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| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Fusion power |
| Founded | 2013 |
| Founders |
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| Headquarters | , U.S. |
Key people |
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Number of employees | 200+ [1] (2023) |
| Website | www |
Helion Energy, Inc. is an American fusion research company, located in Everett, Washington. [2] They are developing a magneto-inertial fusion technology to produce helium-3 and fusion power via aneutronic fusion, [3] [4] which could produce low-cost clean electric energy using a fuel that can be derived exclusively from water. [5]
The company was founded in 2013 by David Kirtley, John Slough, Chris Pihl, and George Votroubek. [6] The management team won the 2013 National Cleantech Open Energy Generation competition and awards at the 2014 ARPA-E Future Energy Startup competition, [7] were members of the 2014 Y Combinator program, [8] and were awarded a 2015 ARPA-E ALPHA contract, "Staged Magnetic Compression of FRC Targets to Fusion Conditions". [9]
In 2022, the company was one of five finalists for the 2022 GeekWire Awards for innovation of the year, specifically for fusion energy start up category. [10]
In 2023, the company was one of five finalists for the 2023 GeekWire Best workplaces of the year. [11]
On May 10, 2023, Helion Energy announced that Microsoft will become the first customer of Helion Energy, and Helion Energy will provide fusion power to Microsoft starting in 2028. [12]
This system is intended to operate at 1 Hz, injecting plasma, compressing it to fusion conditions, expanding it, and recovering the energy to produce electricity. [13] The pulsed-fusion system that is used is theoretically able to run 24/7 for electricity production. Due to its compact size, the systems may be able to replace current fossil fuel infrastructure without major needs for investment. [14]
Helion uses a combination of deuterium and 3
He as fuel. Deuterium and 3He allows mostly aneutronic fusion, releasing only 5% of its energy in the form of fast neutrons. Commercial 3He is rare and expensive. Instead Helion produces 3He by deuteron-deuteron (D-D) side reactions to the deuterium - 3He reactions. D-D fusion has an equal chance of producing a 3He atom and of producing a tritium atom plus a proton. Tritium beta decays into more 3He with a half-life of 12.32 years. Helion plans to capture the 3He produced this way and reuse it as fuel. Helion has a patent on this process. [15]
This fusion approach uses the magnetic field of a field-reversed configuration (FRC) plasmoid (operated with solid state electronics derived from power switching electronics in wind turbines) to prevent plasma energy losses. An FRC is a magnetized plasma configuration notable for its closed field lines, high beta and lack of internal penetrations. [7]
Two FRC plasmoids are accelerated to velocities exceeding 300 km/s with pulsed magnetic fields which then merge into a single plasmoid at high pressure. [7] Published plans target compressing fusion plasmas to 12 tesla (T). [16]
Energy is captured by direct energy conversion that uses the expansion of the plasma to induce a current in the magnetic compression- and acceleration- coils. Separately it translates high-energy fusion products, such as alpha particles directly into a voltage. 3He produced by D-D fusion carries 0.82 MeV of energy. Tritium byproducts carry 1.01 MeV, while the proton produces 3.02 MeV.
