China’s EAST project has set a new global record by maintaining a high-confinement plasma state for over 17 minutes, paving the way for future clean energy solutions by mimicking the sun’s fusion process.
China’s Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST), also known as the “artificial sun,” has set a new world record by sustaining high-confinement plasma for an impressive 1,066 seconds. This achievement, reached on January 20, marks a major step forward in the quest to develop fusion power as a clean and limitless energy source.
The 1,066-second milestone represents a significant leap in fusion research. It was accomplished by the Institute of Plasma Physics (ASIPP) at the Hefei Institutes of Physical Science (HFIPS), part of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. This new record greatly exceeds the previous world record of 403 seconds, also set by EAST in 2023.
A Step Towards Unlimited Clean Energy
The ultimate goal of developing an artificial sun is to replicate the nuclear fusion processes that occur in the sun, providing humanity with a limitless and clean energy source, and enabling exploration beyond our solar system.
Scientists worldwide have dedicated over 70 years to this ambitious goal. However, generating electricity from a nuclear fusion device involves overcoming key challenges, including reaching temperatures exceeding 100 million degrees Celsius, maintaining stable long-term operation, and ensuring precise control of the fusion process.
Record-Setting Performance Enhancements
“A fusion device must achieve stable operation at high efficiency for thousands of seconds to enable the self-sustaining circulation of plasma, which is essential for the continuous power generation of future fusion plants,” said SONG Yuntao, ASIPP director and also vice president of HFIPS. He said that the recent record is monumental, marking a critical step toward realizing a functional fusion reactor.
According to GONG Xianzu, head of the EAST Physics and Experimental Operations division, several systems of the EAST device have been upgraded since the last round of experiments. For example, the heating system, which previously operated at the equivalent power of nearly 70,000 household microwave ovens, has now doubled its power output while maintaining stability and continuity.
Supporting International Fusion Research
Since its inception in 2006, EAST has served as an open testing platform for both Chinese and international scientists to conduct fusion-related experiments and research.
China officially joined the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) program in 2006 as its seventh member. Under the agreement, China is responsible for approximately 9 percent of the project’s construction and operation, with ASIPP serving as the primary institution for the Chinese mission.
ITER, currently under construction in southern France, is set to become the world’s largest magnetic confinement plasma physics experiment and the largest experimental tokamak nuclear fusion reactor upon completion.
In recent years, EAST has consistently achieved groundbreaking advancements in high-confinement mode, a fundamental operational mode for experimental fusion reactors like ITER and the future China Fusion Engineering Test Reactor (CFETR). These accomplishments provide invaluable insights and references for the global development of fusion reactors.
“We hope to expand international collaboration via EAST and bring fusion energy into practical use for humanity,” said SONG.
In Hefei, Anhui Province, China, where EAST is located, a new generation of experimental fusion research facilities is currently under construction. These facilities aim to further accelerate the development and application of fusion energy.
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26 Comments
Until they start putting out more energy than they take in for this process – forget about it.
Agree with you.
Which is a project that has been fooled by pseudoscientific theories. According to the Topological Vortex Theory (TVT), utilizing energy is far superior to creating energy.
The mechanism by which the sun releases energy should be considered in the context of the entire solar system, even the Milky Way and the universe. It mainly involves the interaction between spacetime vortices and their fractal structures.
There are countless particles in nature, each with its own role and spatiotemporal location. Researching and studying them is not a bad thing, just don’t deify them. According to the Topological Vortex Theory (TVT), climate change on Earth may be more affected by the deviation between the Earth’s spin axis and the Sun’s spin axis, and the distance between the Earth and the Sun may not be the main reason for the Sun’s influence on climate change on Earth. Because when the spin axis of the Sun is close to parallel to that of the Earth, it is more favorable for the topological vortices of the two systems to superimpose or form Möbius bands. This may be one of the reasons why the climate near the equator of the Earth is not easily affected by seasonal changes.
— — Extracted from https://scitechdaily.com/microscope-spacecrafts-most-precise-test-of-key-component-of-the-theory-of-general-relativity/#comment-862268.
The abundance of Möbius bands by spacetime vortices results in a much richer species near the Earth’s equator compared to the Earth’s poles.
ITER should be able to have a gain of 10. This was not designed to have a positive gain, its purpose is to study long term plasma confinement.
Long term plasma confinement？WHY? WHY? WHY? Has the ubiquitous flow of energy been fully utilized?
Scientific research guided by correct theories can enable researchers to think more.
