Tokamak Energy, a U.K.-based energy company that is working to make fusion reactors into a reality, has unveiled the first look of its nuclear power plant to be built in the early 2030s. When ready the power plant is designed to generate enough electricity to power 50,000 homes.
As countries look to reduce their carbon emissions, renewable sources of energy like wind and solar have hogged the limelight. While these sources are vital in our transition to cleaner energy, they also need large energy storage systems to tide over the problems of intermittency, as reported byNuclear fusion power provides a round-the-clock solution that can be switched on to meet the energy demand. The technology, though, still needs to be perfected.
The problem, however, is containing the plasma that is generated to facilitate the fusion of atoms. With temperatures higher than that of the core of the Sun, the plasma cannot come in contact with the reactor walls, a feat achieved by strong magnets arranged in a ring-shaped deviceThe U.K.-based company derives its name from the device and has been working over the years to deliver improvements to the plasma holding container.
Based on the success of the ST-E1, Tokamak Energy intends to roll out 500 Megawatt plants at various locations across the globe. The company is confident that its designs can be deployed at lower investment and operating costs and are much safer than its fission counterparts. From the designs, it is abundantly clear that a fusion power plant won't look anything like the power plants of today.