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Improvements to the standard fusion reactor

Improvements to the standard fusion reactor
 
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1) Line up the axis of rotation, around which the particle stream is flowing, to be parallel to the axis of the Earth’s rotation. This will the effect of not subjecting them to forced precession.

2) Divide the torus into quarters and place long strait sections between them, creating a square plasma channel with rounded corners. Thus the lossy corners, where the plasma is forced to change direction, becomes a fraction of the total plasma length.

More speculatively.

3) Mirrors could be placed at each corner to reflect the light that comes up one strait section down the next. The idea would be. a) to keep the light energy in the system, so it can help to heat the plasma, by Compton scattering. b) if it is possible to achieve sufficient amplification by stimulated emission, then more of the light would travel round with the plasma. reducing the radiant heating of the chamber walls.

4) The mirror at one corner could be split and off set such that light travelling in the same direction as the plasma sees a complete mirror and is reflected round, but that light travelling in the opposite direction sees a mirror with a gap in it and part of the light is lost. The hoped for advantage of this would be that the Compton scattering would be taking place preferentially in one direction, further accelerating the plasma and any neutron that are present.

5) 3 and 4 could be repeated for xrays by using grazing angle mirrors, in long curves between the parallel strait sections.

j paul, Feb 12 2014

Net Positive Energy Fusion http://www.nature.c...ll/nature13008.html
Not actually related to the idea, but the article was just published yesterday, so I had to link it. [MechE, Feb 13 2014]


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Annotation:







       The constituent particles of a plasma in a fusion reactor move too fast/randomly for them to be significantly affected by such trifles as the Earth's gravitation or Coriolis force or precession.   

       The simplest way to improve the standard torus design is simply to make its major diameter huge, like putting it in the tunnel of the Large Hadron Collider. All short segments of the torus will be practically indistinguishable from "straight".
Vernon, Feb 12 2014
  

       sounds a bit like the Bussard design (octagonal?)
FlyingToaster, Feb 12 2014
  

       I would suggest that the advantage of long straight aways is offset by the resulting tighter corners.   

       With respect to 3 and 4, interesting thoughts, not certain enough about accelerator design to comment.   

       (And see link for the latest in fusion, a laser driven approach where energy out of the target is greater than energy in, although not enough greater to offset system inefficiencies at this point)
MechE, Feb 13 2014
  

       I would have thought plasma being a natural state would like to curl, twist and form eyes . Straight lines are not for are really the pattern indicated by a particle collision tracks.   

       I would have thought it is a game of matching particle population curvatures. The TV programme 'Defying Gravity' comes to mind.
wjt, Feb 14 2014
  


 

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