Cold fusion device

Abstract

To provide a cold fusion device which offers a practical output level.SOLUTION: A capacitor consisting of a hydrogen-containing metal, which serves as a cold fusion target, and an opposing electrode is subjected to LC resonance, and the hydrogen-containing metal is irradiated with electrons with an energy level of 0.78 MeV or greater, generated in the capacitor, to promote nuclear fusion.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a cold fusion device that promotes nuclear fusion reactions using electrons of 0.78 MeV or more. [Background technology]

[0002] In 1989, cold fusion was reported by Professors Fleischman, Pons, and Jones, but poor reproducibility led to negative opinions and made it a difficult phenomenon to evaluate. Since then, as a result of research by many researchers, the existence of cold fusion has been recognized, but its principles have not yet been clarified and research is still being carried out by trial and error.

[0003] Researchers at NASA's Glenn Research Center have achieved nuclear fusion using an electron accelerator, hydrogen, and metals. Specifically, electrons accelerated by the accelerator are irradiated onto tungsten to generate gamma rays. They succeeded in nuclear fusion by irradiating Ti or Er with deuterium absorbed with the gamma rays. They explain that the gamma rays break down heavy water into protons and neutrons, producing helium and converting metal elements, and claim that this phenomenon is not cold fusion but a new method of nuclear fusion. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 6548102 [Non-patent literature]

[0005] [Non-Patent Document 1] Article by Michael Koziol published in IEEE Spectrum on August 5, 2020 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] The first thing that needs to be clarified is the principle of cold fusion. The theory that the probability of collisions between atomic nuclei and protons (including deuterons) increases dramatically due to the Coulomb shielding effect, which is assumed by many people, was rejected in the early 1990s, and the involvement of voids and impurities was suspected. However, considering the inelastic scattering collision cross section, the involvement of neutrons is more likely, and although some researchers point this out, it does not seem to have become mainstream.

[0007] The inventor supports the involvement of neutrons, and first, atomic nuclei are excited by external energy such as cosmic rays. As experimental evidence shows, gamma rays are unlikely to be emitted in cold nuclear fusion, so the excitation energy of excited atoms in solids is internally converted and used to generate heat or neutrons by fusing nearby hydrogen nuclei with electrons. As experimental evidence shows that neutrons are also difficult to detect, the generated neutrons also fuse with other atomic nuclei with a high probability to become excited nuclei, leading to a chain reaction of nuclear fusion, heat generation by internal conversion, and neutron generation. The energy generated by one neutron is extremely small, even if it is said to be 10,000 times that of a chemical reaction, and it is only after the above chain reaction has progressed that it can be observed as a heat generation phenomenon. Then, when hydrogen, the neutron source, runs out, the cold nuclear fusion reaction and heat generation stop.

[0008] This explanation can explain many things. For example, the poor reproducibility of cold fusion can be attributed to regional variations in the amount of radiation in the air and the degree of shielding of the laboratory from cosmic rays. In fact, there are reports that cold fusion has not been detected in environments that are underground and shielded from cosmic rays.

[0009] Considering the above, the method used by NASA's Glenn Research Center in Non-Patent Document 1 can be said to be a method that uses the principles of cold fusion. [Means for solving the problem]

[0010] The key to increasing the power output of cold fusion is how much hydrogen can be converted into neutrons by applying high energy from the outside to a solid containing hydrogen (including isotopes), and the inventors thought that electrons would be the most efficient. In other words, an extremely simple configuration of placing opposing electrodes is sufficient, and electrons emitted from the opposing electrodes, which apply a negative voltage to the hydrogen-containing material, are irradiated to excite the atomic nuclei and promote neutron generation. + +e - The energy required for n is 0.78 MeV. The energy required to break down deuterium into protons and neutrons, as described in Non-Patent Document 1, is about 2.2 MeV, so this is about one-third the energy required. In addition, when using radioactive materials as the energy source, radiation is constantly emitted, which makes safety and controllability difficult.

[0011] At present, it is difficult or very expensive to obtain a DC power supply of 0.78 MV or more, i.e. a 1 MV class power supply, so energy of 0.78 MeV or more is given to electrons by the resonance effect of an LC resonant circuit. Figure 1 shows the main configuration of the present invention. An LC circuit is formed by a capacitor formed by a hydrogen-containing metal 1 and an opposing electrode 2, and an inductor 3. However, in reality, there is a resistor 4 that is mainly due to the internal resistance of the nuclear fusion promotion power supply 5, and an LCR series circuit is unintentionally formed. At this time, the resonant angular velocity ω LC is expressed as the following formula 1.

[0012]

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[0013] Here, C is the capacitance of the capacitor formed by the hydrogen-containing metal 1 and the counter electrode 2, and L is the inductance of the inductor 3. ω LC When the motor is driven at a resonant angular velocity, the voltage V applied to the capacitor is amplified to the maximum by the resonance effect.

[0014]

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[0015] Here, R is the resistance of resistor 4, VFA is the maximum applied voltage of the nuclear fusion promotion power source 5. In other words, the voltage of the capacitor consisting of the hydrogen-containing metal 1 and the counter electrode 2 is expressed by the resonance angular velocity of Equation 1 as follows:

[0016]

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[0017] If this Q value could be increased by, say, 1 million times, then by setting the voltage VFA of the nuclear fusion promotion power supply 5 to 5 V, the voltage V applied to the capacitor would be 5 million V, and the electrons emitted from the counter electrode 2 would be able to impart 5 MeV of energy to the hydrogen-containing metal 1.

[0018] However, because it is driven by high frequency, in order for the emitted electrons to give the maximum energy to the hydrogen-containing metal 1, the hydrogen-containing metal 1 needs to be at the maximum voltage when the electrons arrive at the hydrogen-containing metal 1. In other words, the following formula 4 needs to be satisfied.

[0019]

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[0020] f is the frequency multiplied by 2π to obtain the angular velocity. c is the speed of light, and α is the average speed when the electrons reach the hydrogen-containing metal 1 from the counter electrode 2 inside the capacitor normalized by the speed of light. The plus and minus terms in Equation 4 are determined by the position of the voltage reference point, and are positive when the electrons in the capacitor are in a traveling wave state. The speed of electrons with kinetic energy of 0.78 MeV or more is 90% or more, that is, α is close to 1. Therefore, the optimal frequency f for the delayed wave state is higher than that for the traveling wave state, and is not practical in reality. Therefore, in the present invention, the high-frequency electric field felt by the space electrons inside the capacitor is in a traveling wave state,

[0021]

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[0022] is the optimum frequency required for design. In Figure 1, the reference potential of the circuit is set at the position of the opposing electrode 2 so that Equation 5 holds.

[0023] When Equation 5 holds true, in the limit where the voltage is high enough that the electrons in the capacitor can be considered to travel at the speed of light,

[0024]

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[0025] Thus, Equation 6 is a guideline for the maximum driving frequency of the device according to the present invention. For example, when d is 10 cm, the value of Equation 6 is approximately 375 MHz, which is a value that is fully feasible with current technology.

[0026] The inductance of the inductor 3 is determined according to f, which is determined by equation 5, and is a value that is easily implementable with commercially available RF inductors.

[0027] FIG. 2 shows the results of numerical analysis of the relationship between the maximum voltage and the optimum frequency applied to a capacitor composed of a hydrogen-containing metal 1 and an opposing electrode 2 when d in formula 5 is set to 10 cm. When d was changed and calculations were performed, the α value in formula 5 did not clearly depend on d, and the α value appears to be a pure function of the maximum voltage. When the maximum voltage is in the range of 0.78 MV to 10 MV, the α value in formula 5 is approximately 0.8 to 1. To be on the safe side, the design should be considered with α set to 0.72 to 1, taking into account the α value of 0.72 for a maximum voltage of 0.5 MV. Note that under the implementation conditions of the present invention, the optimum frequency is almost saturated, which is favorable for designing a resonant circuit.

[0028] The capacitance C of a capacitor consisting of a hydrogen-containing metal 1 and a counter electrode 2 is

[0029]

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[0030] Here, ε0 is the dielectric constant of a vacuum, S is the equivalent area of ​​the hydrogen-containing metal 1 and the counter electrode 2, and d is the distance between the hydrogen-containing metal 1 and the counter electrode 2. By substituting Equation 7 and Equation 5 into Equation 3, the Q value of the LCR resonator is given by Equation 8 below.

[0031]

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[0032] Since α can be considered to be a constant in design, the Q value is determined by the internal resistance R of the nuclear fusion promotion power source 5, the area S of the capacitor consisting of the hydrogen-containing metal 1 and the counter electrode 2, and the distance d. In formula 8, R = 0.001 Ω, d = 0.1 m, and S = 0.0025 m 2 (5 cm square), if α=0.9, Q~450,000 times, and the voltage V of the nuclear fusion promotion power source 5 FA If we set the voltage to 3V, the capacitor will be applied with a maximum of 1.35MV, allowing for increased fusion power. Here, we set only S to S=1m 2 If we do this, Q will only be 1100 times higher, and it will be impossible to apply a voltage of 0.78 MV or more to the capacitor. Therefore, the best thing to do would be to improve the performance of the fusion promotion power source 5 and reduce the internal resistance in line with the area, but if this is not possible, d must be increased. In that case, however, the resonant frequency in formula 5 will change, and the drive frequency of the fusion promotion power source 5 will need to be changed.

[0033] As described above, in the present invention, formulas 1, 5, and 8 are necessary for designing the device according to the present invention. Formulas 5 and 8 are used to design the fusion promotion power source 5 in consideration of the performance and the desired dimensions of the device, and finally, the inductance L of the inductor 3 is determined by formula 1.

[0034] So far, the hydrogen in the hydrogen-containing metal 1 has been considered as light hydrogen, but in the case of deuterium, it is expected that deuterium will split into a proton and a neutron at an applied voltage of 2.2 MV or more. Furthermore, it is expected that deuterium will be converted into two free neutrons at an applied voltage of 3 MV or more, which is expected to increase the output of cold fusion through a more chain-like fusion.

[0035] In the present invention, the LCR circuit is driven under resonant conditions, which is equivalent to operating the fusion promotion power supply 5 by shorting it, and it is impossible to drive it at a duty ratio of 100%. Therefore, in the present invention, the fusion promotion power supply 5 is operated with the drive waveform shown in Figure 3. Due to the characteristics of the LC circuit, the drive waveform is required to be close to a sine wave in order to have a high Q value. The period Tint of the fusion promotion pulse 6 and the time width T LC The duty ratio is given by the following Equation 9.

[0036]

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[0037] Equation 9 must be very small. For example, 1 / (2 T LC ) = 330MHz, Tint = 1 second, then formula 9 is approximately 3E-09 = 3E-07%. In actual operation, the cold fusion output is controlled by measuring, for example, the surface temperature of a hydrogen-containing metal with an infrared thermometer, but even with computer control, it takes more than 1 msec. If a human is monitoring, it is reasonable to control the output at intervals of 1 to 60 seconds for Tint.

[0038] Figure 4 shows an embodiment in which a preliminary discharge of up to 2000V is performed for one to 100,000 shots before the voltage of 0.78MV or more required for fusion promotion is applied to the capacitor formed by the hydrogen-containing metal 1 and the counter electrode 2, and the main fusion promotion discharge is stabilized. As mentioned above, the duty ratio of equation (9) is small, and without the preliminary discharge, the hydrogen ion concentration immediately before the main cold fusion promotion discharge would be lower than immediately after the discharge, and the discharge start voltage would be unstable. For this reason, the increase in hydrogen ion concentration due to the preliminary discharge is effective in stabilizing the cold fusion promotion discharge. In this case, the discharge frequency of the preliminary discharge is set to the frequency of the cold fusion promotion discharge, 1 / (2·T LC), the circuit can be simplified, and the electrons emitted in the preliminary discharge cannot reach the hydrogen-containing metal 1 due to insufficient time, resulting in providing space electrons in the vicinity of the counter electrode 2 and forming an ideal discharge preparation state. In addition, there is an effect that the hydrogen-containing metal 1 is not irradiated with electrons of the preliminary discharge energy, which is an impediment to the promotion of room temperature nuclear fusion.

[0039] In order to consider the operation of a cold fusion reactor, we consider the state of hydrogen solid solution inside a metal. The hydrogen solid solution concentration in the thermal equilibrium state inside a metal is n H teeth

[0040]

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[0041] where P H2 is the hydrogen pressure, k B is the Boltzmann constant, T is the temperature, E is the activation energy of hydrogen solid solution, E<0, which indicates that hydrogen solid solution in general metals is an endothermic reaction. In the case of Ti, TiH2 is a chemically stable exothermic reaction, E>0, so formula 10 is measured as the concentration of chemical change to TiH2, not the solid solution of hydrogen.

[0042] To increase the power output of cold fusion, H From the viewpoint of kinetics, it is required that P H2 It is important that the temperature is high. Even if the temperature reaches 1000°C and cold fusion progresses, the nuclear reaction cannot be influenced by the thermal energy of only 0.1 eV at 1000°C, and this is simply due to the increase in the hydrogen concentration in the metal.

[0043] However, in the case of a fusion-promoting discharge, in order to promote fusion, the hydrogen pressure P H2In this case, the nuclear reaction is difficult due to the concentration of hydrogen in the metal. In this situation, the mean free path λ of hydrogen is larger than the distance d between the hydrogen-containing metal 1 and the counter electrode 2, and the following formula 11 is satisfied.

[0044]

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[0045] Here, P H2 is the hydrogen pressure, which can be considered as the total pressure in the practice of the present invention. σ is the collision cross section between hydrogen molecules, d H2 is the diameter of a hydrogen molecule, and σ=πd H2 2 holds true. d H2 Considering =0.268nm

[0046]

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[0047] It becomes. P H2 d is a quantity called the Pd product, which is an important index in gas discharge. At room temperature of 300K, the Pd product in formula 12 is 0.013 Pa·m, and the Pd product that is the minimum discharge voltage of hydrogen molecules is measured as a Paschen curve, and it is known that hydrogen gas starts gas discharge at a minimum voltage of about 300V when the Pd product is about 1 Pa·m. Therefore, the discharge start voltage becomes extremely high at a Pd product two orders of magnitude lower than that. Conversely, if the nuclear fusion reaction progresses and the temperature inside the capacitor rises, the Pd product in formula 12 increases, and nuclear fusion-promoted discharge becomes possible at high hydrogen pressure. For example, when the temperature rises from room temperature of 300K to 1000℃, it becomes possible to increase the discharge pressure by about four times.

[0048] The above problem is solved by the drive of the fusion promotion power source 5 and the hydrogen pressure control in FIG. 5. It is divided into three steps. The first is the preliminary discharge step. If the hydrogen pressure is set to discharge at a voltage close to the minimum according to Paschen's law and discharge is performed at the optimal frequency for the second fusion promotion step, the secondary electrons from the hydrogen ions hardly move forward and remain near the opposing electrode. For example, when the capacitor is driven at 300V at the optimal frequency with a maximum applied voltage of 1MV, the electrons of the first discharge move about 5.5mm under vacuum conditions when they feel 300V, and the same amount when the voltage is dropped, so it is estimated that they move a maximum of 11mm in one discharge, about 10% of the distance between the electrodes of the capacitor. After this, if the hydrogen pressure is reduced to 1 / 100, it is expected that electrons with a concentration of about 1 / 100 will remain in the capacitor. In reality, if the Pd product is increased, collisions between electrons and gas molecules occur more frequently, which increases the electron concentration and advances the obstruction of electron movement, which is desirable for the present invention. Finally, it is not essential that the frequency of the preliminary discharge is the resonant frequency of the LC resonator, but what is important is to make the secondary electrons generated from the counter electrode 2 remain in the vicinity of the counter electrode 2 .

[0049] If the second process, fusion-promoting discharge, is performed in this situation, electrons will move in a state similar to that of electrons in a vacuum, not in the Paschen gas discharge model, and discharge will be possible under conditions close to those of Equation 5, making it possible to irradiate the hydrogen-containing metal 1 with high-energy electrons that can generate neutrons, etc. Furthermore, if five 300V pulses are discharged in the preliminary discharge process, the electrons will reach about 55 mm, i.e., half the capacitor interval, calculated in a vacuum, but it is expected that the space electrons can be diffused and moved to the counter electrode side by devising an exhaust method, and the situation can be returned to that modeled in the fusion-promoting discharge. Specifically, an exhaust port is provided on the counter electrode 2 side to perform exhaust. Conversely, if there is an exhaust port on the hydrogen-containing metal 1 side, the electrons in the capacitor will reach the hydrogen-containing metal 1 during exhaust after the preliminary discharge process, and irradiation of the hydrogen-containing metal 1 with high-energy electrons capable of promoting fusion in the fusion-promoting discharge will fail. The above-mentioned space charge control in the capacitor by exhaust is also an important design element of the present invention. Also, even without the preliminary discharge as shown in Fig. 3, it is not unusual to discharge at a voltage of 1 MV or more, but in that case, a spark discharge will occur and it is not possible to uniformly irradiate the entire surface of the hydrogen-containing metal 1 with electrons. In this respect, too, the invention shown in Fig. 5 is superior.

[0050] After the second fusion-promoting discharge is completed, the third fusion reaction process begins. This can be achieved by introducing hydrogen gas into the reactor to increase the pressure, as shown in Equation 10. As the fusion reaction progresses and the temperature of the hydrogen-containing metal 1 rises, the concentration of hydrogen in the solid solution at thermal equilibrium in the metal increases, providing a positive feedback to the fusion reaction. However, depending on the progress of the fusion reaction, the supply of hydrogen atoms may not be able to keep up, resulting in the fusion reaction attenuating. Currently, hydrogen pressure is only considered up to atmospheric pressure, taking into consideration the simplification of the device and the difficulty of accidents occurring, but in order to further increase the power output of cold fusion, it may be necessary to further increase the hydrogen pressure to 10 atmospheres or 100 atmospheres.

[0051] Considering current cold fusion reactions, the concentration of hydrogen in a hydrogen-containing metal 1 is less than 1% of the metal element at 1 atmosphere of hydrogen pressure and 1000°C, at most about 0.1%. Even if a hydrogen nucleus (proton) is converted into a neutron under these circumstances, the most likely reaction is that it will collide with a metal nucleus to form an isotope with a mass number one higher, and there is a small probability that it will fuse with a hydrogen nucleus to become a deuteron. If the nucleus whose mass number has increased through fusion is stable, it will remain that way unless there is new nuclear fusion, but if the nucleus is unstable, it will either undergo beta decay to become an element with an atomic number one higher, or the nucleus will capture an electron and be converted into an element with an atomic number one lower.

[0052] Consider the case where Ni and Cu are used as the hydrogen-containing metal 1 as in Patent Document 1. Since Ni is a stable isotope up to a mass number of 64, it is expected that in the cold nuclear fusion of the present invention, the mass number of the Ni element will increase, the mass number will reach 65, and then it will undergo beta decay with a half-life of 2.5 hours to become copper with a mass number of 65. Therefore, in the nuclear fusion of Ni according to the present invention, it is difficult to