China Tests Fusion Device
Aim Is to Make Power
Using Nuclear Process
That Mimics the Sun
BEIJING -- China announced the first successful test of an experimental thermonuclear fusion reactor, aiming for a cleaner, more powerful form of nuclear energy that mimics the power of the sun.
State media said Thursday that scientists at the Institute of Plasma Physics under the Chinese Academy of Sciences had operated the Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak device in Hefei, the capital of the eastern Chinese province of Anhui. No further details were available.
Earlier, state media had said the Chinese team was planning to run the fusion reactor for 1,000 seconds, or nearly 17 minutes, at a temperature of 100 million degrees Celsius, producing more energy than it consumes. They claimed it would be the world's longest sustained fusion burn.
Fusion seeks to recreate the energy of the sun by mashing together the nuclei of two atoms to produce a helium atom and energy. Unlike fission, which splits atoms to create energy, fusion produces very little radioactive waste. If successful, the reaction makes seven times more power than conventional nuclear power. It uses deuterium, a hydrogen isotope that can be collected from seawater -- offering the promise of cheap, clean power.
International observers agreed it was an accomplishment that reflects China's progress in the field. "Certainly, the latest achievement in China is a big step," said Kaname Ikeda, the head of an international coalition to build a fusion reactor in Cadarache in the south of France.
ITER, which used to stand for International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor, includes researchers from China, the U.S., Japan, the European Union, Russia, India and South Korea. The goal of the $12.16 billion project is to build the world's first sustainable nuclear fusion process. Construction of the reactor is slated to be completed in a decade, and commercial applications are about 40 years away, experts say.
The biggest challenge facing scientists is how to reach the incredibly high temperatures and pressure needed to recreate the sun's massive gravity -- without losing control of the resulting plasma or spending more energy heating up the process than they get back out of it.
State media said China's scientists had planned to submit the results of their test to the International Atomic Energy Agency General Conference this month.
China has 10 conventional nuclear reactors in operation or under construction, with plans to build as many as 30 more in the next 15 years, part of its drive to diversify energy sources to reduce reliance on oil and coal.
中国成功进行核聚变装置实验
中国宣布成功进行了热核聚变实验装置的首次测试。该装置的能量产生过程与太阳相似，能提供更清洁、更高效的核能。
国有媒体周四报导，中国科学院等离子体物理研究所(Institute of Plasma Physics)的科学家在安徽省会合肥成功运行了全超导非圆截面托卡马克核聚变实验装置(Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak)。报导没有披露更详细的情况。
在此之前，国有媒体曾报导，该装置根据设计产生等离子体最长时间可达1000秒，温度将超过1亿摄氏度，并产生出比其消耗能量更大的能量。他们称，这是世界上能让等离子体运行时间最长的核聚变实验装置。
聚变的能量产生方式同太阳类似。同裂变不同，聚变产生的放射性污染非常少。如果获得成功，聚变反应产生的能量比常规核反应要高出7倍。它利用能从海水中获得的氘为原料，从而具有了可提供清洁、廉价电力的前景。
国际科学家承认，该成果反映出中国在此领域取得的进步。在法国南部卡达拉什建设热核反应堆的国际合作方负责人Kaname Ikeda说，显然，中国最新取得的成就向前迈进了一大步。
国际热核聚变实验堆(International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor, 简称ITER)包括来自中国、美国、日本、欧盟、俄罗斯、印度和韩国的研究人员。这个投资121.6亿美元的项目旨在实现全球首个可持续的核聚变反应。专家称，实验堆的建设将用10年时间完成，投入商业运行估计还需要大约40年。
科学家们面临的最大挑战是如何达到聚变反应所需的极高的温度和压力，而又不失去对产生的等离子的控制，避免加热付出的能量比获得的能量更高。
国有媒体称，中国科学家计划在本月的国际原子能机构(International Atomic Energy Agency)聚变能大会上提交实验结果。
中国共有10座已投入运行或在建的常规核反应堆，并计划在今后15年中再建设30座，这是其推动能源来源多样化，减少对石油和煤炭依赖的举措之一。
Shai Oster
