Mr. Fusion

Remember the Laws of Thermodynamics from my college days: energy can be changed, but not made? Why not change compost energy into stuff that powers engines? — ‘An Einganeer’s Tale’, page 76.

Science fiction movies have often foretold future technologies. So, do you think there will ever be a device like Back To The Future’s Mr. Fusion? A device that generates energy from garbage? Small enough to be stuck on the back of a DeLorean?

In my book An Einganeer’s Tale I describe a process that can generate biofuels from garbage. Well, Mr. Fusion would be different. It would grab the hydrogen atoms from the garbage and turn them into helium. Doing so would release a lot of pissed off and very energetic neutrons, whose agitation would produce enough power to send a DeLorean through time.

Problem is, turning hydrogen into helium requires very high pressure and a temperature well over 100 million degrees. This is not a problem on the sun where its gravity supplies the pressure and the reaction itself the heat. But here on earth?

We have managed to break the Laws of Thermodynamics in the laboratory by producing a fusion reaction that created 50% more energy than it consumed. The best we’ve done so far on a larger scale, though, is 33% LESS energy than consumed.

To account for energy and efficiency losses associated with electricity production, as well as the fact that only around 20% of the generated heat can be used to refuel the reaction, we’ll really need to create something like 500% to 800% more energy than consumed. It is also crucial that a stable reaction be maintained, which will be nearly impossible given the realities of real world conditions. I don’t see fusion power being a viable energy source anytime soon.

But there are some that disagree. The seduction of unlimited clean energy production with no nuclear waste from water is just too strong. Hard to believe but Google just announced that they bought 200 megawatts of fusion energy from a plant that doesn’t even exist yet!

A Massachusetts-based company called Commonwealth Fusion Systems (CFS) plans to build a 400 megawatts fusion power plant in Virginia by the early 2030s. Google has committed to take half of its production. CFS is currently building a 24 foot diameter fusion demonstration reactor in Massachusetts (its first ever), which they hope to have operational in 2027. They just set its base in place. If anyone can make fusion energy feasible. these former MIT students can, but I wouldn’t put my money on it.

To hedge their bets, Google has also invested in power generation from advanced geothermal and small modular nuclear reactors (SMRs). I believe both of these energy sources are more practical and achievable. As for fusion energy, Google would have been better off investing in hover boards.

Fun Fact:

Lea Thompson, Marty’s mom in the movie, recently remarked, “If you made Back to the Future in 2025 and they went back 30 years, it would be 1995 and nothing would look that different. Sure, the phones would be different but it wouldn’t be like the strange difference between the 80s and the 50s and how different the world was.” So true.

How different do you think the world will be 30 years from now? That is really not that far away. It’s hard to believe it’s been only 40 years last week since Back to the Future was released.