…the problem and some
proposed solutions.
polywellnuclearfusion.com
William W Flint, Port Angeles, WA
bflint@polywellnuclearfusion.com
• Nuclear Cert B-52 Combat Crew 65-68
• Institutes in Nuclear & Chemical
Instrumentation, Physics, and Chemistry
at Montana, Wisconsin, and Kansas
State Universities 1969-1973
• MEd in Physical Science WWU 1976
• Physics, Chemistry, Math Teacher at
Port Angeles, Sedro-Woolley, and
Crescent High Schools 1968-2010.
Globally, we humans use
15,000,000,000,000 watt-hrs
of energy every hour 24-7
that’s enough to light 150 billion
100 watt light bulbs year-around
more than 21 light bulbs
for EACH of the nearly
7 billion people on
planet Earth
86%
of those 15,000,000,000,000 watt-hours
come from carbon fuels
(coal, petroleum, natural gas).
All 3 produce carbon dioxide
when they are burned.
86% of civilization’s energy comes from carbon-based fuel:
Only 14% is NOT carbon-based.
But our use of carbon fuels
has serious consequences:
…serious consequences:
Dependence on Rogue States
Since 9-11 there has been a limitless stream of cash flowing from Saudi
Arabia, Kuwait and Qatar to terrorist organizations. NYT Dec 9, 2010
Iran has threatened Israel with annihilation from 2005 to 2010. They have
had an aggressive nuclear weapons program for more than 10 years.
Chavez of Venezuela funds FARC Columbian rebels, threatens to cut off
oil sales to the United States, and meets often with Iranian leaders.
Before he was killed, Qaddafi of Libya committed numerous atrocities,
such as blowing up Pan Am flight 103 over Scotland, killing 295.
…serious consequences:
Dependence on Rogue States.
…serious consequences:
Such as Disappearing Resources.
In 1956, M. King Hubbert
told a meeting of the
American Petroleum
Institute that the crude oil
(petroleum) production of
the United States would
reach its peak, and start
to go downhill in 1970.
This is exactly what happened.
Changes in Carbon Fuel Production are Very Predictable.
…serious consequences:
Disappearing Resources.
Texas Oil Production
Texas Gas Production
Changes in Carbon Fuel Production are Very Predictable.
…serious consequences:
Disappearing Resources.
Changes in Carbon Fuel Production are Very Predictable.
Regional Oil
Production
World
Oil
Production
Think of the Chaos when the oil and gas are gone!
…serious consequences:
Such as the Exxon Valdez
Such as the Deepwater Horizon
… and many MANY more disastrous oil spills…
…serious consequences: oil spills
42,000 gal
400,000 gal
185,000,000 gal
462,000 gal
52,000 gal
419,000 gal
2,800,000 gal
530,000 gal
6,500,000 gal
3,000,000 gal
7,000,000 gal
337,000 gal
10,600,000 gal
20,000,000 gal
567,000 gal
343,200 gal
3,000,000 gal
27,000,000 gal
84,000,000 gal
336,000 gal
88,000,000 gal
47,000,000 gal
42,000,000 gal
350,000,000 gal
5,100,000 gal
23,000,000 gal
239,000 gal
July 3, 2011 Yellowstone River Montana: Exxon pipeline rupture
July 21, 2010 Dalien China: seaport pipeline rupture
April 24, 2010 Gulf of Mexico: Deepwater Horizon
Jan 23, 2010 Port Arthur, Texas: oil tanker Eagle Otome
Mar 11, 2009 Queensland, Australia: container ship Pacific Adventurer
Jul 25, 2008 New Orleans, Louisiana: barge-tanker collision
Dec 7, 2007 South Korea: Hebei Spirit
Aug 11th, 2006 Philippines: Tanker sinks
Jul 15, 2006 Beirut, Lebanon: Israelis bomb power station
Jun 19, 2006 Louisiana: CITGO Refinery tank
Aug-Sep 2005, New Orleans, Louisiana: Katerina
Dec. 7, 2004 Aleutian Is, Alaska: Selendang Ayu
July 28, 2003 Pakistan: The Tasman Spirit
Nov. 13, 2002 Spain: Prestige
Nov. 28, 2000 New Orleans: Westchester
Jan. 18, 2000 Rio de Janeiro: Petrobras ruptured pipeline
Dec. 12, 1999 French Atlantic coast: Erika
Feb. 15, 1996 off Welsh coast: Sea Empress
Sept. 8, 1994 Russia: oil dam burst
Aug. 10, 1993 Tampa Bay, Fla.: Bouchard
March 2, 1992 Uzbekistan: oil well.
