WO2015127267A2 - Systèmes et procédés permettant de générer des torons d'électrons enroulés en spirale - Google Patents

Systèmes et procédés permettant de générer des torons d'électrons enroulés en spirale Download PDF

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WO2015127267A2
WO2015127267A2 PCT/US2015/016903 US2015016903W WO2015127267A2 WO 2015127267 A2 WO2015127267 A2 WO 2015127267A2 US 2015016903 W US2015016903 W US 2015016903W WO 2015127267 A2 WO2015127267 A2 WO 2015127267A2
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arc
ions
toroid
electrode
electron
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WO2015127267A3 (fr
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Clint Seward
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Electron Power Systems, Inc.
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Priority claimed from US14/185,605 external-priority patent/US10201070B2/en
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Publication of WO2015127267A3 publication Critical patent/WO2015127267A3/fr

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    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H05—ELECTRIC TECHNIQUES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • H05H—PLASMA TECHNIQUE; PRODUCTION OF ACCELERATED ELECTRICALLY-CHARGED PARTICLES OR OF NEUTRONS; PRODUCTION OR ACCELERATION OF NEUTRAL MOLECULAR OR ATOMIC BEAMS
    • H05H1/00—Generating plasma; Handling plasma
    • H05H1/02—Arrangements for confining plasma by electric or magnetic fields; Arrangements for heating plasma
    • H05H1/10—Arrangements for confining plasma by electric or magnetic fields; Arrangements for heating plasma using externally-applied magnetic fields only, e.g. Q-machines, Yin-Yang, base-ball
    • H05H1/12—Arrangements for confining plasma by electric or magnetic fields; Arrangements for heating plasma using externally-applied magnetic fields only, e.g. Q-machines, Yin-Yang, base-ball wherein the containment vessel forms a closed or nearly closed loop
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G21—NUCLEAR PHYSICS; NUCLEAR ENGINEERING
    • G21B—FUSION REACTORS
    • G21B1/00—Thermonuclear fusion reactors
    • G21B1/11—Details
    • G21B1/15—Particle injectors for producing thermonuclear fusion reactions, e.g. pellet injectors
    • Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
    • Y02—TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
    • Y02E—REDUCTION OF GREENHOUSE GAS [GHG] EMISSIONS, RELATED TO ENERGY GENERATION, TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBUTION
    • Y02E30/00—Energy generation of nuclear origin
    • Y02E30/10—Nuclear fusion reactors

Definitions

  • a spheromak can be defined as a toroidal shaped arrangement of plasma consisting of electrons and ions.
  • Traditional spheromaks contain large internal electrical currents and their associated magnetic fields are arranged so the forces within the spheromak are nearly balanced, resulting in confinement times of about a few microseconds without any external fields.
  • Spheromaks can be generated using a "gun" type device that ejects spheromaks off the end of an electrode into a holding area called a flux conserver. This has made them useful in the laboratory setting for analysis, and spheromak guns are relatively common in astrophysics laboratories. Spheromaks have also been observed to occur in nature as a variety of
  • astrophysical events like coronal loops and filaments, relativistic jets and plasmoids.
  • Spheromaks have been proposed as a magnetic fusion energy concept due to their confinement times, on the order of a few microseconds, which was on the same order as the best Tokamaks when they were first being studied in the mid-twentieth century. Though they had some successes, these small and lower-energy devices had limited performance.
  • the present invention relates to systems and methods for generating electron toroids. This is formed in partial or full atmosphere where it is observed to remain stable for hundreds of milliseconds with no external magnetic field for confinement.
  • the charged particles in this spheromak produce a strong internal magnetic field.
  • a spiraling path for the electrons in the surface of the spheromak produces a large internal magnetic field, hence the name of this type of spheromak: the Electron Spiral Toroid Spheromak (ESTS).
  • a preferred embodiment of the present invention provides a moving electrode system to initiate an ESTS.
