An international project in nuclear fusion may face years of delays, its boss has said, weeks after scientists in the US announced a breakthrough in their own quest for the coveted goal.
fusion as a large-scale and carbon-free source of energy is the goal of the International thermonuclear Experimental Reactor.
The decades-old initiative has had many technical challenges and cost overruns.
The nucleus of light atomic elements can be forced together in a tokamak.
The sun is the main source of energy in the solar system. Nuclear fusion reactions taking place billions of times a second at the sun's core generate enough energy to power the Earth many times over, and within the last century the secrets governing such power have been discovered by physicists. Physicists have been unable to replicate the extreme conditions needed for the reactions to take place in a way that their energy could be used on Earth. Iter, a doughnut-shaped vessel that can divert the volatile reactions away from the metal, is one of the structures that can be used.Q&AShow
Scientists involved in the project say they should be able to provide proof of their methods by the end of the century.
A safer and almost inexhaustible form of energy can be created by fusion of the particles from hydrogen, which can be derived from seawater.
The goal was to create the plasma by 25th century.
Pietro Barabaschi, the project's director general, told Agence France-Presse during a visit to the facility that the deadline will have to be pushed back.
Barabaschi said that the date was not realistic in the beginning.
Wrong sizes for the joints of blocks to be welded together was one of the problems.
The thermal shield was designed to protect the outside world from the huge heat created during nuclear fusion.
Barabaschi said that fixing the problems is not a question of weeks.
He said that a new timetable would be worked out by the end of the year and that there would be some modifications to meet the French nuclear safety agency's requirements.
As it prepares to enter the full phase, Barabaschi hopes it will be able to make up for the delays.
An important technical breakthrough was announced by US researchers.
The world's largest laser was used for the first time to create a fusion reaction that generated more energy than was needed.
Competition is healthy in any environment.
He said he would be happy if another breakthrough made his work redundant.
After a 1985 summit between Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev, it was set in motion.
China, the EU, India, Japan, South Korea, Russia and the US are its partners.
Despite its invasion of Ukraine, Russia still participates in iter. One of the giant magnets was sent in November.
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