Xref: utzoo sci.physics:6284 sci.space:10028 rec.arts.sf-lovers:22772
Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!uflorida!haven!mimsy!prometheus!pmk
From: pmk@prometheus.UUCP (Paul M Koloc)
Newsgroups: sci.physics,sci.space,rec.arts.sf-lovers
Subject: Re: Fusion ---  a Second Look
Keywords: fusion, aneutronic, plasma, power, propulsion
Message-ID: <1114@prometheus.UUCP>
Date: 13 Mar 89 20:08:13 GMT
References: <35164@vax1.tcd.ie> <1140@wpi.wpi.edu> <15453@cup.portal.com>
Reply-To: pmk@promethe.UUCP (Paul M Koloc)
Organization: Prometheus II, Ltd., College Park, MD 20740-0222
Lines: 67

In article <15453@cup.portal.com> mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) writes:
>Lawrence C Foard says:
>The big stumbling block in fusion energy has been instabilities in plasma
>confinement.  You try to compress a plasma in a magnetic bottle, and the
>plasma leaks through like it was made of cheesecloth.

Topology has a lot to do with plasma instability, for example,
Stellarators are very touchy, tokamaks less so and Spheromaks are
even ideally MHD STABLE!  Confinement suffers if the plasma energy
is increased (i.e. heated --as by absorbing power from particle
beams, RF, etc ) without also correspondingly increasing the energy
density (pressure) of the confining magnetic field.  The latter is
accomplished in adiabatic toroidal compression.

>This is the main problem with achieving pure fusion energy.  The pressures
>and densities which are required are so high, they are beyond technology
>for the foreseeable future (some people involved in the effort would
>dispute this).

This said "main problem" is machine dependent, and is true of 
devices --magnetic fusion devices-- that utilize externally applied 
pressure (usually magnetic coils) very inefficiently to generate 
thermonuclear plasma pressure.  In the CIT tokamak, for example, 
pressure of nearly one kilo atmosphere of peak magnetic pressure
produced by the toroidal field coils near the inner wall is necessary 
to stably confine a plasma of less than five atmospheres pressure.  
In the Spheromak the situation is somewhat reversed since the maximum 
pressure on the external conducting shell can be exceeded by plasma 
pressure on the minor toroidal axis by a factor of three or so.

We have proposed an advanced form of the Spheromak, the PLASMAK 
plasmoid, which contains all energetic (relativistic) currents with 
a plasma conducting spherical shell or Mantle which is located at outer
surface of the vacuum field - and impinging inner surface of a high
pressure gas blanket.  During a powerful formation EMP, the dense 
plasma Mantle is formed along with the central doughnut like Kernel
toroidal plasma.  The thermonuclear Kernel plasma is centrally 
suspended by its surrounding vacuum magnetic field and in turn
that vacuum field is trapped like a pupae in a cocoon by the
highly conducting energetic inner surface currents of the Mantle.

Within the Kernel energetic currents impart stability against
resistive modes as well as long magnetic lifetimes and excellent 
particle confinement times.  The Mantle makes it fluid (mechanically) 
compressible, and consequently pressures great enough to burn deuterium +
helium-3 or hydrogen + boron-11 appear feasible.  Power densities
could exceed multimegawatt per cubic centimeter, thus making this
concept the most compact of all power sources.  That means that 
operating "aneutronically" (no radiation), efficiently, and with 
both compact size and mass each of many other very useful 
applications would avail themselves to a commercial solution.   

Efficiencies, other properties such as ADSACH and comparison to other
devices are discussed in a special issue of "FUSION TECHNOLOGY"  for 
this month of March.  Article name is 'PLASMAK(tm) Star Power for
Energy Intensive Space Applications'.

The pessimistic prediction of a rather stodgy, tainted fusion future
beginning after 2050 is not so completely secure. IF PLASMAK(tm) 
technology proves out, aneutronic fusion can happen in as soon as ten
years, and it would then open space to an extension of the biosphere,
with a much cleaner earth resulting from economical replacement of
today's more polluting energy forms.  

		Sweepingly innovative ideas are never planned for
                      and therefore, can not be funded. 

+---------------------------------------------------------+--------+
| Paul M. Koloc, President: (301) 445-1075                | FUSION |
| Prometheus II, Ltd.; College Park, MD 20740-0222        |  this  |
| mimsy!prometheus!pmk; pmk@prometheus.UUCP               | decade |
+---------------------------------------------------------+--------+