Photo Credit: Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
In 2022, scientists at California’s Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory had a historic scientific breakthrough when they managed to achieve fusion “ignition” for the very first time.
The process involved firing 192 extremely powerful lasers at a tiny capsule containing fusion fuel. Once the lasers entered it, the result was a 3-million-degree oven that heated the capsule until it imploded, thus achieving the goal of ignition.
However, while an exciting and historic first step in creating fusion energy, the laser beams still required the consumption of a massive amount of grid power. That means the next step in creating and utilizing fusion energy is to demonstrate that this system can produce even more energy.
As such, according to Fast Company, a new startup in the Bay Area called Inertia aims to commercialize the lab’s method for fusion energy with an end goal of achieving affordable, clean energy that is virtually limitless.
One of the fusion energy researchers from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Andrea Kritcher, is founding the company with the help of Stanford professor, Mike Dunne, and tech entrepreneur, Jeff Lawson.
The first step is to create lasers that are significantly more powerful than the ones used in the original experiments. Jeff Lawson told Fast Company, “Number one, we have to build the world’s most energetic laser — a giant laser that is far more energetic and far more powerful than what they have at [the national lab], but also is actually physically much smaller.”
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Additionally, the team needs to figure out how to mass-produce the tiny fuel capsules in factories. The final step of the process will be the creation of a new power plant.
Fusion energy (occurring when two lighter atoms combine to form a heavier one) has been a long-time dream for many, as in theory, it could provide people with nearly limitless and extremely affordable clean energy, negating the need to utilize dirty energy sources that contribute heat-trapping gases to the atmosphere.
With this almost endless renewable and clean energy source, our water and air would become cleaner, reducing health issues in our communities.
Fusion energy may even have the potential to ensure food security and provide cleaner drinking water for communities, as it could make technologies such as vertical farming and water desalination less expensive.
While there are some concerns when it comes to nuclear energy, such as fusion, including higher upfront costs, possible links to weapons proliferation, and concerns about the safety of handling radioactive waste, the benefits of nuclear energy may be more than worth it.
With nuclear energy, power plants could create large amounts of low-carbon electricity, which could complement existing renewable energy sources and support global energy security.
As for Inertia, within the next 18 months, the company plans to have early design proofs for the lasers and capsules. They hope to have scaled-down versions of assembly lines for the parts within the next four years, and believe that a working plant could be a possibility within the next decade, with a fully actualized power plant ready in at least 12 years.
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