Having gotten skittish about nuclear energy, Japan is looking for an alternate method to generate the energy it needs to function as a high tech society. According to Oilprice.Com, the Japanese are looking at a technology called heavy ion fusion. The technology is being touted by a company based in California, Fusion Power Corporation.
The technology, which is still being developed, is called heavy ion fusion because it uses a beam of heavy ions to start the fusion reaction instead of lasers. It uses a Deuterium (2H)/Tritium (3H) to produce the fusion reaction. The company claims that the technology being developed will produce zero carbon emissions and no radioactivity. Unlike a nuclear reactor, a fusion power plant in this way could not experience a runaway meltdown. Besides producing electricity, the power plant would also produce hydrogen as a byproduct. Hydrogen can be used in fuel cells as a clean energy fuel.
There is no information on a timetable or how much funding the Japanese will devote to the project. At this time the project is under investigation by Japan’s International Professional Networks (IPN) Corporation.
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