From black technology to super engineering

"Everyone, good evening, today is Monday, April 22, 2024, the fourteenth day of the third lunar month. Welcome to today's news program."

"The main content of today's program is that my country's controllable nuclear fusion reactor 'Kuafu' successfully completed its first 24-hour test run..."

"Please see the detailed report below."

"Our country's controllable nuclear fusion reactor Kuafu completed its ignition at 9:00 am on the 21st. As of press time, the controllable nuclear fusion is still in continuous and stable operation... Through remote video, the project team was sympathized and encouraged, and Important instructions were given."

"... points out that the success of controllable nuclear fusion is a symbol of human civilization entering a new era, a hope for solving the energy crisis, a feat of modern science, and a national important weapon."

"...Emphasis that realizing the stable operation of controllable nuclear fusion is only the first step. The most important goal is to use controllable nuclear fusion to bring stable energy income, benefit the country, benefit the people, and benefit mankind."

"Ye Ming, the chief designer of the Kuafu project, and Luo Qi, the chief engineer, said: The Kuafu project team will make persistent efforts to launch a demonstration commercial power generation attempt on the basis of the successful operation of controllable nuclear fusion."

...

The broadcast of the news network did not detonate the Internet media in an instant like a hot news in the past.

Instead... it was silent for at least half an hour.

Within half an hour after the broadcast, except for a few voices on social media, the entire Internet media was in an indescribable state of silence.

It's like the silence before a nuclear bomb goes off.

It also seemed that someone was deliberately closing the gate to prevent any sound from being made.

And half an hour later, the global Internet...

It exploded.

The news that Kuafu Project has been running smoothly for more than 24 hours with a Q value of more than 10, and has been running continuously, instantly occupied the top search list of all social media in the world, as well as the headlines of all traditional media on the Internet.

...

Three days later, Ye Ming packed his luggage and returned to the provincial capital.

During these three days, he refused all the interviews, held several meetings with the research group, and made plans for future experiments and observations. He was really busy.

But in his spare time, he took the time to reply some congratulatory emails from well-known foreign professors who had been communicating with him, such as Horns, Ezio and so on.

Moreover, he paid special attention to social media.

In the face of this kind of scientific and technological project that promotes all mankind, the domestic media needless to say, are full of exciting and positive reports. Even in foreign countries, except for a few who are a bit sour, the general attitude is still congratulations.

Of course, in addition to congratulations, CNN, CBS, FOX, and NBC also sent out a lot of reflection papers.

This made Ye Ming and He Mo extremely happy.

...

BYD drove onto the high speed under the control of Ita.

"Professor Ye." He Mo let go of his hands and looked back at Ye Ming.

"Call your name." Ye Ming leaned on the back seat and said lazily, "Call me to Yanbi again."

"You!" He Mo immediately opened his eyes, "You... dare!"

"Hey, why don't you try?"

When He Mo came over last year, he was directly connected to Professor Tang's research group, and he was regarded as Old Tang's Ph.D. Today, with Ye Ming being officially hired as a professor by the school, she will naturally become Ye Ming's first graduate student and also the first doctoral student.

Frankly speaking, this is inconsistent with the "rules".

But who cares?

Countless people sharpen their heads and want to send students to Ye Ming's subordinates. What rules are there...

Being able to appear in the title of chief designer in the news broadcast, and ranked ahead of Academician Roach, shows the official attitude.

"You are ruthless!" He Mo turned his head.

"Angry?" Ye Ming looked at her profile with a smile: "Then I apologize."

"..."

When he turned his head again, He Mo already had a smile in his eyes: "Actually, I just want to ask..."

As she spoke, she turned around, thought for a while and looked at the robot sitting in the passenger seat: "Are you Aita or Ita?"

"you guess."

"Ita, stop in the emergency lane."

"receive."

The car came to a complete stop, He Mo glanced at the camera, and his whole body like a civet came out from the gap in the front driver's seat to the back row.

