International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER)

Context (IT): The ITER fusion project has reached a significant milestone with the completion of the central magnet system, and India has played a critical role in its progress.

About International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER)

International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER), located in Southern France, is a collaborative effort involving >30 countries to prove the feasibility of fusion as a large-scale, carbon-free energy source.
Sun-like Process: Replicates the nuclear reaction that powers the Sun and stars on Earth.
- Fusion Principle: Fuses light atomic nuclei (e.g., deuterium and tritium) to form a heavier nucleus, releasing enormous energy.

Under development since 2005, it is expected to begin deuterium-tritium fusion reactions by 2039, providing a pathway for future electricity generation through fusion.
Established in 1985, it involves seven core members, China, India, EU, Japan, Korea, Russia, and the US.
Funding Structure: EU (host) contributes 45%, each of the others contributes 9%.

Nuclear fusion is the process of combining two light atomic nuclei to form a heavier nucleus, releasing a tremendous amount of energy. This process is what powers the sun and other stars.
Nuclear bomb using fusion are referred to as thermonuclear bombs or hydrogen bombs.
For fusion bombs, two extremely rare isotopes of hydrogen, deuterium and tritium, are used.
The hydrogen isotopes are fused together under extremely high temperatures (millions of degrees Celsius) and pressure for the nuclear explosion to occur. (A fission trigger might be required)

Nuclear Fusion

Source: EarthSky

World’s Largest Tokamak: ITER’s reactor will be the largest ever built, double the size of Japan’s JT-60SA and with six times the plasma volume.
Tokamak Reactor Design: ITER uses a toroidal (donut-shaped) chamber with strong magnetic fields, considered the most effective design for magnetic fusion since the 1960s.
Fusion Fuel Used: Deuterium and Tritium are heated to 150 million °C to enable fusion reactions hotter than the sun’s core. The fusion of these isotopes produces high-energy neutrons that carry usable energy.
Magnetic Containment System: Superconducting magnets create a magnetic cage that prevents plasma from touching the reactor walls.
Temperature Management: Magnetic containment ensures plasma remains superheated by avoiding energy loss through wall contact.

World’s Most Powerful Magnet: The US-built central solenoid (a cylindrical coil of wire that generates a magnetic field when electric current passes through it), vital for initiating and stabilizing fusion reactions, can generate force strong enough to lift an aircraft carrier.
- It forms the central component of ITER’s magnetic confinement, enabling precise plasma control.
Progress Despite Delays: Initially planned for 2021, its completion marks a major step as ITER now accelerates toward plasma operations by 2033.

India joined the ITER project in 2005.
Strategic Contributions:
- Built massive cryostat cooling systems and critical heating technologies.
- Supplies in-kind components, scientific expertise, and financial support.

HL-2M Tokamak: Largest and most advanced fusion device in China, operational since 2020.
J-TEXT Tokamak: Another key fusion project in China contributing to its fusion research.

Companies like Helion and Commonwealth Fusion Systems are pursuing commercial fusion energy, with ambitious timelines to generate electricity by the late 2020s to early 2030s.

Also refer to China’s Artificial Sun.