  • One or more electrodes can undergo controlled translation using a
  • a computer can be programmed using software configured to control a data processor or microcontroller to transmit control signals to an actuator that enables motion of the electrodes and to adjust parameters used to form the toroid.
  • the initiating voltage and the current across the arc formed between the electrodes are parameters selectable by the user to control formation and movement.
  • a camera and system sensors can be used to provide feedback control of toroid formation.
  • This spheromak is formed using a high current electric arc.
  • the arc is preferably formed in partial atmosphere, and the ESTS is formed around the arc.
  • preferred embodiments of the present invention form them in partial to full atmosphere. The ESTS formed in this manner is observed to remain in place around the arc for the duration of the arc, which has been observed for hundreds of milliseconds.
  • ESTSs have also been observed to pass through the arc and leave it entirely.
  • an ESTS leaves the arc it passes through the magnetic fields of the arc while maintaining ESTS stability and shape. It is observed to remain stable after it is removed from the arc, with no external magnetic field for confinement, and spins at a high rate.
  • High speed cameras have demonstrated that the shape is that of a spheromak by capturing images at a very fast shutter speed, fast enough to capture the ESTS image in mid spin.
  • the ESTS is removed from the arc, it is observed to endure for hundreds of milliseconds, for example, and can be moved by applying a directed magnetic field.
  • the invention provides a class of spheromak that is formed in partial atmosphere in contrast to formation in a high vacuum.
  • This class of spheromak is formed around an electric arc. The spheromak is observed to endure for many milliseconds, a longer time than the tens of microseconds of traditional spheromaks when no external confining magnetic field is used.
  • a preferred embodiment of the invention includes a method of making a toroid having an ion concentration of at least 10 16 ions/cm 3 and preferably in a range of 101 1 6 D ions/cm 3 - 1020 u ions/cm .
  • Such high density ion assemblies can be formed by modulating an arc current in a selected atmosphere at a controlled temperature and pressure.
  • a constant current power supply can be used that can maintain a selected current level during formation of the toroid. Consequently, as current is drawn from the arc to form the toroid, the regulation circuit automatically compensates to maintain the selected current level and thereby achieve the desired ion density in the toroid.
  • a preferred embodiment uses a sensor system to measure operating characteristics within the system.
  • Different sensor systems or detectors and methods can be used such as optical interferometry to measure the ion density in the toroid. With calibration of the measured density signal, the density measurement system can provide a feedback signal to control toroid formation.
  • the sensor system can also measure additional characteristics of the toroid including size and shape and also be used to automate toroid formation and movement.
  • Spectrometers can be used to measure system characteristics or operating conditions such as the gas or reaction products.
  • the accelerated ESTS has several applications including x-ray generation, particle beam accelerator, or an improved colliding spheromak energy generator.
  • a magnet coil system can be positioned, for example, relative to the arc to move the toroid after formation.
  • a plurality of generators can be used to generate a corresponding number of toroids.
  • One or more accelerators can be used to provide relative movement between generated toroids.
  • two or more toroids can be generated to interact or collide to cause a reaction and a reaction product.
  • FIGs. 1A-1B are schematic views of a preferred embodiment of the Electron Spiral
  • FIG. 2A is a schematic view of the apparatus used to produce the ESTS with a moving frame used to separate the electrodes.
  • FIG. 2B is a schematic view of a further preferred embodiment of a system for generating high density charged particle toroids.
  • FIG. 3 is a schematic view of the apparatus used to produce the ESTS with a screw motor used to move the electrodes in place of the moving frame.
  • FIG. 4 is a schematic view of the apparatus used to produce the ESTS with a laser used to initiate the arc instead of the moving electrodes.
  • FIG. 5 is a schematic of the ESTS.
  • FIG. 6 is a simplified schematic view of an ESTS accelerator.
  • FIG. 7A is a more detailed view of an ESTS accelerator.
  • FIG. 7B is a schematic of two ESTS accelerators that can counterpropagate and collide ESTSs in an interaction zone.
