Chapter 389: Chapter 387: Fusion Reactor
After seeing off the pilot, Chen Xin’s attention naturally shifted to that batch of weapons-grade enriched uranium.
This is truly good stuff, a weapon of mass destruction in the real sense.
There are only a handful of countries in the world capable of producing weapons-grade pure enriched uranium. Small countries simply do not possess the technological and industrial capability to research related technology.
Coupled with the control and blockade of nuclear technology by the five major powers, smaller nations have even less opportunity to research and manufacture this weapon-grade nuclear material.
If this were before the disaster, a batch of nuclear materials capable of manufacturing ten-kiloton tactical nuclear bombs would be extremely valuable. Although the cost of one kilogram of weapons-grade enriched uranium is about five hundred thousand dollars, it is practically priceless, and neither ordinary people nor ordinary countries could buy it.
If someone could smuggle such a batch of nuclear material before the disaster, regardless of whether they’d live to spend the money, they’d have enough to last several lifetimes.
If Chen Xin were not in Flame Country, a nuclear power with the ability to manufacture nuclear weapons and nuclear materials, he wouldn’t have access to this grade of nuclear material easily. He might consider buying uranium ore to purify it himself, as before the disaster, uranium ore was merely regulated and not very expensive.
However, now thanks to the country, they procured this batch of weapons-grade enriched uranium, so Chen Xin naturally doesn’t need to slowly purify uranium ore himself to produce enriched uranium.
Chen Xin needs enriched uranium to build a fusion reactor.
Some might wonder, enriched uranium is clearly a raw material for fission reactions, how can it be used to build a fusion reactor?
This isn’t a mistake by Chen Xin, nor does he plan to forcibly upgrade a fission reactor to a fusion reactor through the system, but rather, fission reactors can indeed be used to build fusion reactors.
Before explaining how it’s done, one must first understand that the fuel for fusion reactions is typically the isotopes of two hydrogen elements, deuterium and tritium. Although deuterium occurs abundantly in nature, tritium must be artificially produced.
And the method to produce tritium is to bombard lithium-6 compound targets with neutrons produced from fission reactions, which can yield a large output of tritium.
Afterward, simply using a thermal diffusion method to enrich tritium to 99% or more is sufficient for a fusion reaction.
Of course, doing this directly results in a single intense thermonuclear fusion reaction, commonly known as a hydrogen bomb explosion, releasing immense energy in an instant.
Therefore, nations on Blue Star capable of nuclear fusion research are seeking ways to control nuclear fusion reactions, which led to the proposals of controllable nuclear fusion and cold nuclear fusion.
With the system in hand, controllable nuclear fusion and cold nuclear fusion are not difficult for Chen Xin to achieve. If he’s willing, he could even create sci-fi power sources like GN solar reactors and antimatter reactors.
But Chen Xin does not want such obscure, unpractical things; he desires something replicable and promotable.
Hence, he does not plan to dabble in fringe technology, not even cold nuclear fusion; he just plans to create a controllable hot nuclear fusion reactor.
Regarding this hot nuclear fusion reactor, Chen Xin does not envision adding fuel from external sources to the reaction furnace, but rather installing a fission reactor beneath the fusion reactor to directly bombard targets with the fission reactor, producing tritium as fuel for the fusion reactor.
That’s why Chen Xin needs nuclear material; otherwise, even if he could build the reactor, he wouldn’t light it without fuel.
As for why he doesn’t use fuel-grade enriched uranium but weapons-grade enriched uranium, it’s because according to Chen Xin’s design, he needs to use high-purity nuclear material as fuel.
"Honestly, looking at so much nuclear material before me, my scalp tingles a bit." In the temporary nuclear material storage warehouse, Chen Xin looks at the box in front of him storing nuclear material and the massive nuclear radiation sign on it, indeed feeling a tingling across his back.
"Weapons-grade enriched uranium with over 90% purity, if this stuff gets out, many people may die." As the Commander of special forces who has undertaken many dangerous missions, it naturally understands how dangerous this material is, and how many people would risk their lives for it.
"So I trouble you to guard it well. Before I have completed the reactor, not one gram can be lost." Chen Xin turned to the Commander, his expression becoming stern: "These nuclear materials will be temporarily stored here. I will continue my work in Lin City, and once this work is completed, these nuclear materials will return with me to my own shelter, where I will complete the fusion reactor’s construction and loading, then start the test. The entire protection task will be handled by you."
The words from Chen Xin made the Commander of the special forces tense up. Though he had been warned by superiors and mentally prepared before this mission, Chen Xin asking him to guard these vital and dangerous nuclear materials still made the Commander breathe a bit quicker.
But the mission sense and duty as a soldier made him instinctively reply to Chen Xin: "Guaranteed to complete the mission!"
"This is also an extra trouble I’m bringing to you guys. Initially, you were only to protect my safety, but now also responsible for the safety of these nuclear materials." Chen Xin knew he was causing trouble for them, but such trouble was inevitable.
After all, the nuclear material is weapons-grade; the nation wouldn’t hand it to Chen Xin easily. If it weren’t for the special forces ordered to protect him, the nation likely wouldn’t hand over weapons-grade nuclear material to him so easily.
Thus, since their departure, this special force has been tasked with protecting the security of the nuclear material and the fusion reactor Chen Xin will build.
Fortunately, under the current large environment, protecting Chen Xin and the security of this batch of nuclear material isn’t too troublesome. As long as the military camp is tightly guarded to prevent nuclear material from leaking, there should be no problems.
After all, on Flame Country’s soil, there’s hardly any force that can break the military camp guarded by an elite special force and steal from it.
"The existence of this batch of nuclear materials needs to be as sealed off as possible, the fewer people who know, the better. These tasks are entrusted to you." Chen Xin was unsure of the specific measures, but he still conveyed his requirements to the Commander based on his understanding.
The Commander nodded in response, confidently saying: "Indeed, fewer people who know about such matters, the better. I’ll inform the soldiers responsible for security to keep it confidential."