SUMMARY: NUCLEAR FUSION

Nuclear fusion is the greatest way to get energy in todays world. It is  viewed as the holy grail of energy. It harnesses the power of the sun and stars.

• how it is classified- it is a nuclear energy source
• how the source works-it greatly varidependinging on what you are fusing together. But as a general over view you force 2 particles together and capture the energy given off.
• where it comes from- most elements used are found in the enviornment but some like tritium have to be bred orobtained from other reactions.

Current use- it is still under development

Availability- endless suply no matter where you live

Sustainability- 100% renewable immediately

The costs of use- very expensive to the point it has to be international cooperation.

• setup- as little as $1000 for a personal reactor in your basement
• operation- small staff or smart people and maitenece people.
• maintenance- not cheap, it depends on the kind of reactor that your working on.
• typical time for return of investment cost- depends on the kind of reactor and the scale of the source. A house reactor would payfor Itself within the year, a larger one would take less than 10 if used at full capasity.

Advantages & limitations/disadvantages of use social- smaller and cleaner source of energy,  needs lots of money for current research.

• physical- produces large scale energy, if something goes wrong devistating to its surroundings.
• technological- currently has limited abilities due to lack of funding.
• energy conversion factor- output is at 1000% currently 50~> 500

Environmental concerns and benefits- reduces mines and factories,  accidents can destroy half an ecosystem.

Future prospects- if increased funding could be a world power source by 2045 Questions & key points for the class to discuss- why aren't we funding it more already. In the ITER is 45% funded by the USA and 6% by many others. We are pushing with lil support.

http://discovermagazine.com/2010/extreme-universe/18-do-it-yourself-basement-fusion
http://world-nuclear.org/info/Current-and-Future-Generation/Nuclear-Fusion-Power/#.UmFVeX1OnMI
http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/nucene/fusion.html