The development of fusion power plants, often touted as a potential game-changer in the quest for clean energy, has been a long and arduous journey. While the ultimate goal of commercial fusion power may still be decades away, the pursuit of this technology has yielded a plethora of spin-off applications that are already making waves across various industries.
TAE Power Solutions, a spin-out from the American fusion technology company TAE Technologies, has been at the forefront of adapting breakthroughs from fusion research to address challenges beyond energy generation. Faced with the need to collect and store vast amounts of power from a limited commercial electricity grid, the firm has developed innovative battery solutions that could revolutionize the electric vehicle industry.
In the United Kingdom, the Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) has established the Fusion Cluster at Culham, Oxfordshire, to foster the growth of a domestic fusion industry. The cluster has witnessed a significant increase in participating companies, with a focus on developing the necessary skills and technology for a commercial fusion power plant by the 2040s. Simultaneously, the commercialization of spin-off technologies has emerged as a high priority.
One such spin-off is the creation of highly efficient magnets by Tokamak Energy, a member of the Fusion Cluster. These high-temperature superconducting magnets deliver stable magnetic fields 10 to 20 times stronger than existing technologies, opening up possibilities for applications like magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) drives. MHD drives, which use magnetic fields to create jets of electrically charged fluid for propulsion, could significantly reduce noise pollution in marine environments.
Fusion research has also paved the way for advancements in medical applications. TAE Life Sciences has developed compact particle accelerators that generate tightly focused neutron beams, initially designed to fuel fusion reactors. These beams can be reconfigured for medical purposes, such as destroying cancerous cells through boron neutron capture therapy. Shine Technologies, on the other hand, is producing lutetium-177, a medically useful isotope that targets cancer cells and enables medical imaging to track treatment progress.
The spin-off technologies from fusion research have also found applications in industrial imaging. Focused Energy, a German company founded by physicist Markus Roth, has developed a laser system capable of accelerating neutron beams with 100 times the intensity of existing technologies. This advancement has potential applications in civil engineering, allowing for the inspection of steel inside concrete buildings and bridges for signs of corrosion. The same technique can also produce muons, which have been used to investigate magma movement in volcanoes and reveal hidden chambers in ancient structures.
Lastly, fusion spin-offs are being explored as a means to handle nuclear waste. Focused Energy has secured a contract with the German government to build a laser-driven neutron source for examining nuclear waste containers. Shine, in the United States, is planning to use high-intensity neutron beams to transform harmful nuclear waste into less hazardous substances, potentially addressing the long-standing issue of nuclear waste management.
As the quest for commercial fusion power continues, the tangent benefits of fusion research are already making a significant impact across various sectors. From propulsion and medical applications to industrial imaging and nuclear waste handling, the spin-off technologies from fusion development are poised to reshape industries and solve long-standing challenges. While the ultimate dream of fusion power may still be on the horizon, the journey itself is yielding invaluable innovations that could transform our world in the near future.
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