China is reportedly making aggressive steps to advance fusion research with powerful facilities.
The Asian giant’s massive X-shaped facility is quickly rising. Currently, being constructed in Mianyang, Sichuan, the building is expected to be a massive laser-based fusion facility.
Reports have revealed that details from satellite imagery and procurement records suggest that the facility resembles the US National Ignition Facility (NIF), although it is much larger in comparison.
Some analysts have also indicated that the facility could house a massive Z-pinch machine, a type of plasma confinement system that uses an electric current in the plasma to generate a magnetic field that compresses it.
“Even if China is not ahead right now. When you look at how quickly they build things, and the financial willpower to build these facilities at scale, the trajectory is not favourable for the United States,” said Decker Eveleth, an analyst at the research nonprofit CNA.
World’s first fusion-fission hybrid power plant
Beijing is also reportedly planning to launch the world’s first fusion-fission hybrid power plant Xinghuo on Yaohu Science Island in Nanchang, in central China.
Reports have revealed that the facility, which is slated for grid connection by 2030, will use high-energy neutrons from fusion reactions to trigger fission in surrounding materials. The process boosts overall energy output and potentially reduces long-lived radioactive waste.
With plans to generate 100 megawatts of power, the project could supply enough electricity for 83,000 homes.
Aggressive steps for fusion research
The Chinese government’s aggressive steps for fusion research come at a time when fusion momentum has shifted away from government-funded projects in the United States. Although, fusion startups in the US have received enough funding to continue their research on achieving limitless energy.
However, the long-term plan without the government’s support could face challenges in the future.
Goodrich told IEEE Spectrum that the future of fusion may depend on which investment model proves more resilient.
Goodrich underlined that if there is a slowdown in AI or data centre demand, US fusion startups could see funding evaporate. In contrast, Chinese fusion firms are unlikely to face the same risk, as sustained government support can shield them from market turbulence.
The US Department of Energy has previously supported the claim that if scientists develop a way to harness energy from fusion in machines on Earth, it could be an important method of energy production.
Fusion reactions, which power the Sun and other stars, involve two light nuclei merge to form a single heavier nucleus. The process releases energy because the total mass of the resulting single nucleus is less than the mass of the two original nuclei.
The leftover mass becomes energy. Einstein’s equation (E=mc2), which says in part that mass and energy can be converted into each other, explains why this process occurs.
Reports revealed that the scale and ambition of China’s fusion effort is hard to miss. Analysts say the facility in Mianyang could be 50% larger than NIF, which in 2022 became the first fusion-energy project to achieve scientific break-even – producing 3.15 megajoules of energy from a 2.05-megajoule input.