Fusion Power

[tsofian]

Over on the Aircraft thread the topic of He3 fusion was brought up. I hadn't really considered that so I looked on Wikipedia and this is some of what I found

The second possibility, fusing 32He with itself (32He + 32He), requires even higher temperatures (since now both reactants have a +2 charge), and thus is even more difficult than the D-3He reaction. However, it does offer a possible reaction that produces no neutrons; the protons it produces possess charges and can be contained using electric and magnetic fields, which in turn results in direct electricity generation. 32He + 32He fusion has been demonstrated in the laboratory and is thus theoretically feasible and would have immense advantages, but commercial viability is many years in the future.[13]

The amounts of helium-3 needed as a replacement for conventional fuels are substantial by comparison to amounts currently available. The total amount of energy produced in the 21H + 32He reaction is 18.4 MeV, which corresponds to some 493 megawatt-hours (4.93×108 W·h) per three grams (one mole) of ³He. If the total amount of energy could be converted to electrical power with 100% efficiency (a physical impossibility), it would correspond to about 30 minutes of output of a gigawatt electrical plant per mole of 3He. Thus, a year's production would require 52.5 kilograms of helium-3.[citation needed] The amount of fuel needed for large-scale applications can also be put in terms of total consumption: electricity consumption by 107 million U.S. households in 2001[14] totaled 1,140 billion kW·h (1.14×1015 W·h). Again assuming 100% conversion efficiency, 6.7 tonnes per year of helium-3 would be required for that segment of the energy demand of the United States, 15 to 20 tonnes per year given a more realistic end-to-end conversion efficiency.[citation needed]

So here is my idea. The Project generators operate using Bubble Fusion https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bubble_fusion

Now bubble fusion, like cold fusion is a darned touchy subject but I can see it working in a fictional universe. This will give a reactor that doesn't need an unstable radio-isotope for fuel, won't produce vast numbers of deadly fast neutrons or a lot of heat which will require massive shielding. Since this design came from the future I expect a bit of hand wavium here. Inside the fusion pack is a He3 tank, the reaction chamber, a lot of graphene sheeting and other nanomaterials that capture, convert and transport the energy so that all that comes out is clean electricity at a nice standard voltage.

Just a few thoughts

[cosmicfish]

What impact would this have on the game? What do you hope to accomplish by specifying the type of fusion reaction used by the Project?

[tsofian]

Originally Posted by cosmicfish

What impact would this have on the game? What do you hope to accomplish by specifying the type of fusion reaction used by the Project?

Exactly the same goal we have by specifying any type of equipment. It adds flavor to the game and this way I have an idea of what is going on as a PD and since one of the players in the campaign I am just starting specifically built a character who has knowledge of the Project I figured it might be a good idea.

[ArmySGT.]

Reasons.

1) Radiation hazards from equipment failure.

2) Radiation hazards from damaged components caused by hostile fire.

3) Complexity of fueling

4) Thermal exhaust and cooling issues.

5) Designs and methods may differ a little or a great deal by factions.

6) Endurance ...... 18 months or 18 years.

7) Service and maintenance cycles.

8) Destruction to prevent enemy use.

9) Consideration for use as a self destruct device.

10) Can it be idled, shut down to conserve reactant?

[tsofian]

So here is my current thoughts. Before the War Morrow was producing He3 as a byproduct of various types of research and production operations and was carefully harvesting it. This was them placed in all the operational reactors, each of which had an 18 month store of material. Each Bolt hole also had a reactor for cryogenic maintenance, radio watch and to start the vehicle reactors during thaw out. This reactor had its own supply of He3 and there was a third He3 tank that was to refuel the vehicles after their first tank was used up. This third tank was connected to the bolt hole tank as both a back up and a way that if the bolt hole tank was not used up the fuel could be saved for use. The bolt hole had a low "cruise" power setting so 18 months of vehicle fuel (18 months being set at 12 hours full capacity/12 hours half capacity per day for 540 days) will suffice for a much longer period for the bolt hole. Since Bolt Holes were designed and fueled for around sixty years 1960-2020 (and when equipment was upgraded in holes they were all refueled back to that standard). This means that the bolt hole reactors have used their primary tanks and instead of having extra He3 to shunt to the spare fuel tank for the vehicles they are well on their way to burning through that fuel as well.



The Hot Fusion plants at the main bases and especially Prime Base all produce He3 as a byproduct. This was a design feature and all the He3 is captured for use by the cold generators. Even the low power at which these bases are operating in their "standby" mode they have generated a lot of He3. This is patiently waiting in the bowels of various bases.

[tsofian]

So I asked Arun to run the numbers on how much He3 would be needed for a 18 month cycle of 50% full power and 50% half power for a power-plant the size a V-150 uses. He was kind enough to do so. It came to less then 1 ounce. A Daisy BB gun Co2 cartridge contains 12 grams of CO2, so either a higher pressure cartridge of similar size of one that has around double the volume would contain all the fuel needed for a Morrow Project V-150 for 18 months.

Helium is a really tiny molecule and has the sneaky habit of being able to find its way out of most containers. So in this case the vehicle fuel cartridges will be made completely sealed and will not be physically breached until bolt hole activation and system start up.

This can lead to a lot of very interesting plot hooks since these fuel cartridges are so small!