Fusion energy without radioactivity: laser ignition of solid hydrogen–boron (11) fuel

The advent of ultra-high power lasers allows laser power levels that are about 1000 times the power ^ | July 07, 2011 | Brian Wang

[jmcenanly]

The advent of ultra-high power lasers allows laser power levels that are about 1000 times the power of all the power stations in the USA. This opens the way to new approaches for inertial confinement fusions (ICF) that in turn can drastically reduce the laser input energy needed to achieve practical ICF power. The specific approach discussed here involves inducing a fusion burn wave by laser-driven impact of a relatively large block of plasma on the outside of a solid density fusion target. This new method is specifically selected to enable the extremely attractive, but demanding, neutron-free proton–B-11 fusion that potentially can lead to the long sought goal of an ultra ‘‘clean’’ fusion power plant.

[jmcenanly]

Boron can be isolated from Borate salts, which can be found in the U.S. The main problem will be getting permission to mine it.

[Red Badger]

Ping!.....

[Blood of Tyrants]

If it does anything to make the US independent of Muslim crude oil, Obastard will oppose it.

[higgmeister]

This opens the way to new approaches for inertial confinement fusions (ICF) that in turn can drastically reduce the laser input energy needed to achieve practical ICF power.

Next they should work on a new approach for a super efficient coal powered steam-shovel that can drastically reduce the amount of coal necessary to run the steam-shovel.

[Titus Quinctius Cincinnatus]

This can’t allowed - it’s too dangerous. Lasers kill people, just ask the people of Alderaan.

[Red Badger]

[factoryrat]

Do they still mine borax out in california? Just asking. I’ve looked into IEF research that Farnsworth, Hirsch, Langmuir, and others have done, and the H-B11 reaction has shown the most promise for clean fusion reactions.

[rsobin]

They’re all dead!

[sten]

Sorry... I’ll stick with eCat ... Which won’t be centrally controlled and cheap to maintain

Which, of course, is the reason ‘they’ don’t want it

[FredZarguna]

Lasers don’t kill people; Siths kill people.

[himno hero]

He is doing his best to run the price of crude up for them.... with a multi fold purpose, starving America for energy while bleeding Americas cash. Its whatever is necessary to bring down a nation. No drilling/ attack coal/no fracking/ no nuclear.....FUBO!

[factoryrat]

BTW, this isn’t new technology. The concept of inertial electrostatic confinement goes back to the 1920’s with vacuum tube research conducted by Irving Languir from General Electric. By the 1960’s Philo Farnsworth was producing equipment that would produce high quantities of neutrons from D-T reactions in what amounted to a large vacuum tube, in essence creating a miniature star in a bottle.

[Titus Quinctius Cincinnatus]

BTW, this isn’t new technology. The concept of inertial electrostatic confinement goes back to the 1920’s with vacuum tube research conducted by Irving Languir from General Electric. By the 1960’s Philo Farnsworth was producing equipment that would produce high quantities of neutrons from D-T reactions in what amounted to a large vacuum tube, in essence creating a miniature star in a bottle.

Unfortunately, like that carburator that that guy back in the 1970s developed that let a car get 800 miles to the gallon, the oil companies bought the patent and sat on it.

[org.whodat]

And, does it produce more energy than is consumed in producing the heat, are is this just a big expensive popcorn popper.

[Kevmo]

Thanks for the ping, Red Badger.

And like Sten, I like the decentralization aspect of LENR.

This experiment reminds me of KP Sinha’s Laser experiment in LENR.
Laser stimulation of low-energy nuclear
reactions in deuterated palladium
http://www.ias.ac.in/currsci/oct102006/907.pdf

[omega4179]

The Sith didn’t kill Alderaan, Tarkin was a big government Bureaucrat.

[TEXOKIE]

bttt

[SuziQ]

Fusion ping!

[PreciousLiberty]

For me, the exciting aspect of this discovery is:

“Such a power plant is ideal for stationary electrical generation in a power station or for space propulsion.”

Those that really begin to exploit the solar system (mining, colonization and so forth) will be the winners of the 21st Century.

I hope most of them are of American origin, and not Chinese. I also hope the bulk of it is done by private entities, not governments. SpaceX is a good start - in fact if I was Elon Musk I’d immediately start an initiative to incubate this technology for interplanetary travel.

Imagine the coup if it were not a government, but a private company, that first landed humans on Mars...

[HangThemHigh]

20 Mule Team Borax.

Death Valley Days with Ronald Reagan, I watched that as a kid.

A tiny bit of that borax mixed with some sugar water makes dirt cheap and highly effective ant poison.

I doubt the boron fusion thing will work, but it will be great if it does. Maybe we will actually have power too cheap to meter, like they used to promise.