Because the weather was getting hotter, she was wearing just a very ordinary white open-necked shirt. When she bent down, the faint mountains wrapped in lace came into Ye Ming's eyes.

Ye Ming was dumbfounded: "Fuck... trough, are you coming here like this?"

"save time."

He Mo propped up the rear seat with both hands, turned around and sat beside Ye Ming.

She straightened her hair and coughed lightly: "Ita, drive."

...

"Why, all of a sudden, controllable nuclear fusion is realized?"

He Mo held up his mobile phone, which displayed the hot search list of a well-known domestic technology question-and-answer platform.

Although three days have passed, the heat of controllable fusion obviously cannot be viewed with the experience of ordinary hot events.

In the past three days, there have been hot searches on various channels, and topics related to controllable fusion have been repeated over and over again, with different methods.

For example, today's hot list is number one.

"Why is controllable nuclear fusion, which has been going on forever for fifty years, suddenly realized? Does this mean that we have got rid of the shackles of energy?"

Seeing the doubts in He Mo's eyes, Ye Ming smiled, and then clicked on the topic on the screen of her mobile phone.

There are already thousands of answers to this question.

"Aren't there so many answers?"

"The standard answer is to say it out of your mouth."

Ye Ming took her phone, quickly flipped through a few pages, and then his eyes flickered. After clicking on an answer, he handed the phone to He Mo.

"That answer is well stated and represents my point of view."

...

This is an answer written by a respondent named "Professional Fishing".

"Why did controllable nuclear fusion go from 50 years to sustainable operation all of a sudden?

Because God Ye is awesome! God Ye is awesome! God Ye is awesome!

Say important things three times!

Here is the topic.

Controlled nuclear fusion is not a new thing, and its theory is already more familiar than a 25-year-old girl.

The most popular tokamak device now was invented by Azimovich and others at the Kurchatov Institute in Moscow, Soviet Union in the 1950s.

In the past two decades, whether it is the international cooperative controllable nuclear fusion research program ITER, or various major countries that are qualified to participate in this game, they have also "lighted up the sun" to varying degrees.

Even China took the lead in breaking through the 100-second mark.

It can be said that you can't even make it into the street tabloids just by igniting the achievements of the fusion reactor.

However, the previous controllable nuclear fusion has always had two major problems.

The first problem is the plasma circulator, which determines the temperature, density, specific pressure, and upper limit of the bootstrap current—but this problem is actually not very difficult, because the circulator used in this fusion is an iterative The No. 3 circulator can reach a high temperature of 180 million degrees and operate stably.

This is not a technology that can be achieved without black technology.

The second problem is to increase the Q value-because in essence, the tokamak can perform miracles through vigorous efforts.

As long as you don't consider the Q value, then it must be able to run stably.

Kuafu adopted Professor Ye Ming's "black technology" design, using dysprosium as the material, and using the YE field to confine the plasma beam. While saving a lot of energy, it also solved the neutron confinement problem incidentally.

Therefore, as long as there is no problem with the YE field generator, the fusion will continue indefinitely.

Controllable fusion has never required a breakthrough in inner wall materials.

Because no material can withstand the high temperature of hundreds of millions of degrees. "

"And the second question, does it mean that we have got rid of the shackles of energy?"

"The current fusion is deuterium-tritium fusion. The cost of deuterium is very low, but the cost of tritium... is ridiculously high."

"Although the technology of controlled nuclear fusion has matured to the point where commercial reactors can be built, the source and output of tritium are still extremely limited."

"So, my answer is..."

"The revolution has not succeeded, and we are still not free from the shackles of energy."

Seeing the answer, He Mo raised his head in astonishment.

Ye Ming nodded with a smile.

He Mo: "Then..."

"Because it is the first step towards space and helium-3 fusion." Ye Ming looked at her: "This answer is very good, why don't you like it?"

He Mo snorted: "Better than a 25-year-old girl... It's why he doesn't have many compliments."