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An Indispensable Truth: How Fusion Power Can Save the Planet
Recent books have raised the public consciousness about the dangers of global warming and climate change. This book is intended to convey the message that there is a solution. The solution is the rapid development of hydrogen fusion energy. This energy source is inexhaustible and, although achieving fusion energy is difficult, the progress made in the past two decades has been remarkable. The physics issues are now understood well enough that serious engineering can begin.The book starts with a summary of climate change and energy sources, trying to give a concise, clear, impartial picture of the facts, separate from conjecture and sensationalism. Controlled fusion -- the difficult problems and ingenious solutions -- is then explained using many new concepts.The bottom line -- what has yet to be done, how long it will take, and how much it will cost -- may surprise you.
Francis F. Chen's career in plasma has extended over five decades. His textbook Introduction to Plasma Physics has been used worldwide continuously since 1974. He is the only physicist who has published significantly in both experiment and theory and on both magnetic fusion and laser fusion. As an outdoorsman and runner, he is deeply concerned about the environment. Currently he enjoys bird photography and is a member of the Audubon Society.
Francis F. Chen's career in plasma has extended over five decades. His textbook Introduction to Plasma Physics has been used worldwide continuously since 1974. He is the only physicist who has published significantly in both experiment and theory and on both magnetic fusion and laser fusion. As an outdoorsman and runner, he is deeply concerned about the environment. Currently he enjoys bird photography and is a member of the Audubon Society.
450 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2011
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135 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
August 5, 2012
The best non-fiction book I have ever read. If I could insist that everyone read and understand only one book - this would be it.
It starts with an introduction to the problems of climate change and resource depletion, discussing various alternative energy solutions (such as wind, solar etc.) at length and comparing these to fossil fuels, and of course fusion.
It then goes into great detail on tokamaks, which is of interest as they are the most mature form of fusion energy we have and dominate the available funding thus representing the most likely candidate for a first generation fusion reactor.
Some of the plasma physics and engineering details can be dry, but if it gets too bad I would recommend skipping them as even a non-technical reader can appreciate the later chapters. I have a degree in physics and found it to be very interesting and educational - virtually no mathematics is used, but the concepts can still be confusing.
The later chapters discuss alternative ways of achieving fusion (indeed the discussion on stellarators and Field Reversed Configuration and Dense Plasma Focus devices was especially interesting).
Hoaxes and false starts such as the famous Cold fusion of Fleischmann and Pons and the more scientifically sound but sadly unsuccessful approach of Muon Fusion is discussed.
The book concludes with a summary of the benefits of fusion and the cost of getting there.
Overall, the book is very, very good as it is educational in every single area, explaining ideas behind climate science, instabilities (do you know why water flows out of an upside down bottle despite the atmospheric pressure being sufficient to hold the water?) and economic and political issues.
The only downside to the book is that it will leave you feeling dismayed at both the lack of support for ITER/DEMO and the lack of funding for any (possibly simpler, cheaper and better) alternative approaches. One is left feeling rather like Nunez from H.G. Wells' 'The Country of the Blind' as you wonder why we continue to squander our wealth upon so many frivolous and fruitless endeavours whilst questions vital to our continued survival and prosperity go unanswered.
In conclusion - I would strongly recommend this book to anyone and everyone.
It starts with an introduction to the problems of climate change and resource depletion, discussing various alternative energy solutions (such as wind, solar etc.) at length and comparing these to fossil fuels, and of course fusion.
It then goes into great detail on tokamaks, which is of interest as they are the most mature form of fusion energy we have and dominate the available funding thus representing the most likely candidate for a first generation fusion reactor.
Some of the plasma physics and engineering details can be dry, but if it gets too bad I would recommend skipping them as even a non-technical reader can appreciate the later chapters. I have a degree in physics and found it to be very interesting and educational - virtually no mathematics is used, but the concepts can still be confusing.
The later chapters discuss alternative ways of achieving fusion (indeed the discussion on stellarators and Field Reversed Configuration and Dense Plasma Focus devices was especially interesting).
Hoaxes and false starts such as the famous Cold fusion of Fleischmann and Pons and the more scientifically sound but sadly unsuccessful approach of Muon Fusion is discussed.
The book concludes with a summary of the benefits of fusion and the cost of getting there.
Overall, the book is very, very good as it is educational in every single area, explaining ideas behind climate science, instabilities (do you know why water flows out of an upside down bottle despite the atmospheric pressure being sufficient to hold the water?) and economic and political issues.
