Fusion News: Environmental Research Web- Laser Fusion Passes Milestone
Omar Hurricane and colleagues at the Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) have achieved a “fuel gain” greater than the one at the National Ignition Facility (NIF). As reported by Environmental Research Web in the article, “Laser Fusion Passes Milestone:”
In a paper published in Nature, Hurricane and colleagues report results from experiments carried out last September and November – the former producing 14 kJ of fusion energy from a single laser shot and the latter 17 kJ. The researchers point out that since the energy delivered to the fuel is about 10 kJ, both shots generated a fuel gain. They also calculated that as much as half of the energy output from these shots originated in alpha-particle heating. This is significant because such heating is a prerequisite for ignition.
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We have been getting ‘over unity’ for centuries from solar energy via hydro (EROIE 200;1+) and more recently wind and PV (EROIEs up to 80:1 and 25:1 respectively and rising) .