China fires up world’s biggest superconducting magnet for nuclear fusion project

Advertisement China fires up world’s biggest superconducting magnet for nuclear fusion project The device, part of the CRAFT artificial sun reactor, sets new international benchmark in push for clean energy 2-MIN READ2-MIN Zhang Tongin Beijing The world’s biggest superconducting magnet for a nuclear fusion reactor has passed final tests as part of China’s CRAFT “artificial sun” project, eclipsing international performance benchmarks. The assembly comprises two coils: a toroidal-field magnet that acts as a magnetic cage, and a central solenoid that serves as the igniter. The results, achieved by researchers with the Institute of Plasma Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, clear a major engineering hurdle on the path to confining a plasma hotter than the sun’s core, state news agency Xinhua reported on Saturday. The project – the Comprehensive Research Facility for Fusion Technology – aims to create a miniature sun at over 100 million degrees Celsius (over 180 million Fahrenheit) and trap it inside a doughnut-shaped metal cage to generate electricity. The magnetic cage, known as the CRAFT toroidal field coil, is a core component of the reactor. It uses a strong magnetic field to prevent the container of the miniature sun from melting as the plasma inside reaches hundreds of millions of degrees. Advertisement Select Voice Select Speed 1.00x [Image text:] THE CRAFT TOROIDAL FIELD (TF) MAGNET HAS BEEN SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETED CRAFT DtaTF)