China Sets New World Record in Nuclear Fusion? No Comparison with Korea [Reading Science]

China's artificial sun EAST.

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-su] While South Korea is leading the world in artificial sun, or nuclear fusion energy research, it is reported that China set a new 'milestone' through its own research at the end of last year. However, experts say that it is not comparable to Korea's achievement because the 'types' are different.

China's state-run Xinhua News Agency reported on the 31st of last month that the Chinese version of the artificial sun, "EAST (experimental advanced superconducting tokamak)," operated by the Institute of Plasma Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences in Hefei, Anhui Province, succeeded in maintaining an ultra-high temperature plasma state for 1,056 seconds the day before, breaking the world's longest operation record. According to Xinhua, Dr. Gong Xianzhou of the institute stated, "In the first half of last year, we maintained a plasma state at 120 million degrees Celsius for 101 seconds, and this time, we succeeded in maintaining a normal plasma state at a temperature close to 70 million degrees Celsius for 1,056 seconds."

Nuclear fusion energy is being researched with the aim of producing electricity on Earth by triggering nuclear fusion reactions that occur in the sun. It is being studied as an alternative energy source due to fossil fuel depletion not only in China but also in the United States, Russia, France, Japan, and others. The core concept is to create an ultra-high temperature plasma exceeding 100 million degrees Celsius by using a superconducting magnet to confine the plasma in a sealed container called a tokamak, fueled by deuterium and tritium, and then use the heat generated to heat water and produce electricity. The ultra-high temperature plasma exceeding 100 million degrees Celsius is suspended in the air by magnetic fields generated by superconducting magnets.

In particular, South Korea is at the forefront of nuclear fusion energy research worldwide. At the end of last year, Korea broke the world record by maintaining an ultra-high temperature plasma of 100 million degrees Celsius for 30 seconds. The plan is to develop technology to maintain it for more than 300 seconds by 2026 and commercialize it by 2050. Experts point out that China's case is not comparable because it has not succeeded in 'true nuclear fusion.'

China only heated the electron temperature among the electrons and ions that make up atoms to 70 million degrees Celsius, while the ion temperature is much lower. Since nuclear fusion, which generates enormous energy, occurs only when the ion temperature is heated above 100 million degrees Celsius, it has not achieved a true 'nuclear fusion' state. Also, several places, including France, have already maintained electron temperatures at ultra-high levels for more than 30 minutes.

On the other hand, South Korea's artificial sun (KSTAR) succeeded in raising the ion temperature to 100 million degrees Celsius, the point at which nuclear fusion occurs, while maintaining the electron temperature at about 60 million degrees Celsius, thus achieving the 'nuclear fusion' point. South Korea is the only country that has set a world record by putting the essential meaning of 'nuclear fusion' into practice.

Of course, China's achievement in heating and maintaining the electron temperature for a long time is not meaningless. Maintaining the electron temperature at an ultra-high level for a long time is one of the conditions for sustaining nuclear fusion continuously over a long period, and it is an essential technology for building a nuclear fusion reactor that can operate for extended periods.

Regarding this, Yoon Si-woo, head of the Korea Institute of Fusion Energy, explained, "China chose devices that can better heat electrons from the beginning with the goal of long-duration operation when constructing EAST, and although there are ion heating devices, they are known to be weak. On the other hand, Korea's KSTAR has advantages in ion heating. It can be understood that they are focusing on developing different research areas."

Yoon also added, "Currently, both China's EAST and Korea's KSTAR are small, so there are limitations in research areas. Once the large nuclear fusion reactor (ITER), which is being developed internationally, is completed, it will be possible to study these areas comprehensively."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.