  • FIG. 8 is a process sequence for controlling formation of a toroid using a control system.
  • FIGs. 9A-9G is a photograph of an arc prior to ESTS formation.
  • FIG. 10 is a photograph of an ESTS during formation around an arc.
  • FIG. 11 is a photograph of an ESTS being removed from an arc.
  • FIG. 12 is a process sequence for controlling ion density in an ESTS during formation. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
  • a spheromak is a toroidal shaped arrangement of plasma consisting of electrons and ions.
  • a typical spheromak has a toroid shape in a three-dimensional configuration. Additional details regarding prior systems for producing electron toroids can be found in U.S. Patent No. 6,603,247, the entire contents of which is incorporated herein by reference.
  • FIG. 1A Shown in FIG. 1A is a schematic diagram of a view of a preferred embodiment of the invention.
  • the elements required to initiate an Electron Spiral Toroid Spheromak (ESTS) are an electric arc 11, between an anode 13 and a cathode 14.
  • the arc is formed in partial or full atmosphere in a chamber. Collisions of the arc electrons with the background gas create ions 12.
  • an ESTS 15 forms within the chamber.
  • the methods for forming an electric arc suitable for formation of an ESTS require stability and duration.
  • the arc must be stable for a period of time, compared to arcs that are often unstable in the sense that they change arc paths rapidly and often.
  • the arc current value is also important. For arcs of approximately five to eight centimeters of arc length, for example, the current is found to range from 200 to 600 amperes. At this value, the arc has an essentially uniform external magnetic field. As electrons leave the arc, they are acted on by the arc magnetic field which causes them to assume a toroidal orbit around the arc. When enough electrons have left the arc, they produce the ESTS. It is important to note that the arc channel itself must be narrower than the path of the electrons around the arc such that the electrons leave the arc that do not collide with the particles remaining in the arc itself.
  • Positively charged ions from around the arc are trapped within or around the ESTS surface during formation. These ions serve to electrically neutralize the toroid within the housing. As shown in Fig. IB, electrons leave the arc substantially simultaneously and curl around in response to the magnetic field to form the toroid.
  • the ions situated within the toroid 52 or outside the toroid 54 can form boundary layers with a charge gradient operative to dynamically neutralize a region or envelope around the toroid.
  • the circuit resistance is at its lowest value.
  • the capacitor power supply can provide a maximum voltage and current when fully charged and can potentially damage the electrodes, for example.
  • a variable resistor or other voltage control device can be used to adjust the initial voltage and current to control the arc and further control initiation of one or more toroids with the arc.
  • the initial voltage at contact is increased for a first time period upon electrode separation for about 100 milliseconds, for example.
  • the resistance in the gap increases causing a reduction in the voltage (and current) across the gap, assuming that the voltage is not increased further by the voltage controller.
  • the exact voltage and current for toroid formation will vary as a function of system resistance, electrode materials, gas pressure, arc gap length and power supply
  • the invention includes a process for generating a plurality of toroids using a single arc sequence.
  • the voltage/current across the arc can be reduced to a level that allows the first toroid to be released from the arc.
  • the residual arc ions remain in place long enough, even if the arc is temporarily disrupted, for up to a few hundred milliseconds. This enables the system to then increase the voltage/current and reestablish the arc to enable repetitive formation of a plurality of toroids in sequence.
  • the ESTS has an essentially uniform geometry, that is, the charged particle orbits within the ESTS are nearly the same at all points of the ESTS. This occurs when enough electrons leave the arc and form the essential toroid shape that they in turn create their own magnetic field internal to the ESTS. When this state is reached, then the internal fields in the ESTS ensure that the radius of each orbit is essentially the same for all orbits. At this point the ESTS is stable and is self-organized (that is, confined without an external magnetic field) as described by Chen, C, Pakter, R., Seward, C. in "Equilibrium and Stability Properties of Self- Organized Electron Spiral Toroids," Physics of Plasmas, Vol. 8, No. 10, 2001, and also U.S.
