From: Randall <rvh40@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: February 14, 2006 12:15:04 PM PST
To: JMG <johnmacsgroup@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>, Dewayne Hendricks
<dewayne@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: Cold Fusion? I'll believe it when I see it (But wouldn't
it be COOL?)
<http://htdaw.blogsource.com/post.mhtml?post_id=239228>
Cold Fusion?
Tuesday, February 14, 2006 at 3:13 PM EST
[I'll believe it when I see it ...]
Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have developed a
tabletop accelerator that produces nuclear fusion at room temperature,
providing confirmation of an earlier experiment conducted at the
University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), while offering
substantial
improvements over the original design.
The device, which uses two opposing crystals to generate a powerful
electric field, could potentially lead to a portable, battery-operated
neutron generator for a variety of applications, from non-destructive
testing to detecting explosives and scanning luggage at airports. The
new results are described in the Feb. 10 issue of Physical Review
Letters.
"Our study shows that 'crystal fusion' is a mature technology with
considerable commercial potential," says Yaron Danon, associate
professor of mechanical, aerospace, and nuclear engineering at
Rensselaer. "This new device is simpler and less expensive than the
previous version, and it has the potential to produce even more
neutrons."
The device is essentially a tabletop particle accelerator. At its
heart
are two opposing "pyroelectric" crystals that create a strong electric
field when heated or cooled. The device is filled with deuterium
gas --
a more massive cousin of hydrogen with an extra neutron in its
nucleus.
The electric field rips electrons from the gas, creating deuterium
ions
and accelerating them into a deuterium target on one of the crystals.
When the particles smash into the target, neutrons are emitted,
which is
the telltale sign that nuclear fusion has occurred, according to
Danon.
A research team led by Seth Putterman, professor of physics at UCLA,
reported on a similar apparatus in 2005, but two important features
distinguish the new device: "Our device uses two crystals instead of
one, which doubles the acceleration potential," says Jeffrey
Geuther, a
graduate student in nuclear engineering at Rensselaer and lead
author of
the paper. "And our setup does not require cooling the crystals to
cryogenic temperatures -- an important step that reduces both the
complexity and the cost of the equipment."
The new study also verified the fundamental physics behind the
original
experiment. This suggests that pyroelectric crystals are in fact a
viable means of producing nuclear fusion, and that commercial
applications may be closer than originally thought, according to
Danon.
"Nuclear fusion has been explored as a potential source of power,
but we
are not looking at this as an energy source right now," Danon says.
Rather, the most immediate application may come in the form of a
battery-operated, portable neutron generator. Such a device could be
used to detect explosives or to scan luggage at airports, and it could
also be an important tool for a wide range of laboratory experiments.
The concept could also lead to a portable x-ray generator,
according to
Danon. "There is already a commercial portable pyroelectric x-ray
product available, but it does not produce enough energy to provide
the
50,000 electron volts needed for medical imaging," he says. "Our
device
is capable of producing about 200,000 electron volts, which could meet
these requirements and could also be enough to penetrate several
millimeters of steel."
In the more distant future, Danon envisions a number of other medical
applications of pyroelectric crystals, including a wearable device
that
could provide safe, continuous cancer treatment.
From Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute http://www.rpi.edu/
<http://www.scienceblog.com/cms/
ny_team_confirms_ucla_tabletop_fusion_10017.html?link=ext>