NOVEL WEB Chapter 19: ignite
The changes in Sandaokou University naturally couldn't escape the notice of some observant people. "What's going on... Why are these roads blocked all of a sudden?" Several male students walked on the campus of Sandaokou University, their faces filled with frustration. "Could it be that... there's an important person coming to the school?" One male student looked at the blocked roads and put forward a guess. Another male student slowly shook his head and said in a deep voice, "It shouldn't be an important person. I checked the forum just now. It seems that all the roads leading to the Nuclear Physics Laboratory are blocked!" "What?" "The Nuclear Physics Laboratory? Could it be that they're going to conduct some kind of nuclear test there?!" The male student nodded with a solemn expression, "I don't know if you've heard the news that the Nuclear Physics Laboratory of Sandaokou University has been conducting research related to controlled nuclear fusion. "Coupled with the news from ITER some time ago... Do you think it's possible that the Nuclear Physics Laboratory is conducting a controlled nuclear fusion experiment?" This guess was obviously more reasonable than the previous one. "Hiss... If that's really the case, does it mean that our Xiaguo is about to master controlled nuclear fusion?!" Hearing what his classmate said, the male student who made the guess rolled his eyes in annoyance, "How is that possible?!" "This is controlled nuclear fusion we're talking about!" "I think this is just an experiment. "Last time, my supervisor said that it would take at least several years for controlled nuclear fusion to really mature!" ... At the same time, in the Nuclear Physics Laboratory of Sandaokou University. "Everyone, stay focused!" "Check the working conditions of each component of the stellarator. If there are no problems, prepare to power on and start the first fusion test!" With Lü Yongchang's order, the researchers in the laboratory rushed to their workstations and began the inspection. "The cooling system is normal!" "The laser generator is normal!" "The superconducting coils are in good condition!" "..." As the reports came one after another, the expressions on Lü Yongchang and Fang Xu's faces gradually became serious. When the last inspection was completed, a flash of excitement appeared in Lü Yongchang's eyes, and he firmly gave the order, "Start powering on!" A researcher beside him pulled the switch, and a low humming sound slowly rose. An extremely powerful current instantly passed through the superconducting coils outside the stellarator! "What's the magnetic field strength?" Lü Yongchang shouted. A researcher in charge of monitoring the magnetic field strength shouted back, "The current magnetic field strength is 50T!" Lü Yongchang nodded slightly. A magnetic field strength of 50T was sufficient! After all, this was just a test, not the real start of controlled nuclear fusion! "Then... the first ignition experiment of controlled nuclear fusion starts now!" As he spoke, Lü Yongchang reached out and pressed several keys on the computer in front of him! A little bit of deuterium - tritium mixed gas was injected into the reactor. The next moment, the heating device started up. Under the operation of the heating device, the deuterium - tritium mixed gas would be heated to an extremely high temperature until it completely turned into a plasma state! And the plasma - state deuterium - tritium mixture would be firmly confined to the running track by the strong magnetic field inside the stellarator! Countless parameters flashed on the computer screen in front of him. All kinds of colorful curves and numbers danced up and down in Lü Yongchang's eyes, forming a beautiful picture! "Okay! Prepare to ignite!" Lü Yongchang shouted in a deep voice. Fang Xu beside him swallowed slightly and pressed a button on the console in front of him. The next moment, a laser with extremely high intensity shone straight onto the plasma - state deuterium - tritium mixture! Boom! The curve on the temperature sensor instantly drew a beautiful arc, climbing upward at a slope close to ninety degrees! In just a few seconds, the temperature of the plasma - state deuterium - tritium mixture reached hundreds of millions of degrees Celsius! The fusion fire was ignited! Nuclear fusion started! At an extremely high temperature, a deuterium atom reacted with a tritium atom, producing a helium atom and a neutron! In this process, an enormous amount of energy was released! "The temperature has reached the critical point!" "A large number of neutrons have been detected!" A researcher shouted excitedly and urgently. The eyes of everyone present flickered slightly. As professionals, they all understood the hidden meaning of this sentence. The nuclear fusion reaction had occurred in the inner cavity of the stellarator in front of them! Looking at the extremely stable data on the computer screen, a hint of excitement appeared in Fang Xu's eyes. "We... we've succeeded!" Perhaps because of being too excited, Fang Xu's face was flushed and his lips were slightly trembling at this moment. In comparison, Lü Yongchang's reaction was much calmer. Only the corners of his mouth turned up slightly, and a faint smile appeared on his face. After all, it was just an ignition experiment! ... Since this was just an ignition experiment, the amount of deuterium - tritium gas wasn't large. A few minutes later, the fusion fuel was exhausted, and the fusion reaction in the reactor gradually stopped. Lü Yongchang's eyes flickered, and he immediately shouted, "Quick! Check the condition of the stellarator!" "This isn't the time to celebrate yet!" Several researchers lowered their heads and looked at the computer screens in front of them. "The cooling system is in good condition, and the external temperature of the stellarator is stable!" The first report came from afar. Lü Yongchang asked in a deep voice, "What's the external temperature now?" "...25 degrees Celsius!" Lü Yongchang nodded in satisfaction. It seemed that the cooling equipment was working well. The next second, he turned his head and shouted at a researcher on the other side. "What about the reactor? How's its condition?!" "...The reactor is in good condition, and no irradiation damage has been detected!" Only then did a bright smile appear on Lü Yongchang's face. The first stage of controlled nuclear fusion had been a complete success. Next, what needed to be considered was the control system of controlled nuclear fusion. And the choice of power - generation device. Should they continue with humanity's glorious tradition - boiling water, or choose some other more advanced plan? These questions circled back and forth in Lü Yongchang's mind. "Slap!" A hand slapped heavily on his shoulder. Lü Yongchang's body trembled slightly, and he woke up from his thoughts. Turning his head, he saw Fang Xu looking at him with a big smile. "Hey, the ignition was successful. What are you still thinking about here?" "Come on, come on. Tonight, it's my treat!" "I'll take you out for a good meal to celebrate!" ... That night. A piece of news quietly went live on the official website of Sandaokou University. "Congratulations on the successful operation of controlled nuclear fusion in the Sandaokou Nuclear Physics Laboratory!" At the same time, the Weibo hot search was quietly updated. "Xiaguo's first controlled nuclear fusion experiment was a complete success!" In an instant, countless netizens who were "eating melons" late at night flooded into the comment section. "Damn?!" "Is this for real? Did it really succeed?" "I remember that Xiaguo just withdrew from ITER. Could it be that the rumor is true, and Xiaguo really stole the relevant materials?" "Cut it out, you guys upstairs! Isn't that shooting oneself in the foot? I don't believe Xiaguo would do such a stupid thing!" "Let's not talk about these unpleasant things. I believe that even without ITER, we can develop our own controlled nuclear fusion device!" "..."