Abstract
Success has been achieved from research and development work conducted since 1986 on a unique concept for creating and controlling nuclear fusion reactions, in an inertial-electrodynamic fusion (IEF) device of special, quasi-spherical configuration. Final design insights were proven by experiment in Oct/Nov 2005, from which full-scale designs can be determined. This allows demonstration of full-scale, clean, nuclear fusion power systems, based on use of p+B11 → 3 He4. This demonstration will require about $ 200 M (USD) over 5 years, with an IEF machine of 2.5-3 m in diameter, operated at over 100 MW. It will open the door to superformance, practical, economical spaceflight, as well as clean fusion power, and mark the end of dependence on fossil fuels. The main point of this paper is to present these results of EMC2‘s 20 years of study and research of this approach to clean fusion power. This concept derives from early work (1960‘s) of P. T. Farnsworth and R. L. Hirsch (F/H), who used spherical screen grids biased to high potentials to energize and accelerate ions to the center, where fusion occurred. Ion collisions with grids gave unavoidable losses, limiting power gain to less than 0.001. The EMC2 device avoids these by using energetic electrons, trapped in a quasi-spherical polyhedral magnetic field, to generate a spherical electric potential well. Ions dropped into this well at its edge will accelerate towards its center increasing in density and kinetic energy, collide at high energy, and make fusion. By this unique design, the power loss problem is shifted from grid collision of ions (F/H) to that of electron transport losses across high B fields to the confining magnets. The two competing phenomena, power loss and fusion generation, are thus decoupled by the basic design approach, and each can be optimized separately. The concept was invented by Dr. R.W. Bussard in 1983, patented in 1989 (and lastly in 2006), and studied by EMC2 since 1986. Design studies of IEF-based space propulsion (AIAA Prop. Conf, 1993,97; IAC, Graz, 1994, Toulouse, 2001) show that this can yield engine systems whose thrust/mass ratio is 1000x higher for any given specific impulse (Isp), over a range of 1000 < Isp < 1E6 sec, than any other advanced propulsion means, with consequent 100x reduction in costs of spaceflight.
INTRODUCTION AND SUMMARY
EMC2 has been conducting Research and Development(R&D) on its unique concept for controlled inertial-electrodynamic-fusion (IEF) power generation since itsinvention in 1983/84 (Ref. 4, and other patents filed in2006), with detailed studies since 1986/87. The EMC2concept is electrodynamic, rather than electrostatic, asinitially studied by earlier workers (Ref 1,2,3) in which fixed(static) grids were used to generate confining electric fields.R&D work on the physics issues of the concept has beencarried out under EMC2 and US Department of Defensesponsorship since 1987, with experimental work since 1989.Early work (1987/94) was reported at meetings of theAmerican Physical Society‘s Division of Plasma Physics,and in a wide array of internal and external technical reportsand journal articles (Refs. 2-16). However, by direction ofits U.S.Navy sponsors, EMC2 was precluded frompublishing technical papers on its R&D work and resultsfrom late 1994 through 2005.
During this eleven year period it was acceptable to publishtechnical papers on the potential application of this newhigh-performance fusion energy system to space flightsystems and applications without disclosing the means toachieve such energy systems. And, of course, one veryimportant application of this concept, if successful, hasalways been to provide power to drive superperformance end, a series of technical papers was written and presented atmeetings and conferences in this period (Refs. 20-23).
Results of these studies showed that IEF power sourcescould be used for a wide variety of aerospace propulsionapplications, ranging from HTOL vehicles from earth-to-orbit, to fast transit vehicles to the orbit of Saturn andthroughout the solar system, along the lines first laid downby Hunter (Ref 24), and even to the fringes of interstellarspace (Ref. 22). Their potential performance exceeded thatof all other rational alternatives by a factor of the order of1000x; that is the engine systems provided Isp 1000x higherat the same thrust/mass ratio, or thrust/mass ratios 1000xhigher than others at the same Isp. Figures 1 and 2 showschematic outlines of the types of engine systemsconsidered, and the general performance spectrum justdescribed.
Since the R & D program has now concluded, for want offurther funding, just as it reached final success, it is nowpossible to publish the results of the work of the past 12-19years. Accordingly, this paper presents an informal shortsummary of these results and conclusions of the R&D workof EMC2, over the period since 1987, on the Polywellinertial-electrodynamic concept for clean (non-radioactive)nuclear fusion and fusion-electric power. This summarypresumes a general knowledge of the classical basic physicsphenomena that this embodies and on which its performanceis based. It also summarizes the present prospects and needs
