Fang Xu looked at Lu Yongchang in front of him with a complicated expression, and the ballpoint pen in his hand trembled slightly.
Solid lithium is dangerous already, let alone liquid lithium heated to above 180.54°C!
Now, Lv Yongchang actually told him that he wanted to use liquid lithium as the reaction solution for controlled nuclear fusion? !
That's nuclear fusion!
The most violent reaction in the entire star system!
Not only Fang Xu, but all the researchers and professors around him looked strange when they heard that liquid lithium would be used as the solution.
"Ahem…"
"Professor Lu, how about... we think about it again?"
Lu Hezheng on the side cleared his throat and persuaded in a gentle voice.
Lu Yongchang glanced around and after seeing the expressions of the crowd, a bitter smile appeared on his face.
Well, to be honest, he also felt that this plan was not very safe.
But which experiment related to nuclear physics is truly safe?
Lu Yongchang pondered for a moment and walked to the demonstration whiteboard next to the laboratory.
He reached out and picked up the black marker beside him, and wrote a series of complex and beautiful formulas on it.
"Here, everyone, is the mathematical model of the sonoluminescence phenomenon."
"To ignite nuclear fusion in a solution, we must make the temperature of the bubble collapse to hundreds of millions of degrees Celsius!"
"And this can only be achieved by liquid lithium!"
As he spoke, Lu Yongchang waved his right hand quickly and wrote down the detailed calculation process on the whiteboard.
Fang Xu looked at the formula on the demonstration whiteboard thoughtfully and nodded slightly.
As one of the top academicians, Fang Xu quickly followed the ideas explained by Lu Yongchang and came up with the answer.
He sighed softly and said helplessly: "If the mathematical model is correct, then liquid lithium may really be our only choice."
Lu Yongchang chuckled: "In my opinion, liquid lithium is not a helpless choice."
"On the contrary, it is the best choice for small fusion reactors!"
As he spoke, Lu Yongchang heavily wrote a symbol on the presentation whiteboard.
Li-6!
The moment he saw this symbol, Fang Xu's pupils suddenly shrank!
He understood!
He understood everything!
"Yongchang, you are planning to use the physical properties of lithium-6!"
Fang Xu's eyes flashed with excitement, and he subconsciously stretched out his right hand and rubbed his nose vigorously: "Yes! Yes! You are right!"
"Liquid lithium is the best choice for small fusion reactors!"
Seeing Fang Xu's excited face, a smile flashed in Lu Yongchang's eyes.
As expected, it's Fang Xu!
Grasped the key points at the first time!
Unlike Fang Xu, the researchers and professors around him all looked at Lu Yongchang with confusion.
Naturally, Lu Yongchang didn't keep the secret for too long and started explaining directly.
"There is a physical property of lithium-6 atoms that is easily overlooked."
"When bombarded with neutrons, it releases tritium atoms."
After hearing Lu Yongchang's explanation, the expressions on everyone's faces suddenly froze!
I see!
Once the deuterium-tritium fusion reaction is triggered, a large number of neutrons will naturally be released!
After these neutrons bombard the surrounding liquid Li-6, the liquid Li-6 will release a large number of tritium atoms!
In this way, compared with the Pangu No. 1 fusion reactor, the small fusion reactor does not even need to replenish tritium gas. It only needs to regularly replenish the cheapest deuterium gas to maintain the operation of the fusion reactor for a long time!
"Yongchang! I'll contact the factory right now!"
Fang Xu said excitedly: "I didn't realize it just now, but now it seems that this is simply the best solution to the miniaturization of fusion reactors!"
…
Three days later.
A huge iron factory building was built out of thin air on an open space one thousand meters away from Xia Country's first laboratory.
In the center of the factory, there is a dark black cylindrical container.
The container is about two meters high and about one meter in diameter.
At the bottom of the container is a huge ultrasonic generator.
This seemingly simple container is a test machine for a small fusion reactor.
Looking at the device in front of him, a hint of regret flashed across Lu Yongchang's eyes.
It has to be said that after gathering most of Xia Country's resources, the progress of the experiment has been accelerated infinitely!
Three days ago, Fang Xu had just finished contacting the factory, and in just one hour, the drawings of the small fusion reactor test machine were placed in front of Lu Yongchang!
Next... Xia Guo not only completed the manufacturing of the test machine within three days, but for safety reasons, Xia Guo also specially built a sheet metal factory building on the open space to serve as a temporary experimental site.
"Yongchang, when do we start the experiment?"
Fang Xu turned his head to look at the testing machine in the center of the factory, a hint of heat flashing in his eyes.
This is a small fusion reactor!
As a top academician in the field of nuclear fusion, Fang Xu knows the value of this thing better than anyone else!
Unlike large fusion reactors, small fusion reactors will not be used in the civilian field, they will only shine in the military field!
Thinking that Xia Country's aircraft carriers, submarines, or fighter planes will all use nuclear fusion as energy, Fang Xu's heart began to beat violently!
"No hurry, let's wait for someone first."
Lu Yongchang's light words came from the side.
"Waiting for someone?"
Fang Xu was stunned and asked subconsciously: "Who are you waiting for?"
Lu Yongchang looked past Fang Xu and into the distance: "Here they come!"
Fang Xu quickly turned his head and looked in the direction where Lu Yongchang was looking.
I saw a black Hongqi sedan slowly driving towards the iron factory building.
The license plate number is naturally that familiar string of numbers.
"The Councillor is here?!"
Fang Xu was shocked and exclaimed softly.
"Let's go!" Lu Yongchang straightened his clothes, "It's time for us to go and greet them!"
…
"So small?!"
"Yongchang, are you sure this thing can perform controlled nuclear fusion?!"
As soon as he saw the test machine, Councillor Li questioned Lu Yongchang.
Faced with the doubt, Lu Yongchang naturally responded with a smile: "Mr. Councillor, this thing doesn't matter the size!"
"It's just a test machine now. If it succeeds, its size can be made even smaller!"
"When the time comes, it won't be a problem even if we install it on your car!"
Councillor Li smacked his lips, obviously not believing what Lu Yongchang said: "The power generation capacity of this thing should not be comparable to Pangu 1, right?"
Lu Yongchang's expression suddenly froze.
Isn't this nonsense?!
What is Pangu-1?!
The area alone is 20 square kilometers!
How big is this small fusion reactor?
Seeing Lu Yongchang being humiliated, Fang Xu on the side immediately showed a knowing smile on his face.
However, no matter how funny it is, when the boss is humiliated, the subordinates still need to help explain and defend him.
"Ahem, Senator, different sizes naturally mean different powers," Fang Xu continued, "According to estimates, the power of this small fusion reactor in front of you should be able to reach about 1,000 megawatts."
The congressman raised his eyebrows sharply.
1000 megawatts!
This is quite a lot of power!