the field. The sharper field should improve containment . Based on this knowledge, a rough sketch of the force plots is shown below. Between these two paths, there is a sense of the fields inside model one.
CSI also hints at a structure within the cloud. Specifically: an edge and a core region. This is a bit controversial. Critics would argue the cloud lacks that level of detail. Supporters have opposed this. Now, we have some data. Khachans’ 2013 paper measured electron densities inside the cloud . The results hint at different density in center verses the edge. CSI want these densities to be vastly different, but, so far they have only found a 5 or 10 times difference .
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