China's 'artificial sun' sets new record at over 100 million degrees Celsius

The achievement marks a breakthrough in China's clean energy sector, CCTV News reported on March 28.

China Circulation-3 is a nuclear fusion device developed by China itself. It operates on the same principle as the real sun - generating energy by crushing atomic nuclei together under extremely high temperatures, instead of nuclear fission as in conventional nuclear power plants.

In the latest experiment, the device reached a nuclear temperature of 117 million degrees Celsius and an electron temperature of 160 million degrees Celsius. This is the first time China has reached the "double 100 million degree" milestone, and at the same time, it brings the overall performance of the system to a new level.

The new generation "artificial sun" China Circulation 3 of the Southwest Institute of Physics under the China National Nuclear Corporation has achieved a nuclear temperature of 117 million degrees and an electron temperature of 160 million degrees for the first time. Photo: CNNC

Zhong Wulü, chief designer of China Circulation-3 at China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC), said self-developed systems for heating, control and diagnostics have been put into operation, helping China rise to the world's leading position in controlled nuclear fusion research.

Fusion technology has the potential to become an ideal energy source of the future because it generates large amounts of energy from abundant raw materials, while not emitting greenhouse gases or dangerous radioactive waste like traditional nuclear fission energy.

This new step shows that China is getting closer to the goal of commercializing nuclear fusion energy. In the coming time, researchers will continue to upgrade China Circulation-3 to collect more core data, helping to further advance the practical application of this technology.

Hoai Phuong (according to CCTV, CNNC, Global Times)

Source: https://www.congluan.vn/mat-troi-nhan-tao-cua-trung-quoc-dat-ky-luc-moi-voi-hon-100-trieu-do-c-post340741.html