  • Patent No. 6,617,775 the entire contents of the publication and this patent being incorporated herein by reference. It is also observed to endure in partial atmosphere for hundreds of milliseconds, and as the energy level of the toroid increase, the toroid can endure for minutes. Ions from around the arc are trapped within ESTS surface during formation when the electrons leave the arc and move into the toroid shape, positively charged ions are entrained with the toroid surface.
  • FIG. 2A is a schematic of the initiating apparatus for the ESTS.
  • ESTS formation takes place in a significant atmosphere of background gas, from partial to full atmosphere.
  • the methods for obtaining a partial vacuum are well known such as forming the partial vacuum in a bell jar 26 or other vacuum chamber evacuated using a vacuum pump 90. This operating region can be backfilled with nitrogen to the appropriate pressure.
  • ESTSs forming in pressures from one Torr to 300 Torr were observed, but they can form in higher pressures up to one atmosphere and even higher with selected changes in voltage and spacing.
  • a preferred embodiment operates at gas pressures in a range of 25 Torr to 200 Torr and generates toroids having a density greater
  • the electric arc used is formed with electrodes 13 and 14.
  • the arc is formed by first placing the electrodes together then applying voltage enough to maintain the arc across the gap as it is drawn.
  • the electrodes are then drawn apart using the moving frame 16 until the full arc gap is opened, with just the anode on the moving frame, while the cathode is on the fixed frame 19.
  • a motor 17 is used to pull apart the electrodes using a series of simple pulleys 18 and a cable.
  • the fixed frame 19 holds in place the motor, pulleys, and cathode.
  • the arc current can be increased to higher levels which might be harmful to the electrodes when they are touching, but act to increase the arc current later in the process.
  • the voltage required across the arc gap is dependent on the gap length, the background gas pressure, and the material used in the electrodes.
  • system voltages of 110 VDC to 125 VDC have been shown to produce ESTSs in various pressures.
  • Lower background gas pressures require lower voltages since it is easier to maintain an arc across a gap at lower pressures.
  • Higher voltages have been used also, and there is no upper voltage limit, but as a rule, the voltage has to be low enough to allow electrons to escape the arc.
  • An electron gun can be used in place of electrodes, except that current electron guns used to produce electron beams do not have the current capability of arcs.
  • the arcs used in this invention range from a few tens of amperes to thousands of amperes.
  • FIG. 2A shows the power supply, 21, which comprises a capacitor bank. Batteries can be used, as well as other appropriate power supplies.
  • the arcs range from 200 to 600 amperes, but with specific design requirements, a wide range of currents can be utilized, allowing one to configure the ESTS to fit many applications.
  • a variable resistor 91, or similar current limiting device can be placed at the capacitor output.
  • the pressure used is preferably about 1/8 ⁇ atmosphere.
  • the pressure can vary greatly and ESTSs have been observed from 0.10% atmosphere to 36% atmosphere with adjustment of system parameters.
  • the lower limit is the density of the background gas as there must be enough gas molecules to form sufficient ions to neutralize the electron charge.
  • the measurements of toroid properties can use a background gas of nitrogen, since it is easy to obtain and will not react with the electrodes as they become heated during arc formation.
  • a background gas of nitrogen can be used, since it is easy to obtain and will not react with the electrodes as they become heated during arc formation.
  • Other inert gases can be used, and argon and helium have been used, for example.
  • Air can be utilized, although it can be harmful to the electrodes since the oxygen can rapidly react with the heated electrodes.
  • Hydrogen can be used, but care must be taken to provide for safety by ensuring that oxygen is not mixed with the hydrogen.
  • Ions sources can also include deuterium, boron, pure nitrogen, xenon, copper, silicon, and calcium.
