IPFN and General Fusion collaborate on new diagnostic for fusion device
Instituto Superior Técnico (IST) and General Fusion have announced a collaboration agreement, through IST’s Instituto de Plasmas e Fusão Nuclear (IPFN) research unit, to develop a key diagnostic for the company’s Magnetized Target Fusion technology.
The custom diagnostic, being built in both Canada and Portugal, will unlock valuable new data about plasma density in General Fusion’s PI3 plasma injector (pictured above) before its plasmas are compressed in the company’s ground-breaking fusion demonstration, Lawson Machine 26 (LM26).
Plasmas must reach sufficient density, temperature, and energy confinement time for fusion to occur. Together, these factors make up the Lawson criterion, or the triple product. Density – one of the factors in the triple product – is a critical plasma parameter.
The specialized device developed by General Fusion and IPFN’s world-leading experts in reflectometer diagnostics will measure plasma density on PI3 and LM26. It will support General Fusion’s robust diagnostics program in preparation for LM26, designed to achieve fusion conditions of over 100 million degrees Celsius by 2025, and progress toward scientific breakeven equivalent by 2026.
Uniquely designed for rapid delivery, the back end of the diagnostic is currently being built at the University’s lab in Lisbon, Portugal, with the front-end system underway at General Fusion’s facility in Richmond, Canada. The IPFN team and General Fusion will complete the assembly and installation of the diagnostic on PI3 and start testing ahead of the assembly of LM26.
General Fusion is pursuing a fast and practical approach to commercial fusion energy and is headquartered in Richmond, Canada. The company was established in 2002 and is funded by a global syndicate of leading energy venture capital firms, industry leaders and technology pioneers.
Greg Twinney, CEO of General Fusion, says, 'Our project with the team at the Instituto Superior Tecnico is an excellent example of the rapid innovation going on behind the scenes to make world-changing commercial fusion energy a reality. By collaborating with the University of Lisbon, we are broadening our global network of top fusion scientists who are supporting us as we advance our Magnetized Target Fusion technology.”
“General Fusion is a recognized leader in the development of Magnetized Target Fusion, and we’re thrilled to contribute our expertise to their diagnostics program,” says Bruno Soares Gonçalves, President of IPFN. “Our team has been involved in fusion research for more than 30 years and is energized by the opportunity to support innovative projects that can push the commercialization of this transformational fusion energy technology, which can deliver the on-demand, zero-emissions power we need for a clean energy future.”
General Fusion’s Magnetized Target Fusion uniquely sidesteps challenges to commercialization that other technologies face. The game-changer is a proprietary liquid metal liner in the commercial fusion machine that is mechanically compressed by high-powered pistons. This enables fusion conditions to be created in short pulses rather than creating a sustained reaction. This design does not require large superconducting magnets or an expensive array of lasers.
The company is fast-tracking its technical progress to provide commercial fusion energy to the grid by the early to mid-2030s. The company’s new LM26 machine, being built at its Richmond headquarters, will integrate the company’s operational PI3 plasma injector with a simplified compression system.
PI3 is the culmination of 24 predecessor prototypes and over 200,000 plasma experiments. It is one of the world’s largest and most powerful operational plasma injectors, having already demonstrated plasma temperatures of five million degrees Celsius, along with 10-millisecond self-sustaining energy confinement time.
IPFN research unit leads the Portuguese participation in the European Fusion programme through EUROfusion, a consortium of national fusion research institutes in the European Union. IPFN has been strongly involved in developing diagnostics for ITER and DEMO and is one of the largest Portuguese research units in physics.
