Fusion reactors: Not what they’re cracked up to be

Re:Fusion reactors: Not what they’re cracked up to be by TheSpiceIsLife on Thursday April 27, 2017 @03:48PM (#14214164)

Do we have any numbers on what it means that they run only when the power is cheap?

Does that mean they can operate in 4hr windows? Or do they run have to run the furnace for a minimum period? A large quantity of steel takes a large amount of energy to melt.

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Re:Fusion reactors: Not what they’re cracked up to be by maxerickson on Thursday April 27, 2017 @03:56PM (#14214208)

Interesting question. Brief research says the cycle time is ~1 hour (or less):

http://www.steel.org/making-steel/how-its-made/processes/pro...

It could also be a plant for shredding scrap, where I guess it wouldn't be a time issue so much (and if it doesn't have the material inflows to run full time, timing cheap power would make sense).

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Re:Fusion reactors: Not what they’re cracked up to be by TheSpiceIsLife on Friday April 28, 2017 @12:19AM (#14216839)

Thanks for the link, looks pretty detailed. I work in steel fabrication, so it'll make interesting reading for me.

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