Ever-expanding access to energy, mainly from fossil fuels, has driven centuries of exponential growth in our standards of living.
Energy demand will continue to accelerate in advanced economies and even more so in the developing world.
At the same time, our environment is dramatically challenged by climate change and pollution.
We need a solution that addresses both issues. Fusion energy is for the global energy transition.
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Data source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (2023) and other sources
GDP data is expressed in international-$ at 2017 prices.
Via: OurWorldInData.org/energy
HB11’s approach to fusion energy overcomes the drawbacks of conventional nuclear energy as well as other forms of fusion (including Deuterium-Tritium).
The Hydrogen-Boron fusion reaction (p-11B fusion) creates three Helium ions and releases 8.7MeV of energy. The reaction propagates through compressed fusion fuel.
Boron is plentiful and safe. It’s non-radioactive and cannot be weaponized. As a fuel, it can be deployed in any country.
Laser Boron fusion is incredibly energy dense – a million times denser than oil.
Fusing Hydrogen and Boron is aneutronic. Practically, this means it creates the least waste of all approaches to fusion and bears a dramatically smaller environmental footprint compared to gas, nuclear, solar, wind or coal.
Components of a beam combination system
The central challenge for all fusion energy is improving gain: maximizing the energy produced from fusion versus the energy needed to make fusion happen.
A fusion power plant must also be practical: affordable, resilient, safe, sustainable.
Research shows that using high-intensity lasers to initiate fusion is the most viable path forward for commercial energy production.
Rather than rely on a singular massive laser, we deploy a laser system that combines thousands of commercial lasers to achieve required energy levels. This approach maximizes resiliency while creating energy and cost efficiencies.
Proton beam focused on a hot spot in a compressed target
We deploy a nanosecond and picosecond two-pulse laser system to achieve Fast Ignition. Focused energy accelerates protons and initiates fusion within a compressed fuel pellet.
In developing Fast Ignition, we stand on the shoulders of decades of progressive research at US, EU, Russian and Japanese national institutions. New capabilities in lasers, computing and materials have made this the most promising and commercially viable approach.
Fusion product heat transfer models allow the harnessing of fusion energy into useful electricity
We aim to provide the safest, most permanent and most environmentally-friendly electricity on the grid, at a commercial LCOE.
Our power plant concept works with pulsed power. Hydrogen-Boron fuel pellets are injected and burned at a rate of about 1 per second. The energy released drives a conventional steam cycle generator.
A portion of the energy produced is recycled into the laser system for continued operation.
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