This approach eliminates the need for steam turbines, cooling towers, and their associated energy losses. According to the company, this process also allows the recovery of a significant part of the input energy at a round-trip efficiency of over 95% [7] [17] [18]
The company's Fusion Engine is based on the Inductive Plasmoid Accelerator (IPA) experiments [19] [20] performed from 2005 through 2012. These experiments used deuterium-deuterium fusion, which produced a 2.45 MeV neutron in half of the reactions. The IPA experiments claimed 300 km/s velocities, deuterium neutron production, and 2 keV deuterium ion temperatures. [20] Helion and MSNW published articles describing a deuterium-tritium implementation that is the easiest to achieve but generates 14 MeV neutrons. The Helion team published peer-reviewed research demonstrating D-D neutron production in 2011. [20]
In 2014, according to the timeline on the company website, Grande, Helion's 4th fusion prototype, was developed to test high field operation. Grande achieves magnetic field compression of 4 tesla, forms cm-scale FRCs, and reaches plasma temperatures of 5 keV. Grande outperforms any other private fusion company. [17]
In 2015, Helion demonstrated the first direct magnetic energy recovery from a subscale pulsed magnetic system, utilizing modern high-voltage insulated gate bipolar transistors to recover energy at over 95% round-trip efficiency for over 1 million pulses. In a smaller system, the team demonstrated the formation of more than 1 billion FRCs. [17]
In 2018, the 5th prototype, "Venti" had magnetic fields of 7T and at high density, an ion temperature of 2 keV. [14] Helion detailed D-D fusion experiments producing neutrons in an October 2018 report at the United States Department of Energy's ARPA-E's annual ALPHA program meeting. [21] Experiments that year achieved plasmas with multi-keV temperatures [22] and a triple product of 6.4 × 1018 keV·s/m3. [23]
In 2021, the firm announced that after a 16-month test cycle with more than 10,000 pulses, its sixth prototype, Trenta, had reached 100 million degrees C, the temperature they would run a commercial reactor at. [14] Magnetic compression fields exceeded 10 T, ion temperatures surpassed 8 keV, and electron temperatures exceeded 1 keV. [24] [25] The company further reported ion densities up to 3 × 1022 ions/m3 and confinement times of up to 0.5 ms. [26]
Helion's seventh-generation prototype, Project Polaris has been in development since 2021, with completion expected in 2024. [27] The device is expected to increase the pulse rate from one pulse every 10 minutes to one pulse per second for short periods. [28] This prototype is expected to be able to heat fusion plasma up to temperatures greater than 100 million degrees C. [29] Polaris is planned to be 25% larger than Trenta to ensure that ions do not damage the vessel walls. [27]
As of January 2022 [update] , an eighth iteration was in the design stage. [30]
| Prototype | Year developed | Notable features | Achievements |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inductive Plasmoid Accelerator (IPA) experiments | 2005-2012 | Deuterium-deuterium fusion | Achieved 300 km/s velocities, deuterium neutron production, and 2 keV deuterium ion temperatures. |
| Grande (4th) | 2014 | High field operation, magnetic field compression of 4 tesla, forms cm-scale FRCs, plasma temperatures of 5 keV | Outperformed any other private fusion company at the time. Demonstrated the first direct magnetic energy recovery from a subscale pulsed magnetic system with over 95% round-trip efficiency for over 1 million pulses. |
| Venti (5th) | 2018 | Magnetic fields of 7 T, high-density ion temperature of 2 keV | Detailed D-D fusion experiments producing neutrons. Achieved plasmas with multi-keV temperatures and a triple product of 6.4 × 1018 keV·s/m3. |
| Trenta (6th) | 2021 | Magnetic compression fields over 10 T, ion temperatures over 8 keV, electron temperatures over 1 keV | Achieved 100 million degrees C after a 16-month test cycle with more than 10,000 pulses. Reported ion densities up to 3 × 1022 ions/m3 and confinement times of up to 0.5 ms. |
| Polaris (7th) | Under development in 2021, expected completion in 2024 | Expected to increase the pulse rate to one pulse per second for short periods, heat fusion plasma up to temperatures greater than 100 million degrees C, 25% larger than Trenta | Still under development |
| 8th prototype | Under design in 2022 | Not specified | Still under design |
Helion Energy received $7 million in funding from NASA, the United States Department of Energy and the Department of Defense, [31] followed by $1.5 million from the private sector in August 2014, through the seed accelerators Y Combinator and Mithril Capital Management. [32]
In 2021, the company was valued at three billion dollars. [33] As of late 2021, investment totaled $77.8M. [34] In November 2021, Helion received $500 million in Series E funding, with an additional $1.7 billion of commitments tied to specific milestones. [35] The funding was mainly led by Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, who is also the executive chairman of Helion. [36] [37]
