US Team To Build Nuclear Wall To Withstand 180 Million°F Artificial Star Power

A groundbreaking initiative in the pursuit of clean, limitless energy has received a significant boost as a team of researchers embarks on a mission to develop materials capable of withstanding the extreme conditions inside fusion reactors. The U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) has awarded $2.3 million to the University of Kentucky to spearhead this ambitious endeavor.

At the helm of the project is Dr. John Balk, a leading materials engineering expert, who aims to address a fundamental challenge in fusion energy—creating materials that can endure intense radiation and temperatures exceeding 180 million degrees Fahrenheit (100 million degrees Celsius).

Fusion power, often described as capturing and harnessing a miniature star, has long been seen as the ultimate clean energy solution. However, one of its biggest hurdles is developing materials that can serve as the inner wall of a fusion reactor, a crucial component that must withstand continuous exposure to high-energy plasma. Dr. Balk and his team plan to design high-performance alloys and composites that can maintain durability over the reactor’s lifespan.

“This is a great opportunity for the expertise of our team behind the Materials Science Research Priority Area to solve one of the key challenges in radiation-heavy industries: how to enhance thermal conductivity without sacrificing material strength,” Balk states.

A major focus of the research is tungsten, a metal known for its extraordinarily high melting point but notorious for its brittleness. To enhance its properties, Balk’s team is experimenting with alloys that combine tungsten with elements like chromium (Cr) and tantalum (Ta), seeking to create a high-melting, mechanically robust material.

“We’re going to make materials that are based on porous tungsten-based alloys, but they’re optimized for the mechanical and thermal properties we want,” Balk explains. “We’re going to backfill them with a high-thermal-conductivity ceramic at small length scales so that the radiation damage can be shed more easily to the interfaces.”

To further refine their materials, the researchers plan to integrate machine learning techniques. Dr. Beth Guiton, a professor of materials science and chemistry, highlights the significance of this approach in enhancing strength and radiation resistance.

“Keeping the plasma contained without accidentally stopping the fusion reaction or damaging your reactor materials is a challenge and a huge roadblock in this work,” Guiton notes. “The temperatures involved are sufficient to vaporize the structure should they come into contact with it, yet we need to be able to extract the enormous amount of energy evolved so that it can be useful.”

The success of this project could be a game-changer for the future of clean energy. A commercial fusion power plant would mean an abundant, safe, and sustainable energy source, free from the limitations of fossil fuels.

“Balk’s work is important for Kentucky science; it’s important for fusion energy and for advancing U.S. energy technology,” Guiton emphasizes.

ARPA-E Director Evelyn Wang also underscores the significance of the initiative, stating, “ARPA-E is a leader in supporting technologies that could make commercial fusion a reality on a much shorter timescale.” She adds that the project is part of a broader $30 million funding initiative aimed at making fusion power plants viable.