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Robo-Connery OP t1_j07vj2p wrote

Reply to comment by pluteski in National Ignition Facility (NIF) announces net positive energy fusion experiment by Robo-Connery

Destroyed in the explosion!

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pluteski t1_j07wulw wrote

Makes sense. In a working system, would the plasmified material be recovered before the next ignition, or would it just deposit onto the walls of the firing chamber?

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Robo-Connery OP t1_j08cxal wrote

During the shot there is a constant removal of helium from the outer edge of the machine. A region called the scrape off layer. which is a lot cooler than the rest. The fuel is replaced with pellets of ice fired into the machine.

It is essential that unburnt fuel is recovered and used in another experiment. Well it is essential that tritium is recovered because it's expensive.

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pluteski t1_j08eqce wrote

I suppose that the gold from the hohlraum is also recovered from the scrape off layer too, then?

I'm just curious whether/how the NIF's inertial containment approach would scale if it was firing one per second (say), 24x7. Not so much because gold is expensive, but rather, would that amount of gold start to muck up the works after a while?

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Robo-Connery OP t1_j08i4zx wrote

Sorry the scrape off layer is a tokamak concept. I am not sure how ICF machines are supposed to handle waste.

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