Horne Technologies, commercialization of fusion for energy in space and on Earth.
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Plan Plan
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Why Fusion? Why Fusion?
Fusion Vacuum Chamber
World's first superconducting, hybrid
high-beta fusion research device.
(real-time video)
Phase 2 of 3.
Horne hybrid reactor first-generation prototype summary:
- First demonstrated experimental setup with continuous operation
- First plasma achieved 2017
- Device constructed in 6 months
- Superconducting REBCO coils capable of 0.5T ea.
- Operating pressure 1.0x10^-8 to 1 Torr
- Pumped liquid cryogenic cooling
- Simple heating and measurement system


Why Fusion
1950: Energy from fusion is only 20 years away.

1970: Fusion technology is only 20 years away.

1990: Break-even fusion is only 20 years away.

2010: Fusion power is very close, only 20 years away.

2020: Fusion can be optimized for energy production.



The time is now. For nearly three-quarters of a century nuclear fusion has been just outside of the grasp for use as an energy source. Every day we walk outside and see our sun, bright and warm, but yet we have no viable method to replicate the process on Earth to produce energy.

Fusion vs. Fission
*https://www.difference.wiki/nuclear-fission-vs-nuclear-fusion/

Unlike nuclear fission, nuclear fusion is the safe combination of atoms. It has the potential to produce energy without proliferation of weapons or fear of meltdown. Fusion might possibly be the ultimate safe and clean energy source.

Fusion in sun. Fusion itself is fairly easy, even young people at the high school level have built simple fusion reactors called fusors for science projects. Why then do we not have all our electricity produced from fusion? The problem is optimization. Although fusion is easy, it is not easy to get energy from it. In fact no one has ever come close to break-even, the point which you produce more energy than you use.


Horne Technologies is here to change that.
Prototype complete.

Fusion Technology

Nuclear Fusion for Green Energy Production on Earth and in Space

A hybrid approach and technology is being implemented to develop fusion technology for terrestrial and space energy applications. Fusion is the disruptive energy of the future.

Four core technologies are combined with state of the art high-temperature superconductors to improve the performance of the fusion device:

I) Inertial Electrostatic Heating (IEC)

II) Superconducting, Magnetically-Shielded Grid

III) High-Beta Capable Fusion Core

IV) Ion-ion and ion-neutral thermalization mitigation optimization

For 10 years Horne Technologies has been working on these fusion technologies to create optimized solutions for a viable fusion reactor for use in space and on Earth.


I) Inertial Electrostatic Fusion (IEC)

One of the only methods to utilize advanced fuels (such as aneutronic) in a fusion reactor is the method called inertial electrostatic confinement (IEC), a device which operates in a vacuum chamber. This is a very simple method of creating fusion, which was invented by the TV inventor Philo Farnsworth, to accelerate the fusion materials to the center by electrostatic attraction. If the materials you want to fuse are attracted to the center they accelerate to high energy and then collide in the center to produce fusion. This is the previously mentioned method that is simple enough for students to attempt for advanced science projects.

Fusor Mechanism
*By WikiHelper2134 at en.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=47214103


IEC 1) A center grid is negatively charged

IEC 3) Fusion fuel is attracted to the grid

IEC 3) Fuel passes through the grid

IEC 4) Fuel collides in the center and fuses

Unfortunately, the IEC method requires a grid to attract the ions and much of the fuel runs into the grid it is therefore not efficient enough to produce power. This is where the second technology comes in.


II) Superconducting, Magnetically - Shielded Grid

By using superconducting magnets as the IEC grid, you reduce the collisions of the accelerated fuel into the grid. This is accomplished due to the fact that the very strong magnetic field causes the charged ion fuel to be diverted around it as it is being attracted to the grid.
Magnetically-shielded grid

Another issue with the IEC is that many of the fuel ions that are accelerated into the IEC center actually miss each other and do not collide to fuse. If they miss, they loose energy by scattering off each other's electric field, this is known as coulomb scattering . If the super-hot, fast ions could be held in the same place for longer, they would have a higher chance of fusing. This is the third technology incorporated into the system.
IEC loss



III) High - Beta Fusion Core

An additional important advantage of the magnetically-shielded grid is it allows for a magnet configuration that is capable of a high-beta fusion core. This is a condition that occurs when you have strong magnetic field curvature where the plasma pushes back against the field. This causing a plugging effect to the leaks and creating an empty field region where the plasma is momentarily contained. This momentary containment increases the chance fusion will occur.


High-beta cusp field




The grid creates a region where there is no magnetic field; plasma then pushes back on the field and creates a high-beta condition where it is momentarily contained.
IV) Ion-ion and ion-neutral thermalization mitigation optimization


In devices that have a region of high energy ions and an area outside which has lower energy ions and neutral atoms there is a large loss mechanism in which the hot ion fuel interacts with the cooler background material losing energy. This is a loss mechanism for many proposed fusion concepts devices.

Horne Technologies is using proprietary, advanced optimization concepts to overcome this loss mechanism. Optimizing parameters to reduce this loss mechanism greatly increases the chance of net energy in the third-generation device.




Plan

Horne Technologies

Horne Technologies is proud to announce a partnership with
Free Radical Ventures to support the second-generation device.

Free Radical Ventures partnership

Fusion Progress and Plan
Stage 2 of 3


Stage I) Demonstrate technology, build world's first superconducting prototype - Complete

The time for fusion is now, transformative technology is being developed to increase the viability of fusion for energy production. The design is complete, the technology has been demonstrated, and a prototype has been built.

Horne Technologies has already achieved:

- World's first superconducting, high-beta plasma research device in operation
- 10 years research and development of fusion technologies
- First use of advanced REBCO superconducting wire in plasma containment device
- Extensive network of leading plasma physicists, engineers, and scientists
- Design of a record-breaking capable hybrid reactor


The path forward to scientific net energy:

- Scale up technology
- Complete experiments with second-generation device for optimization
- Attempt to demonstrate the world's most efficient device
- Calculate scale for net energy production
- Build a full-scale, power producing device


Stage II) Second-Generation Device, for optimization experiments - In progress

Horne Technologies Large Vacuum Chamber

Horne Technologies' large vacuum chamber will house the second-generation core device. The second-generation will provide the optimization and parameter data to prove feasibility and aquire data to create a device capable of net energy.


The second-generation device is a huge leap in technology:

- Improved coil structure
- Advanced cryogenic cooling
- Advanced plasma diagnostics
- Mitigation of the ion-ion thermalization loss mechanism
- Validation of all required technologies
- Final proof of concept


Stage III) Produce a net-energy capable full-scale device, design following energy production devices. - Future development


The final stage to power production

- Scale up proven technology
- Utilize existing infrastructure for power-level operation
- Develop thermal capture equipment
- Build a full-scale, power producing device

Horne Technologies is now also a member of the Fusion Industry Association, promoting fusion energy for all:

Fusion Industry Association



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