ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Michel Laberge - Plasma physicist
In a lab near Vancouver, Michel Laberge and his team at General Fusion are building a prototype fusion reactor that mimics the processes of the sun to produce cheap, clean and abundant energy.

Why you should listen
Fusion, putting it briefly, is what happens inside the sun: intense heat and pressure combine to convert hydrogen into helium, releasing heat and energy in a self-sustaining reaction. Harnessing that same kind of reaction could someday solve the energy crisis here on Earth, and the US (at the National Ignition Facility in California, using the world's most powerful laser), Europe (at ITER) and China are all working on fusion in multi-billion-dollar labs. Meanwhile, just outside Vancouver, a private-government collaboration spending millions-with-an-m is keeping pace.
 
At General Fusion, plasma physicist Michel Laberge hopes to start a fusion reaction by combining several techniques in one reactor. Inside a spherical chamber, molten lead-lithium is spun up into a vortex, then shot with a pulse of magnetically contained plasma -- meanwhile, around the edge of the sphere, an array of pistons will drive a pressure wave into the center of the sphere, compressing the plasma to fusion conditions. General Fusion is designing and protoyping each piece of this system.
More profile about the speaker
Michel Laberge | Speaker | TED.com
TED2014

Michel Laberge: How synchronized hammer strikes could generate nuclear fusion

麥可.拉博爵 (Michel Laberge): 同步撞擊的鐵槌讓產生核融合成真

Filmed:
1,108,602 views

麥可.拉博爵 (Michel Laberge) 說,人類能源的未來要仰賴核融合。電漿物理學家懷抱著大大的理念開了間小公司,就為了製造可以產生潔淨又便宜能源的新型核能反應爐。他的獨家秘方是什麼?高速、超高溫和撞擊壓力。在這場充滿希望的演說中,他說明了為什麼實現核融合的目標也許就近在眼前。
- Plasma physicist
In a lab near Vancouver, Michel Laberge and his team at General Fusion are building a prototype fusion reactor that mimics the processes of the sun to produce cheap, clean and abundant energy. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:13
Wow, this is bright.
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哇嗚,好亮呀。
00:15
It must必須 use a lot of power功率.
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一定用了不少電吧。
00:18
Well, flying飛行 you all in here
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各位飛來這裡
00:19
must必須 have cost成本 a bit of energy能源 too.
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也消耗了許多能源。
00:22
So the whole整個 planet行星 needs需求 a lot of energy能源,
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整個地球需要非常多的能源,
00:24
and so far we've我們已經 been running賽跑 mostly大多 on fossil化石 fuel汽油.
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至今我們大多仰賴石化燃料。
00:27
We've我們已經 been burning燃燒 gas加油站.
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我們一直在燃燒汽油。
00:29
It's been a good run.
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至今進行得還不錯。
00:31
It got us to where we are, but we have to stop.
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汽油能夠帶我們帶到想去的地方,
但是我們得就此打住了。
00:34
We can't do that anymore.
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我們不能再這麼做了。
00:36
So we are trying different不同 types類型 of energy能源 now,
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我們不斷嘗試不同的能源,
00:38
alternative替代 energy能源,
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尋求替代能源,
00:39
but it proved證實 quite相當 difficult to find something
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但是事實證明很難找到
00:42
that's as convenient方便 and as cost-effective經濟有效
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便宜又划算的東西
00:45
as oil, gas加油站 and coal煤炭.
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能媲美石油、瓦斯和煤。
00:47
My personal個人 favorite喜愛 is nuclear energy能源.
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我最喜歡的是核能。
00:52
Now, it's very energy-dense能量密度高,
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它的能量密度很高,
00:54
it produces產生 solid固體, reliable可靠 power功率,
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能製造固態且穩定的能量,
00:57
and it doesn't make any COCO2.
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而且不會產生任何二氧化碳。
00:59
Now we know of two ways方法
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我們知道兩種生產核能方式:
01:00
of making製造 nuclear energy能源: fission分裂 and fusion聚變.
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核分裂與核融合。
01:06
Now in fission分裂, you take a big nucleus,
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在核分裂中要取一個大原子核,
01:08
you break打破 it in part部分, in two,
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把它分成兩半,
01:10
and it makes品牌 lots of energy能源,
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就會產生很多能源,
01:11
and this is how the nuclear reactor反應堆 today今天 works作品.
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現在的核能反應爐就是採取此法。
01:13
It works作品 pretty漂亮 good.
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運作得還不錯。
01:15
And then there's fusion聚變.
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還有另一種是核融合。
01:17
Now, I like fusion聚變. Fusion'sFusion的 much better.