  • control panel or processor for the arc apparatus is shown schematically as 25, wherein the control panel starts the apparatus by first actuating the contactors 22 and 23 when the electrodes are touching in order to heat the electrodes and to initiate the current. Power is applied to the electrodes using the cables 20 and 24. The controller 25 then actuates the motor to draw the anode 13 and, when conditions are correct, to form the arc and draw it the full length of the arc gap.
  • the ESTS remains in place as long as the arc remains, which is controlled by the control circuit.
  • the ESTS is observed to become self- stable independent of the arc. As the ESTS remains in place, under the right conditions it is observed to increase in density with time. When the ESTS becomes dense enough it is observed to move through the arc and become self-stable in the partial atmosphere. The necessary condition for this to happen is for the internal magnetic field of the ESTS to be greater than the arc magnetic field itself such that the ESTS can cross the magnetic field lines while maintaining its toroidal shape.
  • la 330 amperes
  • Ra 0.0069m
  • Ba 0.0097 Tesla.
  • the ESTS is observed to pass through this field while remaining stable and to do so the ESTS internal magnetic field must be greater than the field of the arc by an approximate order of magnitude (ten times).
  • the ESTS internal magnetic field Bt ⁇ 8* ⁇ * ⁇ /27 ⁇ , where Ns is the number of electron shells in the ESTS surface, It is the toroidal current in a shell, and Rt is the ESTS radius.
  • FIG. 2B illustrates another preferred embodiment of a system for generating an arc that is used to generate a charged particle toroid in accordance with preferred embodiments of the invention.
  • a power source 140 can be used in conjunction with a constant current control system 142 that enables the formation of toroids with a controlled ion density and size.
  • the toroid 15 characteristics can be optically measured using interferometry in which a light source 120 transmits a light beam 124 and a detector system 122 detects light that is transmitted through the arc. Size and geometry can also be measured using CCD or CMOS imaging camera.
  • a reference beam 128 can be separated from the beam transmitted (or reflected) through the arc using a beamsplitter. The reference beam 128 and transmitted beam 124 can be combined with a second beamsplitter. A change in the phase relationship between the transmission beam 124 and the reference beam 128 is correlated with the ion density.
  • FIG. 3 shows a further improvement to the apparatus for drawing the arc.
  • the moving frame and motor used to draw the arc are replaced by a simple screw and motor arrangement to move an electrode.
  • the anode is mounted to a moving frame 30.
  • the moving frame is attached to a long screw 31 that is turned directly by a motor 32.
  • the motor is made to turn in one direction, it moves the moving frame away from the motor, thus drawing the arc.
  • the motor is made to turn in the opposite direction, it moves the moving frame toward the motor and thus makes the electrodes touch in order to start another arc event.
  • wheels 33 used to maintain the orientation of the moving frame such that it remains level as the screw turns. Note that metal features are shielded from the arc in order to prevent the arc from finding an unintended ground and jumping from its intended arc path.
  • FIG. 4 shows a further improvement to the apparatus for drawing the arc.
  • the moving frame and motor used to draw the arc are replaced by a stationary laser that is used to ionize the background gas so as to establish an ion path from anode to cathode, which causes the voltage between electrodes to establish a current path and therefore an arc between the electrodes.
  • the anode is mounted to the stationary frame 19.
  • a laser generator 40 is attached to the stationary frame such that its laser path 41 will travel through the cathode 14 and then through the anode 13 to hit the laser target 42.
  • the electrodes each have a hole through their center 43 to allow the laser to pass through.
  • the laser causes the background gas to ionize and in so doing, allows the electric arc to form without the need for drawing the arc.
  • the laser generator and laser target must each be insulated from the anode and cathode in order to prevent the arc from finding them as an unintended ground and jumping from its intended arc path.
  • FIG. 5 is a schematic view of the ESTS 50 as a stand-alone entity. It shows the typical toroidal shape of the spheromak, and the hollow center of the ESTS.
  • the internal magnetic field is shown as B.
