Fusion history and a Russian reference to a "Fusor type device"

Reflections on fusion history, current events, and predictions for the 'fusion powered future.
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Nate
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Fusion history and a Russian reference to a "Fusor type device"

Post by Nate »

As I am a long time lurker and one time poster, “FOOT IN MOUTH GUY” (harshness to be expected in retrospect; many thanks Carl Willis); I would like to contribute to Richard’s efforts in documenting the history of Nuclear Fusion. I have been doing research on this subject as of late, and I ran across a paper by W.H. Bennett “Magnetically Self-Focussing Streams”, (“Focussing” being the correct spelling) that peaked my interest.

From what I gather, it was published a few months after Oliphant’s “Transmutation” paper.


Oliphant: March 1934 (Proceedings of the Royal Society, vol.144, p. 692-703)

Bennett: June 1934 (Physical Review, vol. 45 pp. 890-897)


I believe that this paper is the cornerstone of early British efforts, namely the ZETA device (’54-’58), and that it may also be a precursor to the Russian Tokamak. I haven’t been able to find much else regarding a congruent timeline after these dates (still researching) as the inclined resources of my imagination far exceed the temperament excited by the monetary quandary I find myself in.

That respect being understood, I have run across numerous referrals to a “Cousins and Ware” (cir. 1947) having created a toroidal plasma in London. As of yet however, I have not been able to find a source for these references (any material regarding this would be very helpful).

Another very interesting note that I have uncovered, being in need of corroboration, is a reference to a “Fusor” type of idea briefly mentioned in a Russian paper: “On the history of the research into controlled thermonuclear fusion (2001)” (internet search; PDF is included in post) Oleg Aleksandrovich Lavrent’ev. From what I speculate, Lavrent’ev was allowed access to any and all information available to the Kremlin regarding nuclear physics by Moscow (cir. 1945). This train of thought has led me to inquire firstly:

When did Farnsworth conceive of the Fusor?

According to Elma Farnsworth, (Interview; Archive of American Television cir. 1996, Google Video: Part 10 of 12 [Time index: 14:12 - 15:24]; Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXP6N3af ... r_embedded#) paraphrasing, he had created what he called a “plasma” in the 1930’s. Speculation on this matter leads me to believe that it must have been in one of his experimental electron tubes. This logic being contrived based on his work in television.
Furthermore, in Time Index: 12:29 – 14:12, Mrs. Farnsworth alludes to a time when Philo Farnsworth was approached by people involved with the Manhattan Project. Given his experience and work with the electron, it does not seem farfetched. I think that this could plausibly place conception of the Fusor after 1939 in light of Einstein’s famous letter. As of today this logic leads me to query:

How could have Lavrent’ev possibly (previously mentioned paper proclaims 1950) gained conception of the idea on his own?

• Here is where I find a problem in regard to Lavrent’ev:

If one looks at the foot notes of Elmore, Tuck, and Watson’s classic paper, credit is given to Farnsworth. What I find interesting are the dates, the order of, and of course the lack of…

Ascending,

“P.T. Farnsworth (private communication)”
“P.T. Farnsworth J. Franklin Ist.218, 411 (1934)“
“P.T. Farnsworth, Farnsworth Electronics Company (private communication, 1956)”

I do not wish to convey an inference here; however, the lack of any date or reference in the first foot note leads one to believe that Tuck must have conferred with, or at the very least, contacted Farnsworth before or around 1934. What was discussed in this communication is most definitely open to conjecture.

Anyway, I thought that this information could be helpful to anyone interested in exploring this subject, and that it might also spur an interesting discussion. If anyone could point me to where I can find information about “Cousins and Ware”, such as any papers they published or even their first names, I would greatly appreciate that too.
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Chris Bradley
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Re: Fusion history and a Russian reference to a "Fusor type device"

Post by Chris Bradley »

I seem to recall (could be wrong) Bennett and the timeline to the toroidal plasma you mention are covered by a patent that includes, in probably sufficient, detail for your interest. I'll see if I can dig it out tomorrow for you.

The Russian IEC efforts appear to be (believably) in parallel and co-incident. The ATOLL was a toroidal IEC device that evolved from this work.
Dustinit
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Re: Fusion history and a Russian reference to a "Fusor type device"

Post by Dustinit »

Speculation on this matter leads me to believe that it must have been in one of his experimental electron tubes. This logic being contrived based on his work in television.

