However, they can make some materials radioactive. Disposing of these materials presents many of the same problems as disposing of the waste generated by fission power plants. Nasr Ghoniem , a professor in UCLA s Mechanical, Aerospace and Nuclear Engineering Department, has invented the world s first low activation alloys for fusion applications. These alloys, called ferritic steels, indeed become radioactive when they absorb the neutrons of a fusion reaction, but this radioactivity decays with a half life of only about 100 years. Ghoniem is now working on ceramic materials with even lower activations than steel.
Some plasmas are so hot that they can burn virtually any material.
Alfred Wong , a professor of physics and astronomy and codirector of the IPFR, has invented a plasma torch that can burn hazardous wastes. So hot is Wong s torch that it breaks down waste compounds into component elements. It s really the ultimate form of recycling, says Wong.