Diamond Encrusted Fusion Reactor
It is ITER time again. They are experimenting with diamond coatings to withstand the high heat loads at the walls of the ITER reactor. One thing to keep in mind. Diamond is good for a few thousand degrees Kelvin. ITER plasma is in the 100 million degree range. If plasma and diamond meet - diamond doesn't have a chance.
I found a press release from sp3 Diamond Technologies, a company involved in the semiconductor industry but with tentacles in many places announce that their technology is being used by Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh, Scotland. The University is using the technology to evaluate the benefits of using diamond-coated reactors for the next generation of fusion reactors due to diamonds’ ability to withstand the intense heat involved in the process.ITER may be really good science, the future of low cost energy it is not.
The University has purchased one of sp3’s CVD diamond deposition tools as part of a €10 billion research project aimed at developing waste-free nuclear energy without contributing to global warming via the Euro International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) program.
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3 comments:
ITER plasma is in the 100 million degree range. If plasma and diamond meet - diamond doesn't have a chance.
But its carbon footprint is reduced, no? Maybe not net, but wouldn't Gaia still be pleased?
Plasma touching the reactors walls is a containment failure. I'd guess a refractory coating is to try and handle radiative heating.
Well at least the effort will last long enough to get many of them to retirement. They'll be mostly out of the feed trough line then :)
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