May 28, 1991 Angola: ABT Summer
April 11, 1991 Genoa, Italy: Haven
Jan. 23–27, 1991 Kuwait: deliberate release, Iraq, Gulf War
June 8, 1990 Galveston, Tex.: Mega Borg
Mar 24, 1989 Prince William Sound Alaska: Exxon Valdez
Dec 21, 1985 Port Angeles Harbor: Arco Anchorage
…serious consequences:
Such as Smog
Such as Carcinogenic Emissions
Top 10 emitters 2006: 1. BP: Texas City, TX (pic above: 23,000,000 liters in 2006)
2. Exxon Mobil: Baytown, TX
3. Citgo: Lake Charles, LA
4. Houston Refining Co.: Houston, TX
5. Flint Hills Res: Corpus Christi, TX
6. Motiva: Port Arthur, TX
7. Chalmette Refining: Chalmette, LA
8. Conoco Phillips: Sweeny, TX
9. Conoco Phillips: Roxana, IL
10. Valero: Corpus Christi, TX
…serious consequences:
Such as Black Lung Disease
Such as Coal Mine Disasters
…coal miners continue to die in mine accidents…
…year after year for more than 100 years…
…serious consequences:
Coal Mine Disasters
Dec 6, 1907 -- 362 miners killed in explosion at Monongah # 6 and 8 in WV.
Nov 13, 1909 -- 259 miners are killed in a fire at the Cherry Mine in IL.
Oct 22, 1913 -- Explosion kills 263 at Stag Canyon # 2 Coal Mine in Dawson, NM
Jun 8, 1917 -- 163 miners killed in fire at Granite Mountain Shaft Mine in Butte, MT
Jan 10, 1940 -- 91 miners killed by explosion at Pond Creek # 1 in Bartley, WV.
Mar 16, 1940 -- Explosion at Willow Grove # 10 in St. Clairsville OH kills 72.
Mar 25, 1947 -- 111 miners killed in explosion at Centralia # 5 in Centralia, IL.
Dec 21, 1951 -- An explosion at Orient # 2 mine in West Frankfort, IL kills 119
Nov 20, 1968 -- 78 miners killed by explosion at Consol # 9 mine Farmington WV
Dec 30, 1970 -- 38 miners are killed in explosion at # 15 and 16 Mines Hyden, KY
May 2, 1972 -- 91 miners killed in fire at Sunshine Mine in Kellogg, ID
Mar 15, 1981 -- 15 miners killed by explosion Dutch Creek # 1, Redstone, CO
Dec 19, 1984 -- 27 miners killed in fire at Wilberg Mine in Emery County, UT
Sep 23, 2001 -- 13 killed by explosion at # 5 Mine, Brookwood AL
Jan 2, 2006 -- 12 men die from carbon monoxide poisoning at Sago Mine in WV
May 20, 2006 -- 5 killed in an explosion at Darby Mine No. 1 in Harlan County KY
Apr 05, 2010 -- Explosion at Upper Big Branch mine in Montcoal WV kills 29 miners.
Nov 24, 2010 -- Explosion at Pike River Coal in New Zealand kills 29 miners.
…serious
consequences:
Such as Mercury Pollution
and Acid Rain
…serious consequences: Coal Sludge and Hydrofracking
And
hundreds of
ruined water
supplies
…serious
consequences:
Such as Coal Mine Sinkholes
Such as Mountaintop Mining
Such as the Alberta Tar Sands
…serious consequences:
Such as the Increasing CO2 World-Wide
…serious consequences:
Increasing CO2 World-Wide
…serious consequences:
Hottest Years on Record since 1901:
From NOAA: average combined land and
ocean annual temperature since 1901
…serious consequences:
Melting Glaciers
Melting Greenland
…serious consequences:
Disappearing Ice Caps:
Meanwhile, since 2001 Antarctica has been
losing about 10 billion tons of ice per year –
which is about 1016 cubic centimeters. (The area
of all of Earth’s oceans is about 3.61 x 1016
square centimeters.)
