More Fusion

I am not too well versed in Fusion reactors, so my question may come as a bit of a surprise to others.

How is a Fusion reaction chamber protected from containing Plasma at these temperatures?

Thanks.

super conducting magnetic feilds

I think it's actually the other way around. The plasma has to be protected from the relatively cold reaction chamber.

Degrees Kelvin is like saying current flows.

"center of the sun" is like saying, hotter than hell

In some form, that appeared in "The Journal of Irreproducible Results", with many other stories that are a hoot to read.

I don't think it's in the same book, but there is also a story (probably fake) about a physics test in which some student proves that Hell has already frozen over. You might find it by Googling some combination of the mentioned words, such as "physics test hell frozen over".

Dr. Schambaugh, of the University of Oklahoma School of Chemical Engineering, Final Exam question for May of 1997. Dr. Schambaugh is known for asking questions such as, "why do airplanes fly?" on his final exams. His one and only final exam question in May 1997 for his Momentum, Heat and Mass Transfer II class was: "Is hell exothermic or endothermic? Support your answer with proof."

Most of the students wrote proofs of their beliefs using Boyle's Law or some variant. One student, however, wrote the following:

"First, We postulate that if souls exist, then they must have some mass. If they do, then a mole of souls can also have a mass. So, at what rate are souls moving into hell and at what rate are souls leaving? I think we can safely assume that once a soul gets to hell, it will not leave.

Therefore, no souls are leaving. As for souls entering hell, let's look at the different religions that exist in the world today. Some of these religions state that if you are not a member of their religion, then you will go to hell. Since there are more than one of these religions and people do not belong to more than one religion, we can project that all people and souls go to hell. With birth and death rates as they are, we can expect the number of souls in hell to increase exponentially.

Now, we look at the rate of change in volume in hell. Boyle's Law states that in order for the temperature and pressure in hell to stay the same, the ratio of the mass of souls and volume needs to stay constant. Two options exist:

1. If hell is expanding at a slower rate than the rate at which souls enter hell, then the temperature and pressure in hell will increase until all hell breaks loose.
2. If hell is expanding at a rate faster than the increase of souls in hell, then the temperature and pressure will drop until hell freezes over.

So which is it? If we accept the quote given to me by Theresa Manyan during Freshman year, "that it will be a cold night in hell before I sleep with you" and take into account the fact that I still have NOT succeeded in having sexual relations with her, then Option 2 cannot be true...Thus, hell is exothermic."

The student, Tim Graham, got the only A.

"center of the sun" is like saying, hotter than hell

....I hope not....!

Not everyone has yet received the memo that the official term is now just Kelvins (K, no degrees and no degree symbol).

Nor are unit abbreviations pluralized by adding an s.

Some information overload on the subject from the World Nuclear Association

Quite engaging

here it is.. Thanks for the patience

Very interesting. This raises some other questions as well.

Very well then, we already have a massive gravitationally confined fusion reactor at our disposal and we are barely using the energy from that. Shouldn't we harness that energy first?

I am also thinking of the recent buzz over Keplers discovery of a star with objects blocking light emission from it and the thoughts of some concerning a Dyson sphere. If fusion can be contained and sustained on Earth, why would someone think that a Dyson sphere was being built elsewhere. Is it because we can't really do what we are attempting to with fusion? A race advanced enough to do that would have already tried to contain fusion on a smaller scale.

there have been many "test shots" achieved by several teams around the world so fusion on Earth has been achieved, the reaction has been initiated many times for a moment or two. the trick besides plasma containment is to be able to control the feed of fuel so the massive heat being produced can be put to work....in most cases to replace a coal or nat gas burner in electrical generation.ie fire a boiler with no emmissions .

I have no comment on your sci-fi

Okay, so fusion has been obtained, but not fusion as an energy source. So far we've managed to waste a lot of energy and have gotten no returns. We already have a fusion reactor we aren't utilizing to a great extent. I do see some of the progressive Arabs in the Gulf area have managed to utilize it as it should be. When do we get going here and follow their lead? You certainly have enough desert out your way to more than emulate what they have done. 1.2 Mwatt is a good start.

Sorry if you don't like the sci fi, but the point was, my argument does conflict with those proposing the Dyson sphere, if we believe that sustainable fusion can be accomplished. I believe this topic was started by one of your posts, indirectly, was it not? I really wanted to hear it was a Death Star or some sort of humanoid construction, but, you are right, that is not the discussion here.

1. Solar energy collection is fraught with problems. You can find out for yourself by searching the internet. If it was such a good solution as you are asking, it would have already been deployed.

2. Dyson spheres are science fiction artifacts created/imagined by Freeman Dyson as a speculative look at what a Type II civilization on the Kardashev scale would build to harness the total energy output of its star.

The star known as KIC8462852 is most likely not surrounded by a partial Dyson sphere as some less-scientifically grounded theories by individuals such as Jason Wright have proposed. The cause is still unknown, but since everyone loves an alien mystery, what sells in the tabloids prevails as popular myth.

Since the probability of KIC8462852 having a Dyson sphere is next to nil (clearly we are a long way of proving such a megastructure even exists anywhere outside of books and films), it seems that proposing one as a reason not to pursue fusion is a fallacy of argument (appeal to probability).

Rosey and Fuckardi any day now....