The uncompressed radius of the fuel pellet of Sample Problem 43.05 is 20 mm. Suppose that the compressed fuel pellet “burns” with an efficiency of 10%—that is, only 10% of the deuterons and 10% of the tritons participate in the fusion reaction of Eq. 43-15. (a) How much energy is released in each such microexplosion of a pellet? (b) To how much TNT is each such pellet equivalent? The heat of combustion of TNT is 4.6 MJ/kg. (c) If a fusion reactor is constructed on the basis of 100 microexplosions per second, what power would be generated? (Part of this power would be used to operate the lasers.)
Nuclear Fusion
Nuclear fusion is a type of nuclear reaction. In nuclear fusion, two or more than two lighter atomic nuclei combine to form a heavier nucleus. During this process, an enormous amount of energy is released. This energy is called nuclear energy. Nuclear fusion is the energy source of the sun and stars.
Fusion Bomb
A fusion bomb is also known as a thermonuclear bomb or hydrogen bomb which releases a large amount of explosive energy during a nuclear chain reaction when the lighter nuclei in it, combine to form heavier nuclei, and a large amount of radiation is released. It is an uncontrolled, self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction where isotopes of hydrogen combine under very high temperature to form helium. They work on the principle of operation of atomic fusion. The isotopes of Hydrogen are deuterium and tritium, where they combine their masses and have greater mass than the product nuclei, get heated at high temperatures, and releases energy.
The uncompressed radius of the fuel pellet of Sample
Problem 43.05 is 20 mm. Suppose that the compressed fuel pellet
“burns” with an efficiency of 10%—that is, only 10% of the
deuterons and 10% of the tritons participate in the fusion reaction
of Eq. 43-15. (a) How much energy is released in each such microexplosion
of a pellet? (b) To how much TNT is each such pellet
equivalent? The heat of combustion of TNT is 4.6 MJ/kg. (c) If a
fusion reactor is constructed on the basis of 100 microexplosions
per second, what power would be generated? (Part of this power
would be used to operate the lasers.)
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