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我喜歡核融合,那好多了。
01:19
So you take two small nuclei原子核,
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取兩個小原子核,
01:21
you put it together一起, and you make helium,
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把它們放在一起就會變成氦,
01:24
and that's very nice不錯.
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而氦是很棒的東西,
01:25
It makes品牌 lots of energy能源.
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可以產生很多能源。
01:26
This is nature's大自然 way of producing生產 energy能源.
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這是製造能源的自然方式,
01:29
The sun太陽 and all the stars明星 in the universe宇宙
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太陽和所有宇宙中的恆星
01:31
run on fusion聚變.
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都用核融合。
01:34
Now, a fusion聚變 plant
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而核融合發電廠
01:36
would actually其實 be quite相當 cost-effective經濟有效
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十分符合成本效益,
01:38
and it also would be quite相當 safe安全.
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而且也很安全。
01:40
It only produces產生 short term術語 radioactive放射性的 waste浪費,
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它只會產生短期的放射性廢物,
01:44
and it cannot不能 melt熔化 down.
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而且不能熔化。
01:46
Now, the fuel汽油 from fusion聚變 comes from the ocean海洋.
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而核融合的燃料來自海洋。
01:49
In the ocean海洋, you can extract提取 the fuel汽油
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從海中提煉出燃料
01:51
for about one thousandth千分之一 of a cent一分錢
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每度電只要千分之一美元,
01:53
per kilowatt-hour千瓦時, so that's very, very cheap低廉.
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非常、非常便宜。
01:55
And if the whole整個 planet行星 would run on fusion聚變,
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如果整個地球持續進行核融合,
01:58
we could extract提取 the fuel汽油 from the ocean海洋.
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我們就能從海裡提煉出燃料。
02:00
It would run for billions數十億 and billions數十億 of years年份.
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此舉能永續經營好幾百億年。
02:03
Now, if fusion聚變 is so great, why don't we have it?
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那麼如果核融合這麼棒
為什麼我們不能用?
02:07
Where is it?
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它在哪裡?
02:08
Well, there's always a bit of a catch抓住.
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嗯,總是會有些麻煩。
02:10
Fusion聚變 is really, really hard to do.
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核融合非常難做。
02:13
So the problem問題 is, those two nuclei原子核,
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麻煩在於那兩個原子核
02:16
they are both positively積極 charged帶電,
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都帶正電,
02:17
so they don't want to fuse保險絲.
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因此它們不想熔合。
02:19
They go like this. They go like that.
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它們會像這樣來來去去。
02:21
So in order訂購 to make them fuse保險絲,
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因此為了要讓它們熔合,
02:22
you have to throw them at
each other with great speed速度,
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你得用高速丟擲,讓它們彼此碰撞,
02:24
and if they have enough足夠 speed速度,
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如果速度夠快,
02:25
they will go against反對 the repulsion推斥,
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就會克服排斥作用,
02:27
they will touch觸摸, and they will make energy能源.
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當它們相互碰觸就會產生能量。
02:29
Now, the particle粒子 speed速度
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而粒子速度
02:31
is a measure測量 of the temperature溫度.
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就是一種測量溫度的方式。
02:33
So the temperature溫度 required需要 for fusion聚變
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核融合需要達到
02:35
is 150 billion十億 degrees C.
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攝氏 1500 億度。
02:38
This is rather warm,
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因為這溫度很高,
02:40
and this is why fusion聚變 is so hard to do.
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所以核融合非常難做。
02:43
Now, I caught抓住 my little fusion聚變 bug竊聽器
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當我在英屬哥倫比亞大學讀博士時,
02:45
when I did my Ph博士.D. here at the
University大學 of British英國的 Columbia哥倫比亞,
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解決了這個核融合的小麻煩,
02:49
and then I got a big job工作 in a laser激光 printer打印機 place地點
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後來我在雷射印表機公司裡擔任要職,
02:52
making製造 printing印花 for the printing印花 industry行業.
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為印刷業做印刷。
02:55
I worked工作 there for 10 years年份,
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我在那裡做了 10 年,
02:57
and I got a little bit bored無聊,
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覺得有點無趣,
02:59
and then I was 40, and I got a mid-life中年 crisis危機,
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40 歲時碰到了中年危機,
03:02
you know, the usual通常 thing:
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你知道很平常的問題:
03:03
Who am I? What should I do?
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我是誰?我該做什麼?
03:06
What should I do? What can I do?
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我該做什麼?我可以做什麼?
03:08
And then I was looking at my good work,
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我開始檢視我的好工作,
03:10
and what I was doing is I was cutting切割 the forests森林
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我做的事情是砍伐樹林,
03:12
around here in B.C.