The electron tube was a multipactor which was an oscillator valve using multiplying electrons from secondary emission within an oscillating electric field in a feedback effect from an external resonant circuit. The traversing electrons focussed between the electrodes (due to the shape of the electrodes) attracting ions to the negative space charge of the focussed electrons. This produced a glowing ball between the electrons Farnsworth surmised may produce a field strong enough to induce fusion.
As far as I know, no fusion was detected in these devices.
Dustin.
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Chris Bradley
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Re: Fusion history and a Russian reference to a "Fusor type device"

Post by Chris Bradley »

I've added the patent I was thinking of to the files section, for reference seeing as I think it's superlative in that it's the first fusion patent to have been granted.

viewtopic.php?f=19&t=8004#p57408

But regret it wasn't the one I was thinking of, as to coverage of the [then recent] background.

Best I can find for now is as from a paper you can find at;

http://www.jet.efda.org/documents/books/wesson.pdf

"The earliest practical proposals were made by Peter Thonemann and Sir George Thomson. They both had the idea of avoiding ends to the confinement vessel by making it toroidal, or doughnut shaped. The vessel would be filled with hydrogen at a very low pressure and this gas would be converted to a hot plasma by passing an electric current through it around the torus. The magnetic field associated with this current would hold the charged particles away from the walls. In fact the plasma current crossing its own magnetic field would produce an inward force which would “pinch” the plasma toward the centre of the toroidal tube. Experiments of this type were carried out by Alan Ware as a student of Thomson at Imperial College in the late 1940s. His torus had a diameter of 25cm and bore of 3cm, with currents up to 13,000 amps. Later, with Cousins, he observed the pinch effect in a somewhat larger torus with 27,000 amps. Similar experiments in which the plasma was made the secondary winding of a
transformer were carried out by Thonemann at the Clarendon Laboratory. These investigations, which marked the start of fusion research, soon led to an expanded program of research in the United Kingdom with substantial teams of scientists and engineers being formed at Harwell and at the Research Laboratory of the Associated Electrical Industries at Aldermaston. Experiments were also started in the United States. An important early experiment was carried out at Harwell by Carruthers and Davenport. The toroidal discharges which they produced lasted only for about 100 microseconds, but the torus was made of glass and this allowed them to photograph the plasma. Photographs of one such discharge are reproduced in Figure 1.3. They show how the plasma loses its initial symmetric form, and develops “kinks”. This result implied that the plasma was unstable, and is the first hint of a problem which was to form one of the main streams of fusion research."

"..the first hint of a problem.." - that bit tickles me!!
Nate
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Re: Fusion history and a Russian reference to a "Fusor type device"

Post by Nate »

Chris, thanks a million for Thompson and Blackman’s patent! I’ve had some difficulty in obtaining it as I am not familiar with where to go on the internet for searching patents filed in the United Kingdom. Also many thanks for all the other information it will be of substantial help to me. As for the U.S. patent by W.H. Bennett, I believe that I may have read that one (W.H. Bennett U.S. Pat. 3,120,475 – Filed Oct. 10, 1957) already. I have uploaded it to the files area also for anyone who may be interested.
As a footnote to your comment regarding that “first hint of a problem”, which I find funny as well, I’ve added a short paper by a Swedish team investigating the instabilities of the pinch effect in this reply. In their paper the instabilities are shown in a vertical column of mercury. The paper has no date however in reading it I think it was published around the late 50’s or early 60’s.
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Dustinit
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Re: Fusion history and a Russian reference to a "Fusor type device"

Post by Dustinit »

Thanks for that Chris,
Its an interesting read. It makes me wonder if the xenon arc instabilities I'm tinkering with at the moment are related. It seems the current induces a radial pinching but there is no confinement in the longitudinal direction so the arc buckles to increase its volume (due to the pressure increase from heating) while retaining the same width due to the pinch. I think its a bit like trying to squeeze a spring without it buckling.
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Dustinit
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Re: Fusion history and a Russian reference to a "Fusor type device"

Post by Dustinit »

Here is another I found researching my problem
Dustin
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Richard Hull
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Re: Fusion history and a Russian reference to a "Fusor type device"

Post by Richard Hull »

Oliphant's 1934 work was certainly the beginning of fusion research, but the IECF fusion concept goes to Elmore, Tuck and Watson. The fusor, as a functional device, is pure Farnsworth and noodled out as early as 1949, but not physically worked on until 1959 with little or no success until 1961 or 1962.

A fusor is an IECF device and has no relationship whatsoever to any toroidal devices or magnetically focus devices which are intrinsically thermal devices involving heating plasma's. The fusor doesn't do this, in theory.

Richard Hull
Progress may have been a good thing once, but it just went on too long. - Yogi Berra
Fusion is the energy of the future....and it always will be
The more complex the idea put forward by the poor amateur, the more likely it will never see embodiment
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