NUCLEAR

FUSION
By
K.RAVI CHANDRA REDDY
M.MYNA

(08L

(08L

Department of Electrical and Electronic

MEKAPATI RAJAMOHAN REDDY INSTITUTE OF T

Udayagiri
524226
-

ABSTRACT
World

Electrons and nuclei flow freely

is

undergoing

rapid

industrialization and the population is

increasing rapidly. The demand for
power is increasing exponentially day by
day and the conventional sources of
energy are rapidly decreasing. We are
approaching

the

non-

conventional energy sources as

they are inexhaustible sources
of

energy

and

one

of

the

inexhaustible source of energy

in the chamber, this is known as

plasma. Then nuclei combine
with each other to form helium,
at the same time neutrons are
also

released

With

the

help

high

velocities. The kinetic energy of

neutrons is converted into heat
energy and thus inexhaustible
power can be generated using
fusion reactors.

INTRODUCTION :

is Nuclear Fusion.
.

with

We are going for

of

heat

non-conventional

energy

generated using fusion, water is

sources

converted into steam and this

inexhaustible,

steam is used to run the turbine.

pollution and are available for

The

free of cost. We have non-

mechanical

turbine

is

used

energy
to

run

of
the

because

conventional

free

from

energy

sources

such

power.

energy, solar energy and the

hydrogen, deuterium and tritium

are

used.

The

isotopes

deuterium

and

tritium

heated

10

at

centigrade where

crore

of
are

degrees
molecules

latest

wind

are

alternators to generate electric

In nuclear fusion the isotopes of

as

they

trend

implemented

energy,
going
is

to

tidal
be

NUCLEAR

FUSION.
In

nuclear

fission,

you

get

energy by splitting one atom

into

two

collide with each other due to

conventional

which electrons are released.

high-energy

atoms.
nuclear
neutrons

In

reactor,
split

heavy
yielding
energy,

atoms
large

of

uranium,

amounts

radiation

of
and

The

fusion

process

is

reaction

is

inherently safe
No

chain

radioactive wastes that last for

involved and the reaction

long periods of time.

is thermally self-limiting.

In nuclear fusion, we get energy

when two atoms join together to
form one. In a fusion reactor,
hydrogen atoms come together
to form helium atoms, neutrons
and vast amounts of energy. It's
the same type of reaction that
powers hydrogen bombs and

The

fusion

process

is

limited to a few seconds

burn, without continuous
refueling.
The

power

and

energy

densities in the reactor

and plasma are low.
The reaction products are

the sun. This would be a safer,

either

more

more

surrounding structural or

abundant source of power than

tritium-breeding materials

nuclear fission.

(neutrons)

efficient

and

absorbed

are

in

non-

radioactive (helium).

DEFINITION :Fusion is the

energy source that powers the
sun and stars. In fusion, the
nuclei of light elements, like
hydrogen, fuse together to
make heavier elements - giving
off tremendous amounts of
energy.

Negligible operational
environmental impact.
Negligible long term envir
onmental impact.
Output energy of fusion is

greater than fission.

Fusion is an inexhaustible
source of energy.

REASONS FOR
ADAPTING FUSION
MAKING FUSION ON
EARTH:

There are several types of fusion

reactions.
isotopes

Most
of

involve

hydrogen

the
called

deuterium and tritium:

Proton-proton
This

chain

sequence

is

predominant

the
fusion

reaction scheme used by

stars such as the sun.

Two pairs of protons

form to make two

reactions - One atom of

Each

deuterium

deuterium and one atom

atom combines with

of tritium combine to form

a proton to form a

a helium-4 atom and a

helium-3 atom.

neutron.

Two helium-3 atoms

energy released is in the

combine

form of the high-energy

to

form

unstable.

Beryllium-6

decays

into

two

helium-4 atoms.
reactions

produce

high

energy

particles

(protons,

electrons,

neutrinos,

positrons)

radiation

(light,

Most

of

the

neutron.

CONDITIONS FOR
NUCLEAR FUSION :
When hydrogen atoms fuse, the

These

rays).

Deuterium-tritium

deuterium atoms.

beryllium-6, which is

and

gamma

nuclei

must

come

together.

However, the protons in each

nucleus will tend to repel

each

other

have

the

because
same

they

charge

(positive).
If you've ever tried to place
two magnets together and

felt them push apart from

Plasma is a high-

each

energy

other,

experienced

you've

this

principle

the

To achieve fusion, you need

electrons

and

to overcome this tendency.

about.

sun

freely

achieves

HIGH

by its large mass

TEMPERATURE :

and

The

enough

this

gives

hydrogen
overcome
between

the

be

six

squeezes

1x10-15

within

meters

than

of

each

other to fuse.

these

The

sun

uses

its

mass and the force

temperatures,
is

pressure

together. They must

the sun's core).