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就在英屬哥倫比亞這裡,
03:14
and burying掩埋 you, all of you,
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再用數不盡的垃圾信件
03:15
in millions百萬 of tons of junk破爛 mail郵件.
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掩埋在座的每一個人。
03:19
Now, that was not very satisfactory滿意的.
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那可讓人不太滿意。
03:21
So some people buy購買 a Porsche保時捷.
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有人買了台保時捷;
03:23
Others其他 get a mistress情婦.
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其他些有了小老婆。
03:26
But I've decided決定 to get my bit
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但是我決定致力於
03:27
to solve解決 global全球 warming變暖 and make fusion聚變 happen發生.
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解決地球暖化,並讓核融合能實現。
03:32
Now, so the first thing I did
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首先,
03:33
is I looked看著 into the literature文學 and I see,
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我深入研究文獻,
03:36
how does fusion聚變 work?
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了解核融合的運作方式。
03:38
So the physicists物理學家 have been
working加工 on fusion聚變 for a while,
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物理學家研究核融合已有一段時間,
03:42
and one of the ways方法 they do it
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他們採取的其中一種方式
03:43
is with something called a tokamak託卡馬克.
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稱為托卡馬克裝置 (tokamak)。
03:45
It's a big ring of magnetic磁性 coil,
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那是個很大的磁性環形線圈、
03:48
superconducting超導 coil,
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超導線圈,
03:49
and it makes品牌 a magnetic磁性 field領域
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會在像這樣的環中
03:51
in a ring like this,
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產生磁場,
03:52
and the hot gas加油站 in the middle中間,
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而熱氣會在中央,
03:54
which哪一個 is called a plasma等離子體, is trapped被困.
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稱為電漿,會被限制住。
03:56
The particles粒子 go round回合 and round回合 and round回合
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粒子不斷沿著圓圈的邊緣環繞,
03:58
the circle at the wall.
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03:59
Then they throw a huge巨大 amount of heat in there
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接著它們會在其中釋放大量熱能
04:01
to try to cook廚師 that to fusion聚變 temperature溫度.
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來加熱至核融合需要的溫度。
04:03
So this is the inside of one of those donuts甜甜圈,
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這是那些甜甜圈的內部,
04:05
and on the right side you can see
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你可以在右邊看到
04:07
the fusion聚變 plasma等離子體 in there.
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核融合的電漿在裡面。
04:09
Now, a second第二 way of doing this
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進行核融合的第二種方式是
04:11
is by using運用 laser激光 fusion聚變.
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使用雷射核融合。
04:14
Now in laser激光 fusion聚變, you have a little ping pong乒乓 ball,
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在雷射核融合中,你會有一顆乒乓球,
04:16
you put the fusion聚變 fuel汽油 in the center中央,
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把核融合的燃料放在中央,
04:18
and you zapZAP that with a whole整個
bunch of laser激光 around it.
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用環繞的大量雷射將它密封。
04:21
The lasers激光器 are very strong強大, and it squashes南瓜
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雷射非常強,
04:22
the ping pong乒乓 ball really, really quick.
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且會非常快速地擠壓乒乓球。
04:24
And if you squeeze something hard enough足夠,
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如果你夠用力擠壓某種東西,
04:26
it gets得到 hotter,
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那就會變熱,
04:27
and if it gets得到 really, really fast快速,
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如果速度非常、非常快,
04:29
and they do that in one billionth十億 of a second第二,
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在十億分之一秒之中
04:31
it makes品牌 enough足夠 energy能源 and enough足夠 heat
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就會有足夠的能源和熱能
04:33
to make fusion聚變.
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來產生核融合。
04:34
So this is the inside of one such這樣 machine.
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這就是機器內部的模樣。
04:36
You see the laser激光 beam光束 and the pellet
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你看雷射光束和小球在中央。
04:38
in the center中央.
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04:40
Now, most people think that fusion聚變 is going nowhere無處.
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多數人認為核融合根本不會發生。
04:43
They always think that the physicists物理學家 are in their lab實驗室
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大家總認為物理學家都在實驗室
04:46
and they're working加工 hard, but nothing is happening事件.
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認真工作,但是什麼事也沒發生。
04:48
That's actually其實 not quite相當 true真正.
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那其實不太正確。
04:49
This is a curve曲線 of the gain獲得 in fusion聚變
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這是核融合
在最近 30 年左右的獲益曲線。
04:51
over the last 30 years年份 or so,
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04:53
and you can see that we're making製造 now
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你會發現我們目前做的核融合
04:55
about 10,000 times more fusion聚變 than we used to
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相較於剛開始時,
還多了一萬倍左右。
04:58
when we started開始.
