JT-60SA (thermonuclear reactor)

2023: Reactor start-up

On December 1, 2023, the world's largest experimental thermonuclear reactor, the JT-60SA complex, was launched in Japan. The installation is the size of a six-story building located in Naka (Ibaraki Prefecture) north of Tokyo.

The JT-60SA complex is a tokamak - it is a toroidal installation for magnetic retention of plasma. The system is designed to create conditions necessary for the flow of controlled thermonuclear fusion. Conventional nuclear power uses a decay reaction that produces lighter ones from heavy nuclei. Fusion, on the contrary, involves the fusion of two atomic nuclei: during this process, one heavier element is formed, which is accompanied by the release of energy in the form of light and heat.

Thermonuclear reactor JT-60SA

The launched system will help in the implementation of the ITER project to create the International Experimental Thermonuclear Reactor. It's about building a carbon-free source of clean energy. In the reactor, JT-60SA plasma is contained at a temperature of up to 200 million degrees Celsius. The volume of the work zone is approximately 135 cubic meters. For comparison: for ITER, this indicator will reach 840 cubic meters.

It is noted that the production of energy by thermonuclear fusion does not lead to the formation of carbon dioxide, due to which harmful emissions into the atmosphere can be significantly reduced. The fusion reaction is safe: it stops when the fuel supply is stopped or the power supply is turned off. In addition, highly active long-lived radioactive waste is not generated. Due to these characteristics, fusion is seen as one of the next generation energy sources that simultaneously solves the problems of energy supply and environmental protection.^[1]

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