…serious consequences:
Dying Coral
These serious consequences suggest a need
to replace carbon fuels. If we do it, we will
need to replace 86% of our energy supply:
0.86 x 15,000,000,000,000 watts =
12,900,000,000,000 watts
Tidal power may be able to replace as much as
1,000,000,000,000 watts at a cost of $6.5 trillion
Geothermal may be able to replace as much
2,000,000,000,000 watts at a cost of $11 trillion
Leaving a balance of 9,900,000,000,000 watts
to be replaced. How about wind and solar?
A 2,000,000 W wind turbine costs about
$3,500,000 installed.
Unfortunately –on average- because of
variable winds the turbine will only work to
capacity about 16% of the time.
9,900,000,000,000 W
= 30,937,500 turbines
2,000,000 W/turbine x 0.16
30,937,500 turbines x $3,500,000 =
= $108,300,000,000,000
About $108 trillion dollars....
Cost Iraq/Afghan war since 9-11 = $1 trillion...
A 175 watt Sharp solar panel costs $520.
Unfortunately –on average- because of
clouds, day and night, and non-optimum
angle of the sun a solar panel will only
work to capacity about 16% of the time.
9,900,000,000,000 W
175 W/panel x 0.16
= 353,570,000,000 panels
353,570,000,000 panels x $520/panel =
$183,860,000,000,000
About $184 trillion dollars....
Remember? Cost Iraq/Afghan war since 9-11 = $1 trillion...
Biofuel
If all the automobiles in the United States were fueled with 100 percent
corn ethanol, 97 percent of U.S. would be needed to grow corn – and
nothing else. Corn would cover the total land area of the United States.
The energy required to produce the corn ethanol is roughly equal to the
energy that is later produced when it is burned: fertilizer production
requires large volumes of coal or natural gas; and natural gas is used to
dry the corn; plus gasoline and diesel are used in the farm equipment
because alcohol does not burn as well!
Land that is used to grow corn or sugar cane or oil palm for biofuel, can
no longer be used to grow food. So biofuel production drives up the
price of food. (Can you say “starving poor”?)
Virgin tropical rainforest is burned to make more land available to grow
biofuel plants such as sugar cane and oil palm. Brazilians make alcohol
for their cars from sugar cane and some biodiesel is made from palm oil.
Conventional Nuclear Fission
When radioactive isotopes such
as Uranium are split in a nuclear
chain reaction, substantial
amounts of energy are released.
That energy can be used to
make steam, which spins
turbines, which spin generators
to make electricity:
No carbon dioxide is produced, when nuclear fission is used to make
electricity; and the cost of making electricity from nuclear fission may be less
than half as much as the the cost of making electricity from wind or solar.
However, as yet, there is no safe way to dispose of the spent radioactive fuel,
after it has been used in the nuclear fission reactor. And, when accidents
happen at nuclear fission power plants, consequences can be catastrophic:
A 1979 meltdown at
the Three Mile Island
Nuclear Fission Plant
in the USA destroyed
a billion dollar reactor
and financially ruined
the owner, forcing
that corporation into
bankruptcy.
A 1986 fire and
meltdown at the
Chernobyl Nuclear
Fission Plant in the
Ukraine released clouds
of radioactive isotopes,
ruining the lives of tens
of thousands of people in
Ukraine, Belarus, and
Russia.
A 2011 earthquake/tsunami
caused meltdowns at the
Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear
Fission Plants in Japan,
releasing radioactive
materials which have
ruined Japanese farming
and fishing industries in
Japan.
Comparing Energy Sources: Cost per Trillion Watts (TW)
Tidal $6.5 trillion/TW.
Geothermal $5.6 trillion/TW.
Wind $10.9 trillion/TW.
Solar $18.6 trillion/TW.
Coal $4.4 trillion/TW.
Traditional Nuclear $4 to 8 trillion/TW.
Biolfuel Cost Incalculable.
Fixing this mess will be expensive. We cannot
continue throwing away money on foolishness!
Energy from the nuclear fusion of boron 11
and hydrogen can safely and cheaply
replace coal, petroleum and natural gas.
This is a nuclear reaction, but the fuel, the
reaction, and the products are all non-toxic
and far safer than traditional nuclear.
The hydrogen is
the H in H2O.
Without an
electron it is a
proton P.
Boron 11 is found
in ordinary Borax.