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04:59
That's a pretty漂亮 good gain獲得.
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那獲益還不賴。
05:00
As a matter of fact事實, it's as fast快速
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事實上,那就和傳說中的摩爾定律一樣快,
05:02
as the fabled傳說 Moore's摩爾定律 Law
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05:03
that defined定義 the amount of transistors晶體管
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摩爾定律定義了
一塊晶片中能容納電晶體的數量。
05:06
they can put on a chip芯片.
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05:07
Now, this dot here is called JET噴射,
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這個點稱為 JET,
05:10
the Joint聯合 European歐洲的 Torus花托.
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歐洲聯合環形加速器 (Joint European Torus)。
05:12
It's a big tokamak託卡馬克 donut甜甜圈 in Europe歐洲,
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那是在歐洲的托卡馬克裝置大甜甜圈,
05:14
and this machine in 1997
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這機器在 1997 年
05:17
produced生成 16 megawatts兆瓦 of fusion聚變 power功率
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製造了 16 百萬瓦特的核融合電力
05:20
with 17 megawatts兆瓦 of heat.
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和 17 百萬瓦特的熱能。
05:22
Now, you say, that's not much use,
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你會說那其實不多,
05:24
but it's actually其實 pretty漂亮 close,
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但那其實將近
05:26
considering考慮 we can get
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我們最初所能得到的一萬倍以上。
05:27
about 10,000 times more than we started開始.
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05:29
The second第二 dot here is the NIFNIF.
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這裡的第二點是 NIF,
05:32
It's the National國民 Ignition點火 Facility設施.
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國家點火設施 (National Ignition Facility)。
05:34
It's a big laser激光 machine in the U.S.,
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那是在美國的大型雷射機,
05:37
and last month they announced公佈
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上個月他們的宣布
05:38
with quite相當 a bit of noise噪聲
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惹了些爭議,
05:40
that they had managed管理 to make more fusion聚變 energy能源
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他們說會盡力從核融合
05:42
from the fusion聚變
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製造更多核融合能源,
05:44
than the energy能源 that they put in
the center中央 of the ping pong乒乓 ball.
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比起在乒乓球中間放得還多。
05:46
Now, that's not quite相當 good enough足夠,
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其實那還不夠好,
05:48
because the laser激光 to put that energy能源 in
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因為用來把能源放入的雷射
05:50
was more energy能源 than that,
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消耗的能源比那更多,
05:52
but it was pretty漂亮 good.
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但那很棒。
05:54
Now this is ITERITER,
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這是國際熱核融合實驗反應爐 (ITER),
05:56
pronounced宣判 in French法國: EE-tairhEE-tairh.
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法文是 EE-tairh。
05:58
So this is a big collaboration合作 of different不同 countries國家
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這是跨國合作的大計畫,
06:01
that are building建造 a huge巨大 magnetic磁性 donut甜甜圈
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將會打造一個很大的磁力圈,
06:03
in the south of France法國,
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就在法國南邊,
06:05
and this machine, when it's finished,
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而當這個機器完工後
06:07
will produce生產 500 megawatts兆瓦 of fusion聚變 power功率
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就能製造 500 百萬瓦特核融合電力,
06:09
with only 50 megawatts兆瓦 to make it.
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只需耗費 50 百萬瓦特的電力。
06:12
So this one is the real真實 one.
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這是實體,
06:13
It's going to work.
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它真的會運轉。
06:14
That's the kind of machine that makes品牌 energy能源.
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那是會製造能源的那種機器。
06:16
Now if you look at the graph圖形, you will notice注意
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如果你研究圖表就會發現
06:18
that those two dots are a little bit
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那兩點稍微偏向曲線右側。
06:19
on the right of the curve曲線.
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06:20
We kind of have fallen墮落 off the progress進展.
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我們的進度有些落後了。
06:22
Actually其實, the science科學 to make those machines
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事實上,製造那些機器的科技
06:24
was really in time
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其實在曲線中
06:26
to produce生產 fusion聚變 during that curve曲線.
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正好趕上生產核融合的速度。
06:28
However然而, there has been a bit of politics政治 going on,
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然而,有些政治事務仍需處理,
06:31
and the will to do it was not there,
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而要做的目的並不在那,
06:33
so it drifted漂流 to the right.
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因此會趨向右邊。
06:35
ITERITER, for example, could have been built內置
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例如,國際熱核融合實驗反應爐
06:37
in 2000 or 2005,
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在 2000 年或 2005 年已建造完成,
06:39
but because it's a big international國際 collaboration合作,
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但是因為那是大型的跨國合作,
06:41
the politics政治 got in and it delayed延遲 it a bit.