At

High

the hydrogen atoms

Kelvin

hotter

hydrogen

lasers
these

Pressure

million

(approximately
times

from

achieve

temperatures about
degrees

the

temperatures.
requires

100

of

and ion particles to

protons.
Fusion

in

microwaves,

the
repulsion

mass

energy

to

electrical

force

core. We must use

atoms
energy

the

gravity compressing

high

temperature

The

move

these temperatures

make fusion possible:

are

stripped from atoms

to create special conditions

of

matter in which all

first-hand.

Here are the conditions that

state

plasma, not a gas.

of

gravity

squeeze

to

hydrogen

atoms together in its

magnetic

core.

electric

We

must

hydrogen
together
intense
fields,

heat

squeeze

pressures

to

squeeze
hydrogen

The

ITER

using this method.

powerful

Inertial
confinement

uses

and

laser beams or ion

make

beams to squeeze

temperatures

necessary

to

project in France is

magnetic

With current technology, we can only

the

and

plasma.

using

lasers or ion beams.

achieve

fields

the

atoms
by

and

deuterium-tritium fusion possible.

and

Deuterium-deuterium fusion requires

hydrogen

higher temperatures that may be

Scientists are studying

possible in the future.

this

Ultimately,

deuterium-deuterium

fusion will be better because it is

heat

the
plasma.

experimental

approach

at

NATIONAL

IGNITION

FACILITY of Lawrence

easier to extract deuterium from

Livermore

seawater than to make tritium from

in United States.

lithium. Also, deuterium is not

radioactive,

and

deuterium-

deuterium reactions will yield more

the

laboratory

Lets look at the magnetic

confinement first. Here is how it
would work :

energy.

NUCLEAR FUSION
REACTOR OPERATION :
There are two ways to achieve the
temperatures and pressures necessary
for hydrogen fusion to take place:

Magnetic
Confinement

uses

Microwaves,

electricity

and

neutral particle beams from

accelerators heat a stream of
hydrogen gas. This heating
turns the gas into plasma.
This plasma gets squeezed
by
magnets,

super-conducting
thereby

allowing

fusion to occur. The most

efficient

shape

magnetically
plasma

is

for

the

confined
donut

shape

(toroid).

MAGNETIC CONFINEMENT :
THE ITER EXAMPLE
The main parts of the ITER tokamak
reactor are:

VACCUM VESSEL
plasma

and

reaction

- holds

keeps

chamber

the
in

vacuum.the

NEUTRAL

BEAM

INJECTOR
system)

(ion

cyclotron

injects

particle

beams from the accelerator

into the plasma to help heat
the

A reactor of this shape is called

a tokamak. The ITER tokamak
will

be

self-contained

plasma

to

temperature.

MAGNETIC

FIELD

COILS (poloidal, toroidal) -

reactor whose parts are in

super-conducting

various cassettes.

that

These cassettes can be easily

inserted

and

removed

without having to tear down

the

entire

reactor

for

maintenance. The tokamak

will have a plasma toroid with
a 2-meter inner radius and a
6.2-meter outer radius.
Let's take look at the ITER fusion
reactor to see how magnetic confinement
works.

critical

confine,

contain

the

magnets
shape

plasma

magnetic fields.

and
using

MAGNETICCONFINEMENT FUSION

TRANSFORMERS
CENTRAL
supply

SOLENOID

electricity

to

the

1. The
heat

fusion

reactor

will

stream

of

magnetic field coils.

deuterium and tritium fuel

COOLING

to form high-temperature

EQUIPMENT

(crostat, cryopump) - cool the

BLANKET

MODULES

made of lithium; absorb heat

and

plasma. It will squeeze the

plasma so that fusion can

magnets.

PROCESS :

high-energy

neutrons

from the fusion reaction.

DIVERTORS
exhaust
the
helium products of the fusion
reaction.

Here's how the process

will work:

take place.
a. The power needed
to start the fusion
reaction

will

be

about

70

megawatts,

but

the power yield from

the reaction will be
about
megawatts.

500

b. The fusion reaction

will last from 300 to
500

seconds.

(Eventually,

there

will be a sustained
fusion reaction.) .
2. The

lithium

blankets

outside

the

plasma

reaction

chamber

absorb

will

high-energy

neutrons from the fusion

reaction

to

make

more

PLASMA HEATING :
Heating plasma requires putting
more energy into the plasma
than

leaks

out.

from the plasma by conduction

and

by

radiation,

heat transfer due to the low

plasma gas pressure.
Radiation

inside

will also get heated by the

"bremmstrahlung"

neutrons.

radiation)
will

be

convection

playing only a very weak role in

comes

heat

magnetic

confinement, energy can be lost

tritium fuel. The blankets

3. The

In

in

the

two

plasma

forms

(braking

due

to

the

deceleration and acceleration of

transferred by a water-

charged

cooling loop to a heat

interact with one another, and

exchanger to make steam.

