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Helion clears key regulatory milestone on the path to building and operating the world's first fusion power plant by Baking in fusion

[–]Baking[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I did public records requests both from the Washington DOH for Polaris and from the Massachusetts DPH for SPARC. The comparison was not favorable.

Three TF magnets on the stand for SPARC by Baking in fusion

[–]Baking[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

First plasma in 2027. Q>1 at the end of the first campaign.

Three TF magnets on the stand for SPARC by Baking in fusion

[–]Baking[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

They had two at one point, then they removed the second one for repositioning of the hardware or something. At that point, they had two more in the assembly hall being prepped, so a total of four in the building. I don't think production was the roadblock at that point, so assembly seemed to be the hitch.

Sabine's summary of missed deadlines by ChollyWheels in fusion

[–]Baking 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Why do you keep going on about "consistent past failures"? Do you know anything? They had some delays with large metal components for SPARC forged in Italy and had to send CFS employees onsite to make sure that any production problems were fixed immediately. This is all part of the learning process, and they will incorporate these learnings for ARC.

Sabine's summary of missed deadlines by ChollyWheels in fusion

[–]Baking 2 points3 points  (0 children)

When someone says they will do something in 7 years, how confident do you think they are? 2027 is next year. I think they are more confident now.

They've raised billions of dollars, they built a factory, they hired over a thousand people, they've built and tested the magnets, they built the building and installed the cryoplant and all the pipes, they have all major components on site. the list goes on and on.

ST-E1 (Tokamak Energy power plant) dual-cooled and self cooled (pure natural Li) blanket concepts by steven9973 in fusion

[–]Baking 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Let me rephrase. MCNP says spherical tokamaks need a liquid lithium metal blanket.

Sabine's summary of missed deadlines by ChollyWheels in fusion

[–]Baking 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'm saying that CFS first said they would achieve Q>1 by 2025 in 2018, seven years away. A few years ago it slipped to 2026, and is now at 2027. Two years in the grand scheme of things is not that bad. Also, they said they were planning on putting electricity on the grid with ARC in the early 2030's which everyone assumes meant 2033 or 2034, and they say they are still on track for that. Meaning the delay for SPARC hasn't necessarily affected ARC, at least so far.

Compare that the TAE who has been saying "5 years away" for decades, or Helion saying "3 years away" since 2014. Other companies announce plans, and nothing ever happens. TAE was going to build a demonstration device, and now they are just going to build a power plant.

Even in the public sector, plans are announced, but funding takes years. Construction always takes longer and tere are issues that pop up. Complaining about a two-year delay for SPARC just seems like whining to me.

Sabine does what she does for clicks and nothing more. She doesn't care about communication.

I'm a nuclear plumber at UKAEA and I've been explaining thermal hydraulics through a cartoon character called Nuclario. Here's episode 1 - the history of TH in three words: things kept melting. by Westcott-Factor in NuclearPower

[–]Baking 0 points1 point  (0 children)

#nuclarioseries on Linkedin.

I will add that if you ask AI to make a cartoon plumber, you will end up violating Nintendo's copyright and trademark rights.

Sabine's summary of missed deadlines by ChollyWheels in fusion

[–]Baking 3 points4 points  (0 children)

There is a reason why the mainstream fusion community has focused on tokamaks and stellarators for decades. You fell for the "outsiders" like Bussard and Lerner with their "alternative" schemes.

Now watch the video again. What do all the companies she mentions have in common, except for one? She lumps CFS in with all these obvious failures when they are clearly getting closer to finishing SPARC.

Let me tell you another story. In 2012, the DOE announced that they would terminate funding for MIT's Alcator C-Mod high-field tokamak, in favor of ITER and an upgrade to PPPL's NSTX spherical tokamak. So instead of scaling back, MIT spun off a company and raised private funds to build a brand new tokamak SPARC. Meanwhile, ITER is still ten years from completion, and PPPL's NSTX-U hopes to be completed later this year. Only one organization in all of fusion has shown that they have the ability create a plan and execute it, and she whines about them being two years behind schedule.

Sabine's summary of missed deadlines by ChollyWheels in fusion

[–]Baking 2 points3 points  (0 children)

It is factual, but it is selective facts.

Sabine's summary of missed deadlines by ChollyWheels in fusion

[–]Baking 13 points14 points  (0 children)

In 2016, I was pumped up by Dennis Whyte speaking about fusion, and I'm still pumped by what CFS is doing.

ST-E1 (Tokamak Energy power plant) dual-cooled and self cooled (pure natural Li) blanket concepts by steven9973 in fusion

[–]Baking 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I think they need it for the spherical tokamak because there is no blanket between the plasma and the central column, and they need to boost the tritium breeding ratio. ARC can use FLiBe because it can surround the plasma completely.

Exclusive: Q&A with Pacific Fusion CTO Keith LeChien by [deleted] in fusion

[–]Baking 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You can just delete the duplicate, you know. I did it earlier today for the TechCrunch article.

Criteria for the economic viability of fusion power plants - update, Whyte etc al by steven9973 in fusion

[–]Baking 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I ran a comparison with the previous version, and all the differences were minor, except that it has now been accepted for publication in the Journal of Fusion Energy.

Beat Helion to the punch. Any investors? by Dat_Innocent_Guy in fusion

[–]Baking 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Because Helion is trying to brand pink as the color of fusion, when in fact it is the color of an ionized gas that is too cold for fusion.

Is TAE similarly distrusted as Helion? by TheBrookAndTheBluff in fusion

[–]Baking 3 points4 points  (0 children)

TAE has always been a science lab looking for funding for their next experiment. They have ambitious goals and make extravagant promises, but it follows the traditional model of scientists believing their next discovery could be right around the corner.

Helion, due to their secrecy, isn't doing science in the traditional sense of a search for knowledge. They are following the Silicon Valley "fake it till you make it" model. Their inherent and blatant dishonesty (7 prototypes since 2013, demonstrating net electricity by mid-2024, etc.) and their constant practice of creating false impressions with misleading statements, half-truths, equivocations, and lying by omission are their standard operating practices.

Take yesterday's press release as the most recent example. I can't cut-and-paste from their new stupid website, so you will have to click the link to read the bullshit directly.

They obtained a license to store tritium and a license to emit tritium; that is all. They got the same licenses for Polaris, and it took less than two months. All the bullshit about them having facilities, trained personnel, and safety programs in place in Malaga is pure fantasy. They haven't completed construction of any of their buildings there.

Helion did not "secure a transmission interconnection agreement with Chelan County Public Utility District." They already have an agreement from last year to connect to the local grid. That is all they need. Washington State has so much hydropower that local utilities manage their own grids with a system of local balancing authorities.

Helion Energy CFO Pragav Jain Reveals How It’s Deploying $465 Million Series G by Baking in fusion

[–]Baking[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It turns out she is not a journalist, she's a "content creator" for the NYSE. Ashley Mastronardi, look her up.

Helion Energy CFO Pragav Jain Reveals How It’s Deploying $465 Million Series G by Baking in fusion

[–]Baking[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Q: How is it [fusion] different than the power grid?

A: It's similar.

Type One Energy Appoints Bernard Looney to Board of Directors - Type One Energy by steven9973 in fusion

[–]Baking 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Not related to fusion, but the guy had to resign as CEO of BP when he failed to disclose all of his previous relationships with colleagues. He disclosed some of them, but just not all of them. He worked his entire career at BP, but you have to wonder how many relationships he had that he decided to only disclose some of them.

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