China is going full steam ahead in nuclear fusion. So much so that it has won the attention of those responsible for ITER

It's a fact: China is a nuclear fusion power. Its scientists have started working in this area several decades later than American, European or Russian researchers, but they are already achieving very remarkable results that are attracting the attention of the international scientific community.In December 2021, Chinese researchers operating the experimental nuclear fusion reactor EAST (Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak), which is located in Heféi, a city of almost 8 million inhabitants belonging to Anhui province, managed to stabilize the plasma at 70 million degrees Celsius for 17 minutes. A record.

At that time this news generated a lot of commotion because of its relevance, but something very important was still missing: its result had to be thoroughly checked and reviewed by peers before being given as valid. 

And yes, it has passed this procedure. Just a few days ago it was published in the scientific publication Science Advances, which definitively consolidates the important role that China is playing in the field of nuclear fusion.

A very important step forward in plasma stabilization

To ensure that the hydrogen nuclei contained in the plasma housed in the vacuum chamber of the reactor overcome their natural electrical repulsion and can fuse, they must acquire a very high kinetic energy. And the strategy to achieve this is to heat them until they reach a temperature of at least 150 million degrees Celsius. However, this gas at very high temperature is subject to constant fluctuations and turbulence that can endanger the stability of the reaction and its continuity over time.

The most delicate area of the plasma is the outermost part, which is precisely the one closest to the walls of the vacuum chamber. The magnetic field that is responsible for confining the plasma is extraordinarily powerful, and what this devilish intensity pursues is precisely to contribute to the stabilization of the plasma.

Turbulence and particle emission that occur in the outermost region of the plasma can cause energy losses

The turbulence and emission of particles that occur in this region can cause energy losses, and if this degradation is not kept under control the extraordinarily demanding conditions that are necessary for the fusion of the nuclei to take place will not occur, and the reaction will stop.

The scientists who have participated in the design of ITER have dimensioned this fusion reactor with the purpose of making it easier to preserve the stability of the plasma. This is precisely why when its assembly is completed it will be the largest fusion reactor on the planet. 

EAST is smaller, but, as we have seen, its technicians have managed to stabilize the plasma for no less than 17 minutes.This result has been valued very positively by the scientists participating in ITER. 

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And it is that if EAST which, as we have seen, is a smaller machine than the reactor that is being tuned in the French town of Cadarache, has achieved this milestone, it is perfectly plausible that ITER goes even further and manages to fulfill its mission, which is none other than to demonstrate the viability of nuclear fusion as a means of producing a large amount of energy.

The mode of operation used by EAST researchers to achieve this achievement is known as 'supermode I', and it holds great promise.The mode of operation used by the EAST researchers to achieve this achievement is known as 'supermode I', and it holds great promise. 

These technicians still face the challenge of reaching temperatures above 70 million degrees Celsius and preserving stability during pulses that go even beyond the 1,000 s scale, but the outlook ahead is very positive. And, for this reason, it is worth keeping track of them very closely.