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涉及政治就會延遲一些時間。
06:44
For example, it took them about three years年份
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例如,他們花了大約三年
06:45
to decide決定 where to put it.
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才決定要把它放在哪邊。
06:47
Now, fusion聚變 is often經常 criticized批評
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核融合常常被批評
06:49
for being存在 a little too expensive昂貴.
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太昂貴了。
06:51
Yes, it did cost成本
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當然,每年要花費一、二十億美元
06:53
a billion十億 dollars美元 or two billion十億 dollars美元 a year
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06:55
to make this progress進展.
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才能有此進展。
06:56
But you have to compare比較 that to the cost成本
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但是應該要把它拿來
06:57
of making製造 Moore's摩爾定律 Law.
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和摩爾定律的花費做比較,
06:59
That cost成本 way more than that.
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摩爾定律的花費遠高於核融合。
07:01
The result結果 of Moore's摩爾定律 Law
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摩爾定律的產物
07:02
is this cell細胞 phone電話 here in my pocket口袋.
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是我口袋裡的行動電話。
07:04
This cell細胞 phone電話, and the Internet互聯網 behind背後 it,
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這電話和後頭網路的花費
07:06
cost成本 about one trillion dollars美元,
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大約一萬億元,
07:09
just so I can take a selfie自拍
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如此一來我就能自拍
07:12
and put it on FacebookFacebook的.
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並傳到臉書上。
07:15
Then when my dad sees看到 that,
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當我爸看到那照片
07:16
he'll地獄 be very proud驕傲.
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就會感到非常驕傲。
07:19
We also spend about 650 billion十億 dollars美元 a year
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我們每年也花了大約 6500 億美元
07:23
in subsidies補貼 for oil and gas加油站
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用來補助石油、瓦斯
07:26
and renewable可再生 energy能源.
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和再生能源。
07:27
Now, we spend one half of a percent百分 of that on fusion聚變.
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而我們在核融合的花費只有它的 0.5%。
07:31
So me, personally親自, I don't think it's too expensive昂貴.
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因此我個人不認為那會太貴。
07:34
I think it's actually其實 been shortchanged縮手縮腳,
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我認為一直以來都被騙了,
07:36
considering考慮 it can solve解決 all our energy能源 problems問題
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總認為那可以解決我們未來幾百億年
07:38
cleanly乾淨 for the next下一個 couple一對 of billions數十億 of years年份.
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所有潔淨能源的問題。
07:41
Now I can say that, but I'm a little bit biased,
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我可以說出來,但是我的立場有些爭議,
07:44
because I started開始 a fusion聚變 company公司
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因為我開了一間核融合公司,
07:45
and I don't even have a FacebookFacebook的 account帳戶.
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而且我還沒有臉書帳號。
07:48
So when I started開始 this fusion聚變 company公司 in 2002,
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因此,當我在 2002 年
開這間核融合公司時,
07:53
I knew知道 I couldn't不能 fight鬥爭 with the big lads小伙子.
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我知道自己無法和一大群人對抗。
07:56
They had much more resources資源 than me.
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他們擁有的資源遠多於我。
07:58
So I decided決定 I would need to find a solution
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因此我決定找出
一個較便宜和快速的方法。
08:00
that is cheaper便宜 and faster更快.
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08:02
Now magnetic磁性 and laser激光 fusion聚變
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磁力和雷射核融合
08:04
are pretty漂亮 good machines.
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都是很棒的機器。
08:05
They are awesome真棒 pieces of technology技術,
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它們都是科技的絕佳產物、
08:07
wonderful精彩 machines, and they have shown顯示
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完美的機器,而且也都證明了
08:09
that fusion聚變 can be doneDONE.
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核融合真的能實現。
08:10
However然而, as a power功率 plant,
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1954
然而,以發電廠來說,
08:12
I don't think they're very good.
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我不認為那很好。
08:14
They're way too big, way too complicated複雜,
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它們都太大、太複雜,
08:16
way too expensive昂貴,
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也太貴了,
08:17
and also, they don't deal合同 very much
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而且,它們也不太能處理
08:19
with the fusion聚變 energy能源.
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核融合能源。
08:20
When you make fusion聚變, the energy能源 comes out
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當你進行核融合,能源以中子呈現,
08:22
as neutrons中子, fast快速 neutrons中子 comes out of the plasma等離子體.
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高速中子來自電漿。
08:25
Those neutrons中子 hit擊中 the wall of the machine.
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那些中子撞擊機器的邊緣。
08:27
It damages賠償 it.