Retired Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory researcher Daniel Jassby mentioned Helion Energy in a letter included in the American Physical Society newsletter Physics & Society (April 2019) as being among fusion start-ups allegedly practicing "voodoo fusion" rather than legitimate science. He noted that the company is one of several that has continually claimed "power in 5 to 10 years, but almost all have apparently never produced a single D-D fusion reaction". [38] However, Helion published peer-reviewed research demonstrating D-D neutron production as early as 2011 [20] and according to the independent JASON review team, VENTI, a sub-scale prototype Helion developed partially for the ALPHA program, achieved initial results of 8 × 1022 ions/m3,4 × 10−5 seconds energy confinement time and a temperature of 2 keV in 2018. [23] In 2020 Helion was the first private company to successfully demonstrate thermonuclear fusion plasmas exceeding 9 keV with expected D-D fusion reactions and neutrons [39] and a triple product greater than 1 × 1020 keV·s/m3, Lawson criterion. [26]
The same 2018 MITRE/JASON report, commissioned by the US Department of Energy's ARPA-E, said that Helion project leads or literature stated that they need a 40 tesla magnetic field for commercial viability, had the capability for an 8 Tesla field in their prototype, and projected they would achieve breakeven in 2023. The report stated that the primary challenge with Helion's approach is "whether they can simultaneously achieve sufficiently high compression while maintaining plasma stability". [23] As of 2023, their prototype has a 10 tesla field and they project breakeven in 2024. [40]
Helium-3 is a light, stable isotope of helium with two protons and one neutron. Helium-3 and protium are the only stable nuclides with more protons than neutrons. It was discovered in 1939.
Nuclear fusion is a reaction in which two or more atomic nuclei, usually deuterium and tritium, combine to form one or more different atomic nuclei and subatomic particles. The difference in mass between the reactants and products is manifested as either the release or absorption of energy. This difference in mass arises due to the difference in nuclear binding energy between the atomic nuclei before and after the reaction. Nuclear fusion is the process that powers active or main-sequence stars and other high-magnitude stars, where large amounts of energy are released.
A fusion rocket is a theoretical design for a rocket driven by fusion propulsion that could provide efficient and sustained acceleration in space without the need to carry a large fuel supply. The design requires fusion power technology beyond current capabilities, and much larger and more complex rockets.
Inertial confinement fusion (ICF) is a fusion energy process that initiates nuclear fusion reactions by compressing and heating targets filled with fuel. The targets are small pellets, typically containing deuterium (2H) and tritium (3H).
A fusor is a device that uses an electric field to heat ions to a temperature at which they undergo nuclear fusion. The machine induces a potential difference between two metal cages, inside a vacuum. Positive ions fall down this voltage drop, building up speed. If they collide in the center, they can fuse. This is one kind of an inertial electrostatic confinement device – a branch of fusion research.
Fusion power is a proposed form of power generation that would generate electricity by using heat from nuclear fusion reactions. In a fusion process, two lighter atomic nuclei combine to form a heavier nucleus, while releasing energy. Devices designed to harness this energy are known as fusion reactors. Research into fusion reactors began in the 1940s, but as of 2024, no device has reached net power, although net positive reactions have been achieved.
Nuclear pulse propulsion or external pulsed plasma propulsion is a hypothetical method of spacecraft propulsion that uses nuclear explosions for thrust. It originated as Project Orion with support from DARPA, after a suggestion by Stanislaw Ulam in 1947. Newer designs using inertial confinement fusion have been the baseline for most later designs, including Project Daedalus and Project Longshot.
Neutron generators are neutron source devices which contain compact linear particle accelerators and that produce neutrons by fusing isotopes of hydrogen together. The fusion reactions take place in these devices by accelerating either deuterium, tritium, or a mixture of these two isotopes into a metal hydride target which also contains deuterium, tritium or a mixture of these isotopes. Fusion of deuterium atoms results in the formation of a helium-3 ion and a neutron with a kinetic energy of approximately 2.5 MeV. Fusion of a deuterium and a tritium atom results in the formation of a helium-4 ion and a neutron with a kinetic energy of approximately 14.1 MeV. Neutron generators have applications in medicine, security, and materials analysis.
