warrenm2

Saw an interesting video from a guy from Lockheed Martin's Skunk Works talking about how they have developed the technology to produce 100MW container sized mini power stations that produce enough output to power a small town of approx 50000 people. They say they should have a prototype working by 2017, and it runs on deuterium and tritium both easily available (from seawater).

This really could be a game changer if they pull it off

http://www.dvice.com/2013-2-22/lockh...wer-four-years

alcazar

iTrader: (2)

And it doesn't result in a nuclear holocaust......

Mouser

Hope they succeed unlike cold fusion which was also going to be a game changer.

warrenm2

Well it is the skunk works, they are well known for doing ground breaking stuff so hopefully something cool will happen from this

neil-h

A small scale fusion device heavily reliant on RF heating, personally I'd be surprised if it ever actually amounts to anything.

SJ_Skyline

Interesting read, proof, as ever, will be in delivery.

dnc

Remember this well. I was at Southampton university chemistry dept when Fleischman (Southampton prof of electrochemistry) and Pons published...............

Terminator X

iTrader: (7)

"No more oil, no more coal, no more nuclear, and not even any solar or wind or hydro will be necessary (unless you're into that sort of thing): fusion has the potential to produce as much affordable clean power as we'll ever need, for the entire world."

The oil companies may have something to say about that

TX.

warrenm2

still need oil for lubricants, plastics etc...

gpssti4

iTrader: (6)

And cars.

Hope it comes to something.

rabbos

The writer needs to learn the difference between a mW (milliwatt ie one thousandth of a watt) and a MW (megawatt ie a million watts)

Would be great if they can pull it off, but don't count on much change on much changes for consumers: fusion tax

Turbohot

Agree.

EddScott

Anyone seen the film Event Horizon?

Pic on BBC website of fusion test.



Gulp!

neil-h

That's just the yanks playing with lasers

scunnered

iTrader: (1)

Fusion energy? Nah, that's old fashioned where I come from.
We in the future use a zero point energy module the size of a suitcase to power an entire country.

neil-h

Sci-fi is a wonderful thing.

warrenm2

I've also been reading up on a competing technology, fission this time, Thorium power, especially from a LFTR (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liquid_fluoride_thorium_reactor). Makes you realise how crap modern nuclear is. Did you realise that modern nuclear stations only use approx 0.7% of the fuel. The rest is thrown away as nuclear waste...

dunx

iTrader: (3)

The current reactors exist to provide material for weapons....

Fusion has been coming for forty years, don't hold your breath waiting.

dunx

P.S. 100 mW is utterly crap a Duracell is better....