Connect with us
A kilowatt for a million dollars A US company is A kilowatt for a million dollars A US company is

News

A kilowatt for a million dollars. A US company is developing a compact fusion reactor for spaceships for the Pentagon, but the energy it generates will be very expensive at first.

Published

on

Private company Avalanche Energy is developing a small fusion reactor for the US military and plans to send its prototype into space by 2027. This was stated by the head of the company, Robin Langtry.

The device is called Orbitron, and if successful, it will become a kind of battery that will generate megawatts of energy. The Orbitron is based on the principle of an ion trap: the device captures high-speed ions, which begin to rotate around the cathode in a tiny orbit. The smaller the orbit, the higher the probability of fusion of light atomic nuclei into heavier ones – this reaction is accompanied by the release of a large amount of energy (this is approximately how the Sun works).

A kilowatt for a million dollars.  A US company is developing a compact fusion reactor for spaceships for the Pentagon, but the energy it generates will be very expensive at first.

Promising spacecraft could run on nuclear reactors like Orbitron

The idea is relatively simple in words, but in practice there are a lot of difficulties. For example, the Orbitron requires a very high voltage to operate. However, if engineers manage to solve all the difficulties, then a compact fusion reactor can change the rules of the game in many areas. Actually, such a device can take the form of a battery of the future.

So far, the prototype operates at a voltage of about 100 kilovolts, but the developers expect that it will soon be possible to triple it. Engineers took as a basis the principle of SpaceX: test, make mistakes, fix mistakes.

“As the price drops, more and more markets open up for something like this.” Langtry said. — “I think we will start with a million dollars per kilowatt. When we get to $100,000 per kilowatt, more applications will probably open up: aviation, drones. And then, when we get to $10,000 or $3,000 per kilowatt, we will start competing with other forms of terrestrial energy, such as fuel cells, batteries, and so on.”

One area of ​​application for the Orbitron could be spacecraft. In May of this year, the Pentagon announced it was awarding contracts to nuclear technology companies to build “next-generation nuclear propulsion and power systems.” Avalanche Energy is one of them.

The goal is to successfully demonstrate a prototype nuclear reactor in Earth orbit by 2027. Nuclear power sources aboard the spacecraft will provide it with the electricity it needs to operate. “The bottom line is that chemical and solar systems are not capable of providing as much energy as is needed for future US Department of Defense missions.”— said the representative of the American military department.

Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.

News

“What’s hiding under the hood? "Moskvich 6"”? Details about the engines of the new model

Published

on

Whats hiding under the hood quotMoskvich 6quot Details about the

Everything is gearing up for the start of sales of Moskvich 6: the plant has already started talking about the new product in its Telegram channel. The last message talks about power units.

Whats hiding under the hood quotMoskvich 6quot Details about the

There will be two of them: in the base – a 136-horsepower turbo engine (with a torque of 200 Nm) paired with a CVT, in the top version – a 174-horsepower GDI engine (with a torque of 280 Nm) and a “robot” with two clutches wet type.

The first version of the power unit is conducive to quiet trips with comfort, and the second is suitable for lovers of dynamic driving“, said Moskvich. It is also reported that the top-end engine has a direct injection engine, double phase control and increased performance turbocharging.

Continue Reading

Electric Cars

Volkswagen and Audi production saved: global IT failure resolved

Published

on

Volkswagen and Audi production saved global IT failure resolved

The problems in the IT systems of the German automaker Volkswagen have been resolved, and production at the company’s factories in Germany is resuming. This was reported by the Bild newspaper with reference to a representative of the automaker.

“The IT infrastructure problems on the Volkswagen network were resolved overnight and the network is operating reliably again,” a Volkswagen spokesman said on Thursday, September 28.

Volkswagen and Audi production saved: global IT failure resolved

The global production network is up and running, affected factories are back online and production should proceed as planned. Individual systems may still be unstable during the transition phase. Volkswagen found no indication that external influences caused the failure.

Earlier it became known that an IT failure affected most of the Volkswagen group. A significant part of IT systems and production was affected. In some cases, conveyors stopped and email did not work. The problem also affected other brands of the group, including Audi.

Continue Reading

News

The next generation Mazda 6 will have a 3.3 liter engine and will be the “culmination of Kodo design”

Published

on

The next generation Mazda 6 will have a 33 liter

The next generation Mazda 6 sedan is in development, as reported by the Japanese portal Best Car, citing its own sources. The first details about the platform and possible engines of the new Mazda 6 have been published.

The new Mazda 6 is expected to follow in the footsteps of the latest Mazda CX-60 and CX-90 crossovers, built on the Skyactiv Scalable Architecture platform with a classic layout, that is, with a longitudinal engine and basic rear-wheel drive.

The next generation Mazda 6 will have a 3.3 liter engine and will be the

The success of the Mazda CX-60 and CX-90 in North America, which exceeded the manufacturer’s expectations, became the basis for the launch of development of a new “six” on a new platform. An interesting engine range is also promised, which will include diesel and gasoline engines of 2.5 and 3.3 liters, as well as a hybrid based on a 2.5-liter internal combustion engine.

It is reported that the new Mazda 6 will not be a traditional sedan, but rather an elegant four-door coupe that is the “culmination of Kodo design.” That is, you should not expect a completely new design. Rather, the new design will be a modified version of the previous generation.

The note presents photographs of the Mazda Vision coupe presented back in 2017, which still looks very interesting.

The next generation Mazda 6 will have a 3.3 liter engine and will be the

The next generation Mazda 6 will premiere no earlier than 2025. The car has never been seen testing yet.

Continue Reading

Most Popular