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China is a serious contender in the race for fusion energy
Could it be the first to build a commercial reactor?
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A shot of the inner portion of ITER's tokamak, a doughnut-shaped fusion reactor.
PHOTO : ST FILE
The Economist
The story of Kuafu is a classic of Chinese mythology. The powerful giant, his arms wrapped in pythons, runs for days through hills and valleys to chase the sun that has scorched his people. His Herculean effort has come to symbolise exploration and courage in the present day; China has named various technological feats, including its solar probe and an advanced humanoid robot, after him. More aptly still, his pursuit has become a symbol of China’s nuclear-fusion ambitions.
It was with Kuafu-like gusto, then, that 1,500 physicists, engineers and nuclear-fusion enthusiasts recently gathered in the city of Hefei, a research hub where China is building its Burning Plasma Experimental Superconducting Tokamak (BEST), the country’s latest and greatest experimental machine to generate fusion-based power.