  • the radius of the orbit of the charged particles is r 0 and is essentially uniform for all charged particle orbits.
  • the radius of the ESTS is ⁇ and is essentially uniform for the entire ESTS.
  • the electron shell is shown in a dotted manner as the outer shell.
  • the spiraling of the electrons is shown by the parallel arrows, showing that the electron paths are parallel as the electrons spiral around the toroid.
  • a continuous shell representing the internal ions that neutralize the electron space charge, noting that external ions are observed as well, and can contribute to neutralizing the space charge. Calculations show that the model supports many shells of electrons and shells of ions. Also shown is the external magnetic field of the ESTS, labeled Bx, which results from the current caused by the spiraling motion of the charged particles in the ESTS. This external magnetic field is much less in magnitude compared to the internal magnetic field, but is important because it allows the ESTS to be transported and accelerated.
  • the radius of the ESTS is greater than the radius of the initiating arc by an amount such that the orbit radius of the particles does not collide with the arc itself. This is helped by the background gas which acts to produce a narrow arc channel.
  • FIG. 6 is a simplified schematic diagram of an accelerator for the ESTS.
  • the system enables small ESTSs in arcs that moved in random directions along the arc path or out of the arc path. Measurements and analysis have showed that they were self-organized and stable as described above and in the references, and that they could pass through the magnetic fields of the arc while retaining their shape. They are typically of small diameter of 0.2 cm to 0.5 cm. They were observed to form directly at the cathode or sometimes at the anode. Their size is consistent with the hot spots which form on the anode or cathode and from which the arc is seen to emanate. An electric arc consists of an accumulation of small arcs that form at individual hot spots, which explains how small ESTSs form during a larger arc event.
  • FIG. 6 shows the arc 61 formed between an anode 62 and a cathode 63. Under the right conditions of pressure, voltage, and current, many small ESTSs 64 were observed. When magnetic coils 65 were added and energized, the ESTSs were observed to accelerate.
  • FIG. 7A illustrates that the ESTS is formed by an arc 71 formed between the anode 72 and the cathode 73.
  • the ESTS 74 forms under appropriate conditions of voltage, current and pressure.
  • Magnetic coils 75 accelerate the ESTS in the direction shown 76 when energized with a selected current.
  • Magnetic coils for direction are shown as 77 to direct ESTSs once they are formed in the arc.
  • Power is connected to individual coils of the magnet coil assembly with power connections 78.
  • a frame 79 for holding the coils in place that can optionally be located inside the coils and made of a material such as ceramic which will help to guide the ESTS during its acceleration.
  • a target, shown as 70 has various purposes depending on the application.
  • the power supply for the coils and the control circuits to turn the coils on in succession to accelerate the ESTS are also known.
  • the EST has such a high conductivity that it shorts the circuit.
  • L T (z) is the total inductance of the system, and / is the current flowing down the solenoid.
  • dL 0 / dz be the inductance of the solenoid per unit axial length, and then the total inductance can be expressed as
  • equations (3)-(5) have the same form as those obtained and verified (Hammer, et al., 1988) for the compact toroid accelerator reported by (Hammer, et al, 1988; Degnan, et al, 1993; Kiuttu, et al, 1994).
  • FIG. 7B shows a further embodiment containing a plurality of the ESTS-emitting systems 110, 115 shown in FIG. 7 A and also including system features described in connection with other figures such as a density measurement system as shown in FIG. 2B.
  • two systems are positioned such that the ESTSs emitted by each system are directed towards the other along axis 116 in a manner to allow collisional contact among ESTSs emitted from one system and ESTSs emitted from the other. This collision occurs in a spatial region 111.
  • the background gas atmosphere inside the vacuum chamber 126 comprises a partial pressure of deuterium.
  • the resulting ESTSs have very high charged particle densities of over 10 16 ions/cm 3 and preferably over 10 17 ions/cm 3 .
  • helium is produced.