In fusion power research, the Z-pinch is a type of plasma confinement system that uses an electric current in the plasma to generate a magnetic field that compresses it. These systems were originally referred to simply as pinch or Bennett pinch, but the introduction of the θ-pinch concept led to the need for clearer, more precise terminology.
Aneutronic fusion is any form of fusion power in which very little of the energy released is carried by neutrons. While the lowest-threshold nuclear fusion reactions release up to 80% of their energy in the form of neutrons, aneutronic reactions release energy in the form of charged particles, typically protons or alpha particles. Successful aneutronic fusion would greatly reduce problems associated with neutron radiation such as damaging ionizing radiation, neutron activation, reactor maintenance, and requirements for biological shielding, remote handling and safety.
Magnetic confinement fusion (MCF) is an approach to generate thermonuclear fusion power that uses magnetic fields to confine fusion fuel in the form of a plasma. Magnetic confinement is one of two major branches of controlled fusion research, along with inertial confinement fusion.
A field-reversed configuration (FRC) is a type of plasma device studied as a means of producing nuclear fusion. It confines a plasma on closed magnetic field lines without a central penetration. In an FRC, the plasma has the form of a self-stable torus, similar to a smoke ring.
A dense plasma focus (DPF) is a type of plasma generating system originally developed as a fusion power device starting in the early 1960s. The system demonstrated scaling laws that suggested it would not be useful in the commercial power role, and since the 1980s it has been used primarily as a fusion teaching system, and as a source of neutrons and X-rays.
Magnetized target fusion (MTF) is a fusion power concept that combines features of magnetic confinement fusion (MCF) and inertial confinement fusion (ICF). Like the magnetic approach, the fusion fuel is confined at lower density by magnetic fields while it is heated into a plasma. As with the inertial approach, fusion is initiated by rapidly squeezing the target to greatly increase fuel density and temperature. Although the resulting density is far lower than in ICF, it is thought that the combination of longer confinement times and better heat retention will let MTF operate, yet be easier to build. The term magneto-inertial fusion (MIF) is similar, but encompasses a wider variety of arrangements. The two terms are often applied interchangeably to experiments.
General Fusion is a Canadian company based in Richmond, British Columbia, which is developing a fusion power technology based on magnetized target fusion (MTF). The company was founded in 2002 by Dr. Michel Laberge. The company has more than 150 employees.
Magnetized liner inertial fusion (MagLIF) is an ongoing fusion power experiment being carried out on the Z Pulsed Power Facility at Sandia National Laboratories in the US. Is it one example of the broader magneto-inertial fusion approach, which attempts to compress a pre-heated plasma. The goal is to produce fusion conditions without the level of compression needed in the inertial confinement fusion (ICF) approach, where the required densities reach about 100 times that of lead.
TAE Technologies, formerly Tri Alpha Energy, is an American company based in Foothill Ranch, California developing aneutronic fusion power. The company's design relies on an advanced beam-driven field-reversed configuration (FRC), which combines features from accelerator physics and other fusion concepts in a unique fashion, and is optimized for hydrogen-boron fuel, also known as proton-boron or p-11B. It regularly publishes theoretical and experimental results in academic journals with hundreds of publications and posters at scientific conferences and in a research library hosting these articles on its website. TAE has developed five generations of original fusion platforms with a sixth currently in development. It aims to manufacture a prototype commercial fusion reactor by 2030.
The Linus program was an experimental fusion power project developed by the United States Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) starting in 1971. The goal of the project was to produce a controlled fusion reaction by compressing plasma inside a metal liner. The basic concept is today known as magnetized target fusion.
Colliding beam fusion (CBF), or colliding beam fusion reactor (CBFR), is a class of fusion power concepts that are based on two or more intersecting beams of fusion fuel ions that are independently accelerated to fusion energies using a variety of particle accelerator designs or other means. One of the beams may be replaced by a static target, in which case the approach is termed accelerator based fusion or beam-target fusion, but the physics is the same as colliding beams.
The history of nuclear fusion began early in the 20th century as an inquiry into how stars powered themselves and expanded to incorporate a broad inquiry into the nature of matter and energy, as potential applications expanded to include warfare, energy production and rocket propulsion.
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