INTRODUCTION
The European Common market (EEC) built a pilot facility, (to be 25% the size of an eventual power station) in Oxfordshire, Southern England to generate electricity from nuclear fusion.
The nuclear fusion (similar to the process which occurs naturally on the surface of the sun) is achieved by fusing 2 hydrogen isotopes (both of which are found naturally in sea water) to form helium.
Conditions required to enable this reaction to take place, included:
- The 2 hydrogen isotopes had to be converted into a plasma state
- A vacuum needed to be created for a plasma to occur
- The temperature needs to be in the region of 2 million degrees Celsius
- To achieve all this, the vessel (a donut shaped vessel, a torus) needed to be strong enough to avoid imploding (vacuum inside / atmosphere outside).
- Powerful toroidal and polloidal electromagnetic fields were required to keep the plasma in the centre of the vessel and away from the walls
- 2 large flywheel generators were built to gradually take electricity from the national grid so the plasma could be zapped once every 10 seconds. The fly wheel generators were needed to stop low and high fluctuation on the national grid in the surrounding country.
Colin was part of the McLachlan Group team who were commissioned by the team of nuclear physicists from all over Europe to monitor and report and keep the construction programme on track.