Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during his visit to France for an AI summit, toured the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) in Cadarache on Wednesday alongside French President Emmanuel Macron. The facility’s director-general received them, and the leaders commended the advancements at ITER, particularly the ongoing assembly of the world’s largest tokamak.
ITER
A tokamak is an experimental device designed to harness the energy produced by nuclear fusion. Within the tokamak, the vessel’s walls absorb the energy generated from the fusion of atoms. Similar to a conventional power plant, a future fusion power plant would utilize this heat to generate steam, which would then drive turbines and generators to produce electricity.
ITER is a global collaborative initiative focused on constructing the world’s largest magnetic fusion device, intended to demonstrate the viability of fusion as a large-scale, carbon-free energy source, as stated on the ITER website. The project is based on the same fundamental principle that powers the sun and other stars.
According to the ITER website, thousands of engineers and scientists have been involved in designing the facility since the concept of this international joint experiment was first proposed in 1985. Development has been ongoing since 2005, with ITER set to become one of the largest international scientific endeavors. As per its current timeline, the project aims to commence deuterium-tritium fusion reactions by 2039, generating 500 MW of fusion power. While ITER itself will not convert this thermal energy into electricity, its success is expected to pave the way for future machines to adopt fusion as a regular source of power generation.
Construction has been ongoing at a 42-hectare site in southern France since 2010. In March 2020, the ITER organization took control of the central Tokamak building to commence machine assembly. A key milestone in this phase was the installation of the 1,250-tonne cryostat base in May 2020.
Significance of the ITER Project
Fusion is regarded as the future of energy, offering a solution to the constant search for more efficient energy sources. A minimal quantity of raw materials—initially deuterium and tritium nuclei—can generate vast amounts of energy in a clean and sustainable way. Since fusion produces zero emissions, it is also viewed as a potential answer to climate change. This makes ITER, the world’s largest fusion reactor, highly significant.
How does it work?
As stated on the ITER website, the main objective of ITER is to study and demonstrate burning plasmas—”plasmas in which the energy of the helium nuclei produced by the fusion reactions is enough to maintain the temperature of the plasma, thereby reducing or eliminating the need for external heating.” Additionally, ITER will assess the feasibility and integration of technologies required for a fusion reactor, as well as the validity of tritium breeding module concepts, which would enable tritium self-sufficiency in future reactors.
Who are collaborating on the project?
A total of 33 nations, including India, are collaborating on this project based in southern France. The seven ITER members—China, India, the European Union, Japan, Korea, Russia, and the United States—have been working together for decades to construct and operate the ITER experimental device. Their collective goal is to advance fusion to a stage where a demonstration fusion reactor can be designed.
Importance of PM Modi’s visit
India is one of the seven members that have been contributing to the project for the past two decades. Approximately 200 Indian scientists, associates, and leading industry players, including L&T, Inox India, TCS, TCE, and HCL Technologies, are involved in the ITER project. Prime Minister Modi’s visit to the facility is the first by any Head of State or Head of Government.