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中子破壞機器。
08:28
And also, you have to catch抓住
the heat from those neutrons中子
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而且,你要從那些中子捕捉熱能,
08:30
and run some steam蒸汽 to spin a turbine渦輪 somewhere某處,
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並製造一些蒸汽
來推動某處和那些機器上的渦輪機,
08:33
and on those machines,
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08:34
it was all a bit of an afterthought事後.
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但那都是後來的事了。
08:37
So I decided決定 that surely一定 there
is a better way of doing that.
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我認為一定會有更好的方式能處理。
08:40
So back to the literature文學,
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因此我回過頭看文獻,
08:41
and I read about the fusion聚變 everywhere到處.
237
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1992
我到處研究核融合的資料。
08:43
One way in particular特定 attracted吸引 my attention注意,
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2722
有一個方式特別吸引我的注意力,
08:46
and it's called magnetized磁化 target目標 fusion聚變,
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2090
稱為磁化定位核聚變,
08:48
or MTFMTF for short.
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或簡稱為 MTF。
08:50
Now, in MTFMTF, what you want to do
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在 MTF 中,你會想要
08:53
is you take a big vat增值稅
242
521300
1970
拿一個大桶子,
08:55
and you fill that with liquid液體 metal金屬,
243
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2016
在裡面裝滿液態金屬,
08:57
and you spin the liquid液體 metal金屬
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1520
然後旋轉液態金屬
08:58
to open打開 a vortex渦流 in the center中央,
245
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1648
在中央展開一個旋渦,
09:00
a bit like your sink水槽.
246
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1136
有點像你的水槽。
09:01
When you pull the plug插頭 on a sink水槽, it makes品牌 a vortex渦流.
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當你拉起水槽的拉環,就會產生旋渦。
09:03
And then you have some pistons活塞 driven驅動 by pressure壓力
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接著你會有一些受壓力驅動的活塞
09:06
that goes on the outside,
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1476
會出現在外部,
09:07
and this compresses壓縮 the liquid液體 metal金屬
250
535566
1920
這麼做會壓縮在電漿周圍的液態金屬,
09:09
around the plasma等離子體, and it compresses壓縮 it,
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活塞會壓縮液態金屬,
09:11
it gets得到 hotter, like a laser激光,
252
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它的溫度會上升,就像雷射一樣,
09:12
and then it makes品牌 fusion聚變.
253
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之後就會產生核融合。
09:14
So it's a bit of a mix混合
254
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因此那就像是混合了
09:15
between之間 a magnetized磁化 fusion聚變
255
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磁化定位核聚變
09:16
and the laser激光 fusion聚變.
256
544703
1983
和雷射核融合。
09:18
So those have a couple一對 of very good advantages優點.
257
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那些都有一些不錯的優點。
09:21
The liquid液體 metal金屬 absorbs吸收 all the neutrons中子
258
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液態金屬會吸收所有的中子,
09:23
and no neutrons中子 hit擊中 the wall,
259
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而且沒有中子會撞擊牆面,
09:25
and therefore因此 there's no damage損傷 to the machine.
260
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因此機器不會損壞。
09:27
The liquid液體 metal金屬 gets得到 hot,
261
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液態金屬變熱,
09:29
so you can pump that in a heat exchanger,
262
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2000
你就可以把它打入熱交換器中,
09:31
make some steam蒸汽, spin a turbine渦輪.
263
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製造些蒸汽,推動渦輪機。
09:33
So that's a very convenient方便 way of doing
264
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用這個方法來處理這個階段
09:34
this part部分 of the process處理.
265
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非常方便。
09:35
And finally最後, all the energy能源 to make the fusion聚變 happen發生
266
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最後,所有讓核融合產生的能量
09:39
comes from steam-powered蒸汽動力的 pistons活塞,
267
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2135
來自於由蒸汽推動的活塞,
09:41
which哪一個 is way cheaper便宜 than lasers激光器
268
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1656
這比雷射和超導磁鐵還便宜。
09:42
or superconducting超導 coils線圈.
269
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09:44
Now, this was all very good
270
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1488
這些都很棒,
09:46
except for the problem問題 that it didn't quite相當 work.
271
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只不過它不太可行。
09:48
(Laughter笑聲)
272
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(笑聲)
09:50
There's always a catch抓住.
