Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
Editorials & Other Articles
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
PR: Commonwealth Fusion Systems Magnet Success Propels Fusion Energy Toward the Grid
https://cfs.energy/news-and-media/commonwealth-fusion-systems-magnet-success-propels-fusion-energy-toward-the-grid11.18.2024
Commonwealth Fusion Systems Magnet Success Propels Fusion Energy Toward the Grid
DEVENS, Mass., November 18, 2024 — Commonwealth Fusion Systems (CFS) announced today it successfully built and tested a record-breaking electromagnet called the Central Solenoid Model Coil (CSMC), a major step on the company’s path to bring clean, abundant fusion power to the grid.
The CSMC success, paired with a similar achievement with the Toroidal Field Model Coil (TFMC) test in 2021, validates the two types of high-temperature superconducting (HTS) magnets that CFS needs for SPARC, a machine called a tokamak the company is building to demonstrate net fusion power. The TFMC proved out magnets that operate with steady electrical current, and the CSMC did the same for magnets with current pulses that ramp up and down.
“This is an important milestone on the road to commercialization,” said Brandon Sorbom, Co-Founder and Chief Science Officer. “When we hit the button and put current through the magnet, it performed like a champ and hit all its major test objectives. The fact that our team was able to develop this technology all the way from benchtop to a fully integrated, at-scale superconducting magnet in just a couple of years is huge.”
Over the last four years, CFS developed a HTS cable technology called PIT VIPER for tremendously powerful pulsed-power magnets like SPARC’s central solenoid (CS) and poloidal field (PF) magnets. PIT VIPER’s design includes a new design with internal electrical insulation to minimize heating when rapidly ramping current in an HTS magnet.
…
I consider Commonwealth Fusion Systems (an MIT spin-off) to be one of the leading candidates to produce useful fusion.Commonwealth Fusion Systems Magnet Success Propels Fusion Energy Toward the Grid
DEVENS, Mass., November 18, 2024 — Commonwealth Fusion Systems (CFS) announced today it successfully built and tested a record-breaking electromagnet called the Central Solenoid Model Coil (CSMC), a major step on the company’s path to bring clean, abundant fusion power to the grid.
The CSMC success, paired with a similar achievement with the Toroidal Field Model Coil (TFMC) test in 2021, validates the two types of high-temperature superconducting (HTS) magnets that CFS needs for SPARC, a machine called a tokamak the company is building to demonstrate net fusion power. The TFMC proved out magnets that operate with steady electrical current, and the CSMC did the same for magnets with current pulses that ramp up and down.
“This is an important milestone on the road to commercialization,” said Brandon Sorbom, Co-Founder and Chief Science Officer. “When we hit the button and put current through the magnet, it performed like a champ and hit all its major test objectives. The fact that our team was able to develop this technology all the way from benchtop to a fully integrated, at-scale superconducting magnet in just a couple of years is huge.”
Over the last four years, CFS developed a HTS cable technology called PIT VIPER for tremendously powerful pulsed-power magnets like SPARC’s central solenoid (CS) and poloidal field (PF) magnets. PIT VIPER’s design includes a new design with internal electrical insulation to minimize heating when rapidly ramping current in an HTS magnet.
…