
First experimental campaign of  Wendelstein 7-X successfully completed [pdf] - Practicality
http://www.ipp.mpg.de/4038491/017_12_2016_en.pdf
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shaqbert
The thing with the dream of fusion power is how truly far out it still is, and
how thousands of engineering challenges will have to be tackled.

The neutron challenge: Fusion creates A LOT of neutrons bombarding the vessel
- that is also why modern nuclear bombs use fission to ignite fusion so that
those neutrons in turn boost fission even further. Bombarding any material
with lots of neutrons puts a lot of stress on the kit, so it needs to be
replaced on a fairly regular basis. Given how difficult it is to assemble the
Stellarator design, an industrial replacement process driven by robots
(because of the radiation induced by the free roaming neutrons) is decades
out.

The impurity/inadvertent cooling challenge: The fusion process is extremely
sensitive to any impurities in the fuel, and the slightest inaccuracies in the
magnetic field. Once the plasma touches something, it cools of at once, and
fusion is over.

There are countless other challenges. I for one am all for still pumping
billions into fusion research, cause the next time a meteor hits earth and
darkens our atmosphere, our fancy photovoltaic power future will look ...
cloudy. What are billions for the world economy as an insurance contract on
long term clean energy security.

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lorenzhs
Wendelstein 7-X is a fascinating device and I'm glad it seems to be working so
well. The first plasma garnered some attention on here seven months ago:
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10710670](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10710670)

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Practicality
In particular "The success of the first experimental campaign exceeded our
initial expectations."

The only problem is that the next stage is not occurring until late 2017.

