‘GREEN ENERGY GENERATION VIA OPTICAL LASER PRESSURE INITIATED NONTHERMAL NUCLEAR FUSION’ PAPER
Two Australian scientists collaborating with HB11 Energy have just had a paper published in Optical Engineering – a monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal covering research, development and uses of optical science and engineering.
Good friends and rock climbing enthusiasts, Francois Ladouceur (UNSW) and Alex Fuerbach (Macquarie University) co-authored the ‘Green energy generation via optical laser pressure initiated nonthermal nuclear fusion’ paper with HB11 Energy’s Prof. Heinrich Hora and Dr Warren McKenzie, who are also affiliated with UNSW Sydney. The paper explains how the use of non-thermal radiation pressure generated via chirped-pulse amplified laser systems can trigger the fusion of Hydrogen and Boron-11 nuclei. In turn, this process can produce clean energy in the form of kinetic alpha particles, sidestepping nuclear radiation problems because of the aneutronic nature of the reaction.
This reaction also solves issues for fusion technology involving the two heavy isotopes of Hydrogen – Deuterium and Tritium – that requires fuel to be heated to temperatures in the order of 50 million Kelvin and to be kept stable under extreme pressure conditions. Using optical laser pressure, the process becomes non-thermal, drastically simplifying the design of a reactor that could ultimately produce clean, safe and unlimited energy.
As the paper explains “The rapid rate of climate change and the resulting massive impacts on the environment caused by our reliance on fossil fuels, means that the development of clean energy sources has become one of the most pressing issues of our times.” The United States National Academy of Science, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) has recently recommended a focus on research into nuclear fusion technology, which has the enormous potential to play an essential role in the future of humanity.
Having this work published by the Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE) is another step in the right direction for HB11 Energy. We thank Francois and Alex for their support and look forward to our continued collaboration.
View ‘Green energy generation via optical laser pressure initiated nonthermal nuclear fusion’ paper
