Patent Number: 047298650
Section: summary

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to improvements in nuclear power generation. The oil embargo of 1973 illustrated the vulnerability of the industrialized world to the interruption of its energy supply, and since that time considerable work and research have been done on alternate types of energy, particularly energies having an endless source of supply. One such source of energy is nuclear fission, which clearly has inherent disadvantages, such as long term radioactivity and the resulting negative public opinion. Design projects are now under way to test the practicality of generating power from the thermonuclear fusion of ions trapped by magnetic fields. Torus-shaped reactors have been built which seek to burn deuteruim-tritium mixtures. An alternative research project, a structure identified as a tandem mirror, comprises a device in which a plasma is confined by magnetic and electrostatic barriers at each end of a linear sequence of magnets. To date no device has demonstrated a particle containment adequate to provide a practical fusion reactor. Other disadvantages associated with the existing machines are extensive lithium blanket requirements and the problem of random, uncontrollable 14 MeV neutron emission. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to the present invention and forming a primary objective thereof, a nuclear fusion reactor is provided that has a low contruction cost, that provides a unique plasma self-containment with relatively modest magnetic fields, that has a high output of energy, and that directs its high energy neutrons into lithium blankets of limited size while largely confining neutron damage to specific, easily replaceable structures. In carrying out these objectives, a metallic wave guide of rectangular cross section is positioned between super-conducting upper and lower extended electromagnets of horseshoe-type cross section, producing oppositely-directed vertical magnetic fields in close proximity through the continuous wave guide along its entire perimeter. Vertical particle containment is achieved through the use of very narrow and closely spaced ferromagnetic by-pass vanes, which produce a type of composite magnetic field composed of narrow, curving segments spaced between wider, weaker layers of vertical magnetic field across all four corners of the wave guide cross section along its entire perimeter, rather like double-edged razor blades embedded in a pound of cheese. These narrow, curving magnetic fields reverse the vertical components of horizontally oscillating plasma ions, and in conjunction with a horizontally resonating ionic wave actively damp the vertical components of the ionic oscillations, which together produce a highly effective type of plasma self-containment. High energy deuterons are injected into the wave guide from an accelerator, and being tangentially introduced, are caused to oscillate across the oppositely-directed magnetic field boundary in circular arc lengths with some specific intersection angle and at some specific frequency in accordance with the strength of the vertical magnetic fields. The injected deuterons spontaneously arrange themselves into two narrow, oppositely-phased groups, constituting a horizontally pulsating, self-bombarding wave, resonating along the continuous wave guide which has an effective perimeter equal to an odd number of half-wavelengths of the ionic oscillation frequency. Electrons from an incandescent wire are distributed through the plasma along the boundary between the vertical magnetic fields and move horizontally inward and outward within the resonating groups of ions under the influence of microwave frequency electric fields, and axially in the same manner because of the inductance of the rapidly converging and diverging ionic wave. The magnetic viscosity of the powerful magnetic fields forces the electrons to arrange themselves into systems of pulsating, parallel charges, producing highly organized microwave patterns which propagate within the narrow ionic wave and permit the electrons to ratchet their way rapidly across the magnetic field lines. The plasma ions absorb energy from the powerful microwave component of the resonating plasma pulsations, creating a circulating energy flow which lowers the electron temperature and reduces plasma radiation energy losses. The electrons also produce a transformer effect upon the plasma ions due to their inductance which selectively reduces each of the oscillating ions to the vicinity of the mean amplitude and energy level of that type of ion. More importantly, the powerfully organized plasma pulsations reincorporate each type of oscillating ions to beta-1 densities counter to the effects of coulomb scattering; largely because the resonating ionic wave develops a pulsating self-field which increases outwardly within each narrow group of ions and which continuously maintains its stability. A type of ionic bellows-action is developed in the plasma due to the extremely high density at its inner pulsation node which further reduces the electron temperature. The resonating plasma pulsations automatically adjust the various intersection angles between the oscillating ions and the oppositely-directed magnetic field boundary to maintain the resonant frequency in the existence of changing magnetic field strengths and ionic energy levels, which serves to automatically adjust the resonating ionic wave to the length of the wave guide. Deuterium and tritium neutral particle beams are injected tangentially along the magnetic field boundary, become ionized, and the particles arrange themselves at the proper amplitudes and intersection angles to allow them to become incorporated into the plasma pulsations. Energy is added to the plasma from external oscillators of the proper frequency through a system of equally spaced probes extending to the wave guide surface. The powerfully resonating plasma pulsations may be compared to a giant, nuclear-driven oscillator which produces a reverse-voltage counter to the external oscillator impulses and which increases with ionic density and energy levels. During an initial start-up procedure the external oscillator voltage is maintained above that of the pulsating plasma, energy flows into the wave guide, and the particle energy levels are maintained until an ignition density can be obtained. After ignition has been achieved the situation is reversed and energy is removed from the plasma through the external oscillators to maintain an optimal collision energy level for the narrow, beta-1 groups of head-on colliding tritons and deuterons at the plasma inner pulsation node. Replacement deuterium and tritium ions are introduced into the wave guide and are rapidly raised to their mean energy levels by the electron transformer effect and by the circulating microwave and ionic bellowsaction energies, while suprathermal alpha particles produced by fusion events are reduced to the mean energy level of the helium ash by the same process. Various types of alternate fusion reactions are briefly considered. The invention will be better understood and additional advantages will become apparent from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings.