Context: The potential of nuclear-fusion technology to transform our energy calculus is enormous.
Advantages of nuclear fusion technology
- Reap cheap clean carbon free energy: Energy thus produced can be made use for several purposes.
- Decarbonising transportation: Fast trains and bullet trains that depends on electrical energy.
- Desalinating water: Again uses electricity.
- Demand for labour: As facilities become cheap more goods, need for labour and wages will increase.
- Technological advancement: Cheap energy would make supercomputing more available, crypto more convenient, and nanotechnology more likely.
- Reduction in coal plants: Coal plants and other polluting energy sources shall be put on to cease.
Challenges of Nuclear Fusion:
- Applicability challenges: Eg. Usage in aircrafts. It cannot replace the fueling technology.
- Not all emissions be checked: Eg. Methane production from livestock. With increase in landscape for cultivation the rise in bovine population leads to increase in methane production.
- Adverse effect on fossil fuel dependent economies: Saudi and other gulf nations along with Russia would be the losers.
- Risk on commodity producing nations: Advancement in technology would enable nations to become self-sustained thus affecting nations whose economy depends on commodity exports.
- Eg. China producing own soybeans will affect Brazil and Argentina.
Way Forward
- Produce hydrogen fuel: Fusion Technology can be used to synthesize hydrogen fuel.
- More advanced technology: Energy would be so cheap, protective technologies—to remove methane and carbon from the air, for instance—are also likely to be more feasible and affordable.
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