synchrotron (cyclotron) radiation

4. The

steam

electrical

will
turbines

steam

condensed

will
back

to

charged particles round the field

lines

be
into

from the reactor in the

Let me explain how plasma
heating is done:

they

due to the continuous orbiting of

water to absorb more heat

heat exchanger.

as

drive

produce electricity.
5. The

particles

(i.e

due

to

their

corresponding acceleration).
In addition at the plasma edge
"line" radiation occurs as the
bound

electrons

in

not

fully

ionized atoms decay into lower

energy states. Conduction is due
to

the

particles

leaving

the

system due to collisions with

other particles ejecting them or

However there are insufficient of

bringing

region

these reactions at 10 million C

where the field lines lead out of

to heat the plasma up - about

the system, such as in the

100

plasma

Bridging

larger

them

into

diverter.
the

Usually,

ratio

of

the

plasma

volume to surface, the lower the

overall

power

loss

due

to

conduction.

million

the

is

needed.

gap

requires

external heating schemes.

One such method is neutral
injection heating. Fuel atoms are
accelerated as ions, neutralized

When a current flows in plasma,

by collisions with a gas, then

it gets hot due to its resistance,

cross the magnetic field, where

which

of

they are ionized by the plasma

collisions between electrons and

and trapped by the magnetic

ions.

field.

is

Plasma

manifestation

resistance

however,

gets

heating,

increasingly

weaker with increasing plasma

temperature,

and

at

about

10million C, resistive heating

They

then

slow

down,

transferring their energy to the

plasma
with

by

collisions

electrons

if

the

(mainly
beam

particle energy is high enough),

thus

alone cannot overcome even

Another

radiation power losses (i.e the

method is RADIO FREQUENCY

plasma can get no hotter).

heating,

Alpha

particle

heating

produced when the

resulting

from

is

He nuclei

the

fusion

reactions are trapped by the

magnetic field and slow down by
colliding with plasma electrons,
helping to keep the plasma hot.

which

introduces

electromagnetic waves into the

plasma. If an electromagnetic
wave interacts with particles of
various velocities, some will be
travelling slower than the wave,
and some faster.

Usually

more

particles

exist

travelling a bit slower than the

wave

than

electromagnetic
preferentially

bit

faster,

waves

so
will

heating

Experience drag and be damped

by the plasma. This collision less
(or Landau) damping, transfers
energy between the waves and
the

plasma

energy

is

particles.

delivered

to

The
the

plasma by antennas or wave

guides at the plasma edge.

The frequencies are tuned so

plasma

that the energy is absorbed in

supplements the current drive

the

provided

appropriate

theplasma

region

and

of

by

the

appropriate particles.
The

plasma

three

has

main

frequencies

current,

which

inductively

transformer

action

by

in

the

tokamak.
essentially

The pressure profiles within the

"resonant"

plasma can also be adjusted by

is

the heating schemes so that the

most effective - at the electron

plasma generates a "bootstrap"

and ion cyclotron frequencies,

current, i.e internally drives part

and

of its own plasma current. These

at

where heating

the

lower

hybrid

frequency.

features allow the tokamak burn

The first two are the frequencies

at ehich the ions and electrons
orbit the magnetic field lines as
they

spiral

Waves

at

frequency

round
the

the

lower

propagate

to be stretched well beyond the

inductive limit of transformer
action, and should operation.

torus.

In this way if the plasma is

hybrid

held

well

in

stationary

process will be successful

plasma which has electric fields

and

and

produced

magnetic

perpendicular,

fields

typical

of

the

Both these additional heating

(beams

and

impart

by

the

energy

this

process

water can be converted into

run using this steam energy.

radio

frequency) can be arranged to

also

using

steam and turbine can be

plasma edge.

systems

fusion

momentum

preferentially to the electrons

relative to the ions. This allows
them to contribute to driving the

CONCLUSION:
Presently we
are using oil, coal as sources of
energy. These sources are
exhaustible sources and they

may end up in few years. So we

are in need of inexhaustible
energy sources. Although the
nonconventional energy sources
like wind energy and solar
energy are available but they
alter from region to region.
Technology is also not fully
developed in these areas.
Coming to nuclear fuels, nuclear
reactors using fission has a
disadvantage of emitting
radioactive particles. It might be
a great idea to implement a
fusion reactor which do not have
any effect on surrounding
environment and create the
energy equivalent to one crore
times of energy created using
fossil fuels.

ROLL:08L41A0214

ADDRESS:

MEKAPATI RAJAMOHAN
REDDY INSTITUTE OF

K.RAVI CHANDRA REDDY

M.MYNA

TECHNOLOGY & SCIENCES

UDAYAGIRI NELLORE

III B.TECH EEE

PH-9494295094

III B.TECH EEE

Mail Id-

ROLL: 08L41A0202

ravi.mcpntng@gmail.com