273
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無論如何都有個解套方式。
09:51
So when you compress壓縮 that,
274
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1514
當你壓縮它,
09:53
the plasma等離子體 cools冷卻 down
275
581417
1924
電漿冷卻的速度
09:55
faster更快 than the compression壓縮 speed速度,
276
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1628
就會快於壓縮的速度,
09:56
so you're trying to compress壓縮 it,
277
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1313
因此你會試著壓縮它,
09:58
but the plasma等離子體 cooled冷卻 down and
cooled冷卻 down and cooled冷卻 down
278
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2335
但是電漿不斷冷卻,
10:00
and then it did absolutely絕對 nothing.
279
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1941
最後就會毫無作用。
10:02
So when I saw that, I said,
well, this is such這樣 a shame恥辱,
280
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2035
我看到後覺得這還真是可惜,
10:04
because it's a very, very good idea理念.
281
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1750
因為那是非常、非常棒的點子。
10:06
So hopefully希望 I can improve提高 on that.
282
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2354
但願我能改進它。
10:08
So I thought about it for a minute分鐘,
283
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1095
我思考了一分鐘,
10:09
and I said, okay, how can we make that work better?
284
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自問我們要如何讓它運作得更好?
10:11
So then I thought about impact碰撞.
285
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1858
後來我考慮用撞擊。
10:13
What about if we use a big hammer錘子
286
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1834
如果我們用個大鐵鎚,
10:15
and we swing搖擺 it and we hit擊中 the nail like this,
287
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2532
揮動之後像這樣釘下釘子,
10:18
in the place地點 of putting the hammer錘子 on the nail
288
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1974
在鐵鎚打入釘子、
10:20
and pushing推動 and try to put it in? That won't慣於 work.
289
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2195
推擠,並試著置入它的地方?
那不管用。
10:22
So what the idea理念 is
290
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1931
因此我的想法是
10:24
is to use the idea理念 of an impact碰撞.
291
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1744
運用撞擊的想法。
10:25
So we accelerate加速 the pistons活塞 with steam蒸汽,
292
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2082
我們用蒸汽讓活塞加速,
10:28
that takes a little bit of time,
293
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1279
會花點時間,
10:29
but then, bang! you hit擊中 the piston活塞,
294
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1983
接著,成功!你會碰到活塞
10:31
and, baffBAFF!, all the energy能源 is doneDONE instantly即刻,
295
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2552
然後啵!所有能量就會馬上
10:33
down instantly即刻 to the liquid液體,
296
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1596
直接傳到液體,
10:35
and that compresses壓縮 the plasma等離子體 much faster更快.
297
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2050
接著便更快速地壓縮電漿。
10:37
So I decided決定, okay, this is good, let's make that.
298
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我想這很棒,就決定就這麼做。
10:39
So we built內置 this machine in this garage車庫 here.
299
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3725
因此我們在這車庫打造了這台機器。
10:43
We made製作 a small machine
300
631652
1085
我們做了台小機器,
10:44
that we managed管理 to squeeze
301
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1972
打算從裡面擠出一點中子,
10:46
a little bit of neutrons中子 out of that,
302
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1648
10:48
and those are my marketing營銷 neutrons中子,
303
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2201
那些是我的行銷中子,
10:50
and with those marketing營銷 neutrons中子,
304
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1443
有了那些行銷中子,
10:52
then I raised上調 about 50 million百萬 dollars美元,
305
640001
2599
我賺了五千萬美元,
10:54
and I hired僱用 65 people. That's my team球隊 here.
306
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2890
我雇了 65 個人,這是我的團隊。
10:57
And this is what we want to build建立.
307
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1582
這是我們想做的東西。
10:59
So it's going to be a big machine,
308
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1514
那會是台很大的機器,
11:00
about three meters in diameter直徑,
309
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1474
直徑大概有三公尺,
11:02
liquid液體 lead spinning紡織 around,
310
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液體會帶動旋轉,
11:03
big vortex渦流 in the center中央,
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中央會有個大旋渦,
11:05
put the plasma等離子體 on the top最佳 and on the bottom底部,
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將電漿放在上下方,
11:07
piston活塞 hits點擊 on the side,
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活塞撞擊邊緣,
11:09
bang!, it compresses壓縮 it,
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砰!活塞壓縮電漿
11:10
and it will make some energy能源,
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就會製造一些能量,
11:11
and the neutron中子 will come out in the liquid液體 metal金屬,
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中子就會在液態金屬裡出現,
11:14
going to go in a steam蒸汽 engine發動機 and make the turbine渦輪,
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接著進入蒸汽機後就會產生渦輪,
11:16
and some of the steam蒸汽 will go back
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有些蒸氣會回過頭來
11:18
to fire the piston活塞.
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引燃活塞。
11:19
We're going to run that about one time per second第二,
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我們大概每秒要跑一次,
11:21
and it will produce生產 100 megawatts兆瓦 of electricity電力.
