New Fusion Startup CTFusion

Point out news stories, on the net or in mainstream media, related to polywell fusion.

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Skipjack
Posts: 6805
Joined: Sun Sep 28, 2008 2:29 pm

New Fusion Startup CTFusion

Post by Skipjack »

CTFusion is a startup to commercialize the Dynomak, which was developed by Derek Sutherland and Thomas Jarboe at the University of Washington.
For those interested, it is a relatively compact Spheromak based concept with a comparably high beta.
Here is the presentation from the Fusion Power Associates Meeting last December:
http://fire.pppl.gov/fpa15_HIT_Sutherland.pdf

Not much information available about the company yet and no website but Derek Sutherland's personal website mentions it and it is listed as an employer on his Linkedin page.
But https://dasutherland.com/

I find the Dynomak among the more compelling concepts for toroidal fusion reactors. They are relatively compact (3.8 m outer radius) and have a good beta.

crowberry
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Joined: Sun Sep 08, 2013 6:34 am

Re: New Fusion Startup CTFusion

Post by crowberry »

Now CTFusion has a webpage at http://www.ctfusion.net/. They also have a LinkedIn page at https://www.linkedin.com/company/ctfusion.

crowberry
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Joined: Sun Sep 08, 2013 6:34 am

Re: New Fusion Startup CTFusion

Post by crowberry »

Amy Sprague has written on June 1, 2020 the article A leading fusion expert retires from the UW which is about Tom Jarboe.
https://www.aa.washington.edu/news/arti ... retires-uw

Giorgio
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Joined: Wed Oct 07, 2009 6:15 pm
Location: China, Italy

Re: New Fusion Startup CTFusion

Post by Giorgio »

It has been quite a long time since they published anything meaningful about their research.
A pity as it was an intriguing conceptual design.
A society of dogmas is a dead society.

Munchausen
Posts: 226
Joined: Mon Sep 17, 2007 5:36 pm
Location: Nikaloukta

Re: New Fusion Startup CTFusion

Post by Munchausen »

Fresh video treating the concept. Posted on Youtube 26/6.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2xze5i66Nw0

I haven't looked through it yet.

Carl White
Posts: 476
Joined: Mon Aug 24, 2009 10:44 pm

Re: New Fusion Startup CTFusion

Post by Carl White »

The Dynomak appeared on the infamous "voodoo fusion" list in April. Here's a link if anyone wants to revisit it:

https://news.newenergytimes.net/2022/04 ... on-energy/

mvanwink5
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Joined: Wed Jul 01, 2009 5:07 am
Location: N.C. Mountains

Re: New Fusion Startup CTFusion

Post by mvanwink5 »

Helion, General Fusion, Tri Alpha also appeared in that Voodoo fusion list. That list did not age well.
Counting the days to commercial fusion. It is not that long now.

Skipjack
Posts: 6805
Joined: Sun Sep 28, 2008 2:29 pm

Re: New Fusion Startup CTFusion

Post by Skipjack »

mvanwink5 wrote:
Fri Jul 01, 2022 6:05 am
Helion, General Fusion, Tri Alpha also appeared in that Voodoo fusion list. That list did not age well.
It did not even age well for a single second. Jassby was wrong about Helion from the very beginning. IF you feel compelled to write bullshit about someone, at least do a google search. If he had, he would have found publications that show high neutron production in IPA as early as 2008. But Jassby is just a disgruntled old man who lost his as outdated as his opinions.

kurt9
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Location: Portland, Oregon, USA

Re: New Fusion Startup CTFusion

Post by kurt9 »

Jassby must be a guest writer because New Energy Times is run by Steve Krivit, who is pushing a theory of LENR called Widom Larson theory.

Steve Krivit is the guy who called BS on Rossi when the latter faked his E-Cat demos. This was back when I read him regularly.

Steve Krivot has long advocated a theory called Widom Larsen theory that uses low momentum neutrons to explain the "cold fusion" phenomenon.

Skipjack
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Joined: Sun Sep 28, 2008 2:29 pm

Re: New Fusion Startup CTFusion

Post by Skipjack »

kurt9 wrote:
Fri Jul 01, 2022 2:17 pm
Jassby must be a guest writer because New Energy Times is run by Steve Krivit, who is pushing a theory of LENR called Widom Larson theory.

Steve Krivit is the guy who called BS on Rossi when the latter faked his E-Cat demos. This was back when I read him regularly.

Steve Krivot has long advocated a theory called Widom Larsen theory that uses low momentum neutrons to explain the "cold fusion" phenomenon.
Jassby often writes for NET. NET used to be OK, but Krivitt is going on some crusade against hot fusion now and that is rubbing me the wrong way.
I think LENR is still very speculative and not I am very skeptical of it ever going anywhere.

kurt9
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Location: Portland, Oregon, USA

Re: New Fusion Startup CTFusion

Post by kurt9 »

LENR is definitely speculative. I'm convinced the phenomenon is real. But I am not convinced it is commercialization.

Steve Krivit is one of the better journalists/pundits covering the field. He is definitely a "true believer" but is a skeptic at the same time. New Energy Times was at the time (about a decade ago) the best source of information on the cold fusion thing. It was way better than Infinite Energy and some of the other sources, although that is a rather low hurtle to clear.

His crusade against hot fusion is mainly against the ITER program. His criticisms are valid. However, by allowing Jassby to guest comment makes clear he is not differentiating between ITER and the fusion start-up scene. This reduces his credibility with me as some of the fusion start-ups have credible chances of success.

RERT
Posts: 271
Joined: Mon Jun 02, 2014 9:10 pm

Re: New Fusion Startup CTFusion

Post by RERT »

Cold fusion conference:

https://www.iccf24.org/program

Looks like fun! Apparently the biggest in a few decades…

Like I said, the hot (government) fusion guys will not go quietly. The treatment of cold fusion is….. relevant?

kurt9
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Joined: Mon Oct 15, 2007 4:14 pm
Location: Portland, Oregon, USA

Re: New Fusion Startup CTFusion

Post by kurt9 »

The best LENR (cold fusion) work is being done by the Japanese. It is worth noting is the lack of animosity between the hot and cold fusion researchers in Japan. The Japanese believe (as I do) that even if cold fusion is real, that both cold and hot fusion are optimized for various power applications. There is no conflict, either scientifically or commercially, between them. I suspect this is mostly due to the fact that there is no massive government funding of hot fusion, or any technology in general, in Japan, unlike the U.S. Thus no special interests favoring this or that particular technology has emerged in Japanese politics.

Munchausen
Posts: 226
Joined: Mon Sep 17, 2007 5:36 pm
Location: Nikaloukta

Re: New Fusion Startup CTFusion

Post by Munchausen »

I have looked through the video now. Learned that the induction heating takes place in an external pathway. And that the concept can rely solely on induction heating. Otherwise, no additional wisdom acquired. I hope it will work.

As I do for any other concept being discussed here.

charliem
Posts: 218
Joined: Wed May 28, 2008 8:55 pm

Re: New Fusion Startup CTFusion

Post by charliem »

CTFusion is shutting down.

Apparently they where unable to secure enough funding to keep on with research.

Related article in GeekWire: https://www.geekwire.com/2023/energy-st ... rival-zap/
"The problem is not what we don't know, but what we do know [that] isn't so" (Mark Twain)

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