The only downside to the book is that it will leave you feeling dismayed at both the lack of support for ITER/DEMO and the lack of funding for any (possibly simpler, cheaper and better) alternative approaches. One is left feeling rather like Nunez from H.G. Wells' 'The Country of the Blind' as you wonder why we continue to squander our wealth upon so many frivolous and fruitless endeavours whilst questions vital to our continued survival and prosperity go unanswered.
In conclusion - I would strongly recommend this book to anyone and everyone.
May 15, 2021
The best book for anyone looking to understand fusion power and where humans are in the process for making a viable fusion reactor possible.
The best part about this book is the first section where the author goes over mountains of climate data showing why and how humans are drastically shifting the global climate, and why a future source of core energy will be pertinent; even with solar and wind powers, Chen makes the case those sources of energy will be for auxiliary use and not generate enough power for primary use to substitute the role of coal and oil.
Chen does a great job of giving the lay reader more information than they'll ever need, but as an avid nonfiction reader, I prefer that. Give me more, not less, so I can go back and reread as my understanding of the details grow.
The short of it is Chen makes a compelling case for the need of fusion power, why nuclear power overall is safer, cheaper, and provides greater output as an energy source provider, AND why fusion is superior to fission because even if there is human error, you won't have a catastrophe such as Chernobyl. Fusion simply doesn't have the same, radioactive, human-error induced drawbacks of fission.
Unfortunately, the TL:DR spoiler for the book, is apparently 2050 will be the earliest we can conceive of large scale, commercial power from fusion reactors assuming all things go right on the road of scientific discovery as fusion physics is still finding problems and solutions every time we make a new tokamak.
Compelling and interesting read if you're at all interested in fusion or want to know the physics behind it. Also a good read if you don't think humans are the cause of the modern climate change, the first section alone is fascinating in and of itself.
The best part about this book is the first section where the author goes over mountains of climate data showing why and how humans are drastically shifting the global climate, and why a future source of core energy will be pertinent; even with solar and wind powers, Chen makes the case those sources of energy will be for auxiliary use and not generate enough power for primary use to substitute the role of coal and oil.
Chen does a great job of giving the lay reader more information than they'll ever need, but as an avid nonfiction reader, I prefer that. Give me more, not less, so I can go back and reread as my understanding of the details grow.
The short of it is Chen makes a compelling case for the need of fusion power, why nuclear power overall is safer, cheaper, and provides greater output as an energy source provider, AND why fusion is superior to fission because even if there is human error, you won't have a catastrophe such as Chernobyl. Fusion simply doesn't have the same, radioactive, human-error induced drawbacks of fission.
Unfortunately, the TL:DR spoiler for the book, is apparently 2050 will be the earliest we can conceive of large scale, commercial power from fusion reactors assuming all things go right on the road of scientific discovery as fusion physics is still finding problems and solutions every time we make a new tokamak.
Compelling and interesting read if you're at all interested in fusion or want to know the physics behind it. Also a good read if you don't think humans are the cause of the modern climate change, the first section alone is fascinating in and of itself.
February 13, 2022
Very technical book. I spent an hour or so convincing myself that ions in the plasma would drift in the direction the author claimed and that twisting magnetic field lines would fix the problem. Lots and lots of time spent on describing all the possible instabilities in the plasma. It’s a good description of all of these phenomena but I’d say you need a solid background in physics to understand what he’s talking about.
Keep in mind that his analysis of non-fusion energy sources is 10 years out of date by now. So his comparisons of fusion vs solar / wind costs are not apt.
I was 80% of the way through the book and was really optimistic about a commercial fusion reactor happening soon because the author made it all seem relatively achievable … then he hits us with an assessment that commercial fusion won’t happen until 2050 (book was written in 2010). Also a little disheartening that Tokomak reactors are unlikely to be good for commercial fusion but we’ve done so much development work on them that we’re kind of locked into the technology instead of pursuing more promising stellerator technology.
Anyways it’s a good book if you have a technical background and an inclination to learn about the fundamentals of fusion.
Keep in mind that his analysis of non-fusion energy sources is 10 years out of date by now. So his comparisons of fusion vs solar / wind costs are not apt.
I was 80% of the way through the book and was really optimistic about a commercial fusion reactor happening soon because the author made it all seem relatively achievable … then he hits us with an assessment that commercial fusion won’t happen until 2050 (book was written in 2010). Also a little disheartening that Tokomak reactors are unlikely to be good for commercial fusion but we’ve done so much development work on them that we’re kind of locked into the technology instead of pursuing more promising stellerator technology.
Anyways it’s a good book if you have a technical background and an inclination to learn about the fundamentals of fusion.
August 2, 2020
Excellent primer. A must read for understanding fusion and its cornerstone role for our societies future.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews