- In a thermonuclear fusion reaction, lighter atoms like those of hydrogen fuse to produce slightly heavier atoms like helium. The difference in masses is converted into pure energy by way of Einstein’s formula E=mc2. The heat is harnessed to produce steam which in turn runs a turbine to generate electricity.
- The main focus has been on the use of isotopes of hydrogen called deuterium and tritium for nuclear fusion.
- Deuterium, also called heavy hydrogen, has a neutron and a proton in its nucleus. Tritium, another isotope of hydrogen, has two neutrons and one proton.
Image Source: The Hindu
Significance of Nuclear Fusion Energy:
- Unlike in nuclear fission, the fuel for nuclear fusion is abundantly available and almost inexhaustible.
- Deuterium hydrogen ions can be easily derived from water, while tritium hydrogen ions can be produced from lithium.
- Nuclear fusion is considered safer than nuclear fission. Nuclear fission power plants have the disadvantage of generating unstable nuclei; some of these are radioactive for millions of years. Fusion on the other hand does not create any long-lived radioactive nuclear waste. A fusion reactor produces helium, which is an inert gas. Also, the small quantity of radioactive waste will be safe to handle for periods within 50-100 years.
- Also, fusion energy production is not based on a chain reaction, as is fission. Plasma must be kept at very high temperatures with the support of external heating systems and confined by an external magnetic field. Every shift or change of the working configuration in the reactor causes the cooling of plasma or the loss of its containment; in such a case, the reactor would automatically come to a halt within a few seconds, since the process of energy production is arrested, with no effects taking place on the outside. For this reason, fusion reactors are considered to be inherently safe