  • the interaction area or region 111 optionally contains or couples the region 111 to sensors such as a mass spectrometer 112 or optical spectrometer 113 that can observe and record data related to the collisional contact between opposite-traveling ESTSs.
  • sensors such as a mass spectrometer 112 or optical spectrometer 113 that can observe and record data related to the collisional contact between opposite-traveling ESTSs.
  • a mass spectrometer such as the MKS-835 produced by MKS Instruments can be used.
  • the mass spectrometer 112 can be used to detect the presence of helium or other elements present in the chamber while the optical spectrometer 113 can be used to detect emissions from component elements or molecules in region 111 such as a helium spectral emission line at 5850 Angstroms, for example.
  • the spectrometer systems 112, 113 can generate data delivered to data processor 25, display, and data storage devices. Based on the measured data, the processor can be programmed to adjust parameters for operation of systems 110, 115 to match or adjust the size, density, and acceleration of the pair of ESTSs that interact in region 111.
  • Valves 118, 120 can be used to control the flow of gas and ions between systems 110, 115 and region or chamber 111. Additional valves and pumps can be used to control gas delivery to all the systems jointly or separately.
  • Illustrated in Fig. 8 is a process sequence 100 in which a programmable control system is used to initiate a toroid.
  • Software is used to issue instructions to system components to control timing of arc formation.
  • the process is initiated when the user selects parameters 102 such as electrode spacing separation velocity, gas pressure and initiating voltage 104. Actuators are instructed to provide for movement 106 of one or both electrodes to increase the gap.
  • the arc current is reduced or attenuated in a controlled manner such that a toroid forms 108.
  • the toroid can optionally be removed 110 from the arc by selective modulation of the arc and magnetic field conditions.
  • the toroid formation process can optionally be repeated as described herein.
  • Fig. 9 A Shown in Fig. 9 A is a photograph of an arc used for initiation of the toroid.
  • the measurement of the density of the ESTS gave a value greater than 10 17 ions/cm 3 with no externally applied confining toroidal magnetic field. Note that the formation of the ESTS caused a significant change in the current of the arc.
  • Fig. 9B shows the normal arc current characteristic when no ESTS is present.
  • the power supply is capacitive as described previously herein and exhibits an exponential curve.
  • the trace shows the characteristic of a drawn arc, with the electrodes touching at the start, the drawing apart, and, at approximately 360 msec, a significant increase in current. This dual current approach can be used to protect the electrodes at the start of the event.
  • Fig. 9 A shows the characteristic of a drawn arc, with the electrodes touching at the start, the drawing apart, and, at approximately 360 msec, a significant increase in current. This dual current approach can be used to protect the electrode
  • 9C demonstrates that the arc current undergoes a significant change occuring at the time that the ESTS forms. This change in current is measured as 5 mm on this trace, but because three power supplies are used to reach the current required, and three traces are made during each event, the total current is measured as 18.4 amperes for 40 msec, or 0.737 Coulombs of charge per 40 msec. This current goes directly into the ESTS, which is consistent with the video observations. Because this is a charge neutral assembly of positive ions and electrons, no magnetic confinement is needed to hold this charge in place.
  • the measurement example ends at approximately 1,080 msec.
  • the ESTS was still forming at 200 msec at the end of the measurement, for a full charge of 3.68 Coulombs.
  • the density of the ESTS can be estimated using this initial estimate of charged particles.
  • the ESTS volume is calculated as 7.7 x 10 —7 m 3 with a toroid radius of 0.00625 m and orbit radius of 0.0025 m.
  • Density is the electrons/volume calculated as 2.98 x 10 25 electrons/m 3 or
  • Figs. 9D-9G show the ESTS at different times during the formation sequence. It is a side view only, and the shape is a band rather than the more characteristic toroidal shape of Figs. 10 and 11. These figures show the increasing density with time, which appears visually as increased brightness. The density reduces late in the measurement as the power supply discharges and is unable to maintain the conditions necessary to increase the density. With a longer initiation time, the density will increase above the critical density needed to remain stable. The observed data relative to the ESTS in Fig. 10 demonstrate the ESTS equilibrium of forces.