According to the Topological Vortex Theory (TVT), spins create everything, spins shape the world. There are substantial distinctions between Topological Vortex Theory (TVT) and traditional physical theories. Grounded in the inviscid and absolutely incompressible spaces, TVT introduces the concept of topological phase transitions and employs topological principles to elucidate the formation and evolution of matter in the universe, as well as the impact of interactions between topological vortices and anti-vortices on spacetime dynamics and thermodynamics.
Within TVT, low-dimensional spacetime matter serves as the foundation for high-dimensional spacetime matter, and the hierarchical structure of matter and its interaction mechanisms challenge conventional macroscopic and microscopic interpretations. The conflict between Quantum Physics and Classical Physics can be attributed to their differing focuses: Quantum Physics emphasizes low-dimensional spacetime matter, whereas Classical Physics centers on high-dimensional spacetime matter.
Subatomic particles in the quantum world often defy the familiar rules of the physical world. The fact repeatedly suggests that the familiar rules of the physical world are pseudoscience. In the familiar rules of the physical world, two sets of cobalt-60 can form the mirror image of each other by rotating in opposite directions, and can receive heavy rewards.
Please witness the grand performance of physics today. https://scitechdaily.com/microscope-spacecrafts-most-precise-test-of-key-component-of-the-theory-of-general-relativity/#comment-854286.
If the researchers are truly interested in science, please read: The Application of Inviscid and Absolutely Incompressible Spaces in Engineering Simulation (https://scitechdaily.com/microscope-spacecrafts-most-precise-test-of-key-component-of-the-theory-of-general-relativity/#comment-870077).
Its not about forgetting this ground breaking achievements. Its time to remember how the human first started to Fly. With thousands of failures, we succeded in mastering flying with sustained technical advancements.
The record is just over 24 hours, so . . .
References!!!
Nailed it on the head. Too many cartoon Captain Planeters well wishing the impossible and too proud to admit to it.
Yeah I think it would be better if we took two exotic particles like quarks and slam them together and a particle accelerator and collector and that’s clean energy there One slam at light speed on them. Two particles is enough energy released to power New York City for 5 years cleanly if they know how to harness that store it and then distribute it over a period of time
Costs more energy, by a-lot, then you would get out.
Does anyone know at what temperature and average density they did this so we can calculate the expected fusion rate?
And the test was terminated WHY?
Honestly we need ten times the temperatures at the Sun’s core to initiate fusion here on Earth because of the differences in pressures and densities (the Sun is really really big and massive). Fusion will always consume ridiculous amounts of energy just to sustain the reaction, so not particularly scalable or economic. Yes, one day we may achieve positive output (more energy out than in) but at what cost? It would take prohibitive amounts of capital investment to stand up a Nuclear Fusion facility for commercial use. The time needed to recover the investment, and make a profit, is simply too long and risky. No fiduciary could justify the risks to their investors and before we start harping on the need for companies to make a profit consider the current state of the space launch business. Without private investment in launch capability, there would be very few launches. Government investment is not sustainable or practical
1. Can only thermal energy (or so-called plasma) be converted into electrical energy?
2. Do they really understand the mechanism of solar physical and chemical reactions?
Subatomic particles in the quantum world often defy the familiar rules of the physical world. The fact repeatedly suggests that the familiar rules of the physical world are pseudoscience. In the familiar rules of the physical world, two sets of cobalt-60 can form the mirror image of each other by rotating in opposite directions, and can receive heavy rewards.
We’ve already achieved positive output at the National Ignition Facility in California. The net output in energy exceeded that of the input.
Lol sure they did. China just makes s*** up. They can’t even make a proper nuclear aircraft carrier and we’re supposed to believe this? Sure 🤣
Please do not mock any country. This device, like a collider, has almost zero output relative to input. This is the inevitable result of the rampant spread of pseudoscientific theories. In the dirtiest and ugliest era of the history of science and humanities in human society, many so-called scholars and academic publications no longer know what ashamed is.
They definitely lie a lot about their achievements.
Is anyone else concerned that we(human beings) are attempting to create an artificial sun on Earth? Wouldn’t this be something to do away from the planet? Sounds like a recipe for disaster and the end of humanity as well as every other living organism on this planet. But what do I know, I’m sure it’s completely safe(sarcasm) or we wouldn’t be attempting it , right?
Actually, it is completely safe. The “artificial sun” claim is just because it reaches temperatures greater than the surface of the sun and is a plasma, like all stars. Any sort of runaway reaction would shut down the machine and kill the plasma immediately. Fusion is the polar opposite of fission, including in the ways it could go “wrong”. At most, the machine might sustain slight damage as the magnetic field containing the plasma comes down.
Quantum Kinetics Corporation in Washington State had a plasma run for 24 hours in November. EAST isn’t breaking any records for confinement time.
Wowzerz!