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如此就能產生 100 百萬瓦特的電力。
11:26
Okay, we also built內置 this injector注射器,
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我們也製造了注射器,
11:28
so this injector注射器 makes品牌 the plasma等離子體 to start開始 with.
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這個注射器會讓電漿開始運作。
11:30
It makes品牌 the plasma等離子體 at about
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注射器讓電漿維持微溫的熱度,
11:32
a lukewarm temperature溫度 of three million百萬 degrees C.
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大約是攝氏三百萬度。
11:36
Unfortunately不幸, it doesn't last quite相當 long enough足夠,
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不幸的是那並不持久,
11:38
so we need to extend延伸 the life
of the plasma等離子體 a little bit,
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因此我們得稍微延長電漿的壽命,
11:41
but last month it got a lot better,
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但上個月有了很大的進展,
11:43
so I think we have the plasma等離子體 compressing壓縮 now.
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那麼我們現在就有了壓縮電漿。
11:45
Then we built內置 a small sphere領域, about this big,
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接著我們建立一個小球型,
大概這麼大,
11:48
14 pistons活塞 around it,
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有 14 個活塞環繞它,
11:50
and this will compress壓縮 the liquid液體.
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如此就能壓縮液體。
11:52
However然而, plasma等離子體 is difficult to compress壓縮.
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可是電漿很難壓縮,
11:54
When you compress壓縮 it,
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當你壓縮它時,
11:55
it tends趨向 to go a little bit crooked like that,
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會變得像那樣有點變形,
11:57
so you need the timing定時 of the piston活塞
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因此你需要選擇活塞運作最好的時機,
11:59
to be very good,
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12:00
and for that we use several一些 control控制 systems系統,
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為此我們用了幾個控制系統,
12:03
which哪一個 was not possible可能 in 1970,
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在 1970 年時這根本不可能辦到,
12:05
but we now can do that
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但是我們現在可以做到,
12:06
with nice不錯, new electronics電子產品.
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透過良好、全新的電子設備即可。
12:10
So finally最後, most people think that fusion聚變
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最後,大多數人會認為核融合
12:12
is in the future未來 and will never happen發生,
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在未來也不會實現,
12:14
but as a matter of fact事實, fusion聚變 is getting得到 very close.
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但事實是,核融合已近在眼前。
12:17
We are almost幾乎 there.
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我們就快達成了。
12:18
The big labs實驗室 have shown顯示 that fusion聚變 is doable可行,
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大型實驗室顯示了核融合是可行的,
12:21
and now there are small companies公司
that are thinking思維 about that,
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現在也有一些小公司在考量,
12:23
and they say, it's not that it cannot不能 be doneDONE,
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他們發現那並非無法完成,
12:26
but it's how to make it cost-effectively成本效益.
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而是要找出能符合成本效益的方法。
12:28
General一般 Fusion聚變 is one of those small companies公司,
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公眾核融合 (General Fusion) 是其中一家小公司,
12:30
and hopefully希望, very soon不久, somebody, someone有人,
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如果順利的話,很快,
12:33
will crack裂紋 that nut堅果,
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就會有人解決那個難題,
12:35
and perhaps也許 it will be General一般 Fusion聚變.
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也許就會是公眾核融合公司。
12:36
Thank you very much.
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非常感謝。
12:38
(Applause掌聲)
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(掌聲)
Translated by Marssi Draw
Reviewed by Isabel Lin

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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Michel Laberge - Plasma physicist
In a lab near Vancouver, Michel Laberge and his team at General Fusion are building a prototype fusion reactor that mimics the processes of the sun to produce cheap, clean and abundant energy.

Why you should listen
Fusion, putting it briefly, is what happens inside the sun: intense heat and pressure combine to convert hydrogen into helium, releasing heat and energy in a self-sustaining reaction. Harnessing that same kind of reaction could someday solve the energy crisis here on Earth, and the US (at the National Ignition Facility in California, using the world's most powerful laser), Europe (at ITER) and China are all working on fusion in multi-billion-dollar labs. Meanwhile, just outside Vancouver, a private-government collaboration spending millions-with-an-m is keeping pace.
 
At General Fusion, plasma physicist Michel Laberge hopes to start a fusion reaction by combining several techniques in one reactor. Inside a spherical chamber, molten lead-lithium is spun up into a vortex, then shot with a pulse of magnetically contained plasma -- meanwhile, around the edge of the sphere, an array of pistons will drive a pressure wave into the center of the sphere, compressing the plasma to fusion conditions. General Fusion is designing and protoyping each piece of this system.
More profile about the speaker
Michel Laberge | Speaker | TED.com