No harmful radiation before,
during, or after the reaction!
The Helium product is
the same Helium
found in kids’ balloons.
How much energy in 11g (2 tsp) of Boron 11?
This is enough for 6.02 x1023 fusions.
One fusion produces 1.5x10-12 Joules of
energy/fusion.
Multiply to get Joules of energy in 11g:
6.02 x 1023 fusions x 1.5 x 10-12 Joules/fusion
= 9.03 x 1011 Joules
Remember this number⬆
An F-16 with a typical load weighs about 14,400 kg.
Speed required to escape the Earth
(Escape Velocity) is 11,201 m/sec
The kinetic energy required
to give an F-16 that speed is
1
2
mv2 or
0.5 x 14,400 x 112012 = 9.03 x 1011 Joules
Two teaspoons of boron can send an F-16 to the moon!
=
A polywell nuclear reactor is needed
to fuse boron and hydrogen.
A 100 megawatt polywell can be
mass-produced for about $200 million.
A 100 megawatt polywell could provide
all of the energy needs for a city
such as Port Angeles.
Six positively charged coils (called a magrid)
are a magnetic trap for electrons.
Negative electrons are attracted by positive coils, then held at
the center by the magnetic field – like a swarm of angry bees.
The negative swarm of electrons attracts positively
charged hydrogen ions (aka protons – the p+ ions) and
positively charged boron ions (B+).
The p+ and B+ ions collide at the center in a fusion reaction.
Polywell power output
is proportional to R7
(radius of magrid to
the seventh power).
There is a “just right”
radius for the magrid:
about 1.5 m.
Any smaller, not
enough power to
break even. Any
larger, it blows
itself to bits.
A 1.5 m magrid will
produce about 100
megawatts – about
right for Port Angeles.
This happens to be
about the same size
as a 777 jet engine,
which has roughly the
same power output!
But there are important differences:
1. The jet engine uses carbon-based fuel and produces vast
amounts of carbon dioxide. The Polywell uses Boron and
Hydrogen, and produces NO (zero, nada, нуль) carbon dioxide.
2. The jet engine releases CHEMICAL energy (the atoms are
conserved), but the Polywell releases NUCLEAR energy
(the atoms are NOT conserved).
3. The 777 jet engines go for about $22 million each, whereas
the estimated cost of a prototype 100 MW Polywell is about
$350 million. (The cost of a production Polywell should be
much less – maybe $200 million.)
Comparing Energy Sources: Cost per Trillion Watts (TW)
Tidal $6.5 trillion/TW.
Geothermal $5.6 trillion/TW.
Wind $10.9 trillion/TW.
Solar $18.6 trillion/TW.
Traditional Nuclear $4 to 8 trillion/TW.
Coal $4.4 trillion/TW.
Polywell $3.4 trillion/TW.
Recently…
In February thru June of this year, Dr Jayoung
Park and the Polywell research team used their
new WB-8 Polywell to validate the R7 power
scaling. Since then, they have been analyzing
the data from these trials.
A peer-review panel was to have met in October to review
these results and give the go-ahead for p-B11 testing, but
Navy non-disclosure requirements are keeping the panel’s
verdict under wraps.
Money for continuing the work seems assured, but it is in our
national interest to pay attention and make sure that the
research continues!
In a few years, the United States could be be on the way to
restoring its balance of payments problem and otherwise
rebuilding its shattered economy by selling Polywells to the
entire planet. The market is global!
If the U.S. were to sell 10,000 Polywells for $200,000,000
apiece, then as much as $2 trillion additional dollars could
be flowing into our economy (...about 5700 times the
original $350 million cost for a full scale Polywell prototype.)
And in addition to restoring our economy, we would be…
1.Ending our dependence on foreign oil.
2.Ending our dependence on disappearing oil and gas.
3.Ending the nightmarish pollution from coal & oil.
4.Ending the disease and death caused by coal & oil.
5.Significantly reducing our contribution to global warming.
This is a vitally important –and complex- issue.
But the majority of Americans don’t get it.
And many vested interests don’t want to get it.
When the time comes to debate major Polywell funding,
Americans need to be ready.
Millions of Americans must be prepared to
support the Polywell and neutralize the vested interests.
So pass the word: every American needs to
understand this vitally important –and complex- issue.
America cannot afford to miss this chance.