Thermonuclear reactions for future power production

Population is growing rapidly and the need to develop sustainable energy is a priority
for most countries around the world.

Conventional power stations are no longer the way forward. For one, they release
huge amounts of pollution, contributing to global warming, which can play a role in
habitat destruction due to climate change. Secondly, coal is a finite resource and the
day will arrive when it is extremely scarce.

Scientists are looking into the possibility of using nuclear fusion to meet our energy
demands in the future. ITER (International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor), a
nuclear fusion reactor, is currently being developed and is predicted to start
operation in 2020. The reactor will fuse deuterium (Hydrogen 2) and tritium
(Hydrogen 3) to create Helium and release huge amounts of energy. This will not be
easy to achieve and nor will it be cost effective. The reactor will reach soaring
temperatures that are almost 10 times hotter than the sun and will make use of
super-strength magnets in order to squeeze the positive nuclei together. The high
temperatures will be very difficult to control so the safety issues surrounding these
reactors would require thorough testing. The projected cost for the project is around
10.5 billion. This project will run for many years and projections show that if
everything goes to plan commercial power plants may be running between 2050 and
2080.

Using nuclear fusion to generate electricity in the future would have the same
advantages as using traditional nuclear power. No carbon dioxide is produced and
very large amounts of electricity can be generated. Yet, unlike nuclear fission,
nuclear fusion does not produce radioactive waste.

Could Fusion be carried out without high temperatures?

Cold fusion
Cold fusion is not yet accepted by most scientists, so it is not a realistic method of
producing energy at the moment.
A group of scientists have claimed that they achieved cold fusion nuclear fusion at
ordinary temperatures and pressures. There has been difficulty validating the cold
fusion results. Some groups of scientists report that it happens while other groups
are unable to get it to work. It is important in science that experiments are
repeatable, and produce the same or similar results.
If it did happen, cold fusion could be developed to provide almost limitless and cheap
electricity. It would also make the international project to develop a fusion power
station using high temperatures and pressures pointless.