  • the radius of the toroid in Fig. 10 is observed as 0.033 m, and the radius of the electron orbit is observed as 0.0066 m, resulting in an overall diameter of 7.9 cm, with an aspect ratio of 5: 1.
  • the pressure is 0.125 atmospheres of nitrogen.
  • the electron energy in the surface of the ESTS is estimated as 10 ⁇ 6 eV with electron velocity of 593 m/s.
  • the model also assumes an ion fraction utilized in the estimate of 1.001.
  • d e and ⁇ 3 ⁇ 4 are assumed to be close, with ⁇ 3 ⁇ 4 smaller by the ion fraction. Because the background pressure provides the restoring force, d e is calculated as 7.69 x 10 —8 m, at which value the forces within the ESTS are in equilibrium.
  • the initial model demonstrated equilibrium for an electron surface of a single electron shell a single electron thick, and similarly, an ion surface a single ion thick.
  • the reason for this one shell was a tacit assumption that the ESTS contained only particles captured within the ESTS volume at time of formation.
  • this limitation is too restrictive.
  • the ESTS forms around the arc and is seen to continue to accumulate charged particles for as long as initiating conditions remain in place, observed for a few hundreds of msec, for example.
  • the model has been extended here to an ESTS with multiple thin shells. This suggests that an electron shell is the outermost surface, with an ion shell next, then an electron shell, then an ion shell, and so forth.
  • the alternating electron and ion shells can maintain charge neutrality. This series of shells can continue to accumulate as long as the force balance remains in equilibrium, which by this model is limited by the total internal magnetic field strength because it increases with the increasing number of shells.
  • the balance of forces holds for each shell.
  • the number of shells sets the overall limit to the number of charged particles by setting the limit to the internal magnetic field, which acts to repel electrons.
  • the example analyzed here achieves the balance of forces up to a maximum of 486 shells, and a total of 2.67 x 10 ⁇ 10 Coulombs of charged particles.
  • the internal magnetic field at these values is 6.09 Tesla, using the formula for a closed solenoid.
  • the equations above have been incorporated into a computer model of the ESTS.
  • the ESTS in Fig. 11 is observed to endure in 1/8 atmosphere of nitrogen before passing out of the field of view of the measurement. Pressures are preferably in the range of 1/16 atmosphere to 1/2 atmosphere.
  • ESTSs formed by an arc and leaving the arc are normally spinning rapidly after initiation. In Fig. 11 the spinning has been effectively slowed using a high-speed video camera at 1/10,000 second shutter speed.
  • the arc system described herein enables large, high density ESTSs that are 8 cm in diameter or larger, for example, as shown in Fig. 10 and Fig. 11.
  • Fig. 9A The arcs accommodated currents in a wide range, from hundreds of amperes to a few thousand amperes.
  • the arc current can be regulated as shown in Figs. 9B and 9C, which show current level between the electrodes as a function of time.
  • the current can be stepped or modulated after the electrode spacing reaches an initiation distance. As shown in Figs.

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Abstract

L'invention concerne un spheromak qui est un plasma d'ions et d'électrons ayant une forme toroïdale. Un plasma spheromak peut comprendre des électrons et des ions en une quantité presque égale de telle sorte qu'il présente essentiellement une charge neutre. Il contient d'importants courants électriques internes et leurs champs magnétiques internes associés sont agencés de telle sorte que les forces dans le spheromak soient presque équilibrées. On observe que le spheromak selon l'invention se forme autour d'un arc électrique dans une atmosphère partielle et qu'il est auto-stable sans confinement magnétique externe.
PCT/US2015/016903 2014-02-20 2015-02-20 Systèmes et procédés permettant de générer des torons d'électrons enroulés en spirale WO2015127267A2 (fr)

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