Dawn of fusion Daresbury’s aim
SCIENTISTS at Daresbury Laboratory are to bring their expertise to bear in the UK’s efforts to achieve nuclear fusion power.
Fusion happens when two atoms fuse and release energy as opposed to fission when atoms split.
It is seen by many as a Holy Grail of energy production combining safety with an abundance of energy once set in motion, and is how the Earth’s Sun produces energy.
The UK’s bid to achieve fusion power has now received a boost via a collaboration between Daresbury Laboratory’s parent organisation the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) and the UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA).
Under the programme, the STFC and UKAEA will launch a centre of excellence in “extreme scale computing in fusion” at the Hartree Centre, at Daresbury Laboratory.
Hartree is already home to some of the UK’s most advanced computing, data and artificial intelligence (AI) technology.
Under the collaboration, UKAEA will base some staff at Hartree with the goal of developing sophisticated computing capabilities towards the goal of creating commercial fusion.
An STFC spokeswoman said challenges to developing fusion include managing the plasma where fusion happens as well as materials and engineering design.
It is hoped “digital twin” fusion power plant designs can be run via computer simulators on supercomputers to develop virtual reactors there than via expensive, real world prototypes.
The announcement came against a backdrop of heightened awareness and concern about the need to decarbonise economies after a summer when wildfires engulfed coastal regions of the Mediterranean, Yakutia in Russia, Canada, and California, in addition to devastating floods including in Germany and Japan.
Governments around the world are racing to achieve fusion power, with the US reporting a key recent breakthrough in the field.
Construction is also under way of the “world’s largest fusion experiment” at ITER in France, whose membership includes China, the EU, India, Japan, Korea, Russia and the United States.
Following Daresbury’s announcement, Tim Bestwick, UKAEA chief technology officer, said: “The Hartree Centre
and UKAEA each have extraordinary world-leading capabilities in their fields, so this unique relationship can really accelerate the vital mission of developing sustainable fusion energy which we believe will play a key role in our low-carbon future.”
Alison Kennedy, Hartree Centre director, said: “This new centre will allow fusion specialists to work shoulder to shoulder with our own scientists and engineers to co-design tools and methods for accelerating the UK fusion programme.
“Our relationship will further enhance our current collaborations with ATOS, Nvidia, IBM and other vendors.
“We are as excited as UKAEA about the UK Government’s prioritisation of fusion energy in their ‘Ten Point Plan for a Green Industrial Revolution’.
“Our own roadmap is strongly aligned with this document, and we believe strongly that Hartree Centre has unique, world-class expertise that will be essential for the timely delivery of commercial fusion energy.”