Nuclear energy

The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) on Oct. 5 presented the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) with an engraved plaque designating the Laboratory an ASME historic mechanical engineering landmark for its achievements in the quest to develop magnetically controlled fusion energy. The ASME, which “promotes the art, science and practice of multidisciplinary engineering and allied sciences around the globe,” recognized  the Laboratory for its entire body of mechanical engineering achievements since 1951.

Nat Fisch, associate director for academic affairs at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory  (PPPL), and professor of astrophysical sciences and director of the Program in Plasma Physics at Princeton University, has received a 2018 Distinguished Career Award from Fusion Power Associates (FPA). The FPA is a research and educational foundation that provides students, media and the public with information about the status of fusion development and other applications of plasma science.

Fusion, the power that drives the sun and stars, produces massive amounts of energy. Scientists here on Earth seek to replicate this process, which merges light elements in the form of hot, charged plasma composed of free electrons and atomic nuclei, to create a virtually inexhaustible supply of power to generate electricity in what may be called a “star in a jar.”

To capture and control the process of fusion that powers the sun and stars in facilities on Earth called tokamaks, scientists must confront disruptions that can halt the reactions and damage the doughnut-shaped devices.  Now an artificial intelligence system under development at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) and Princeton University to predict and tame such disruptions has been selected as an Aurora Early Science project by the Argonne Leadership Computing Facility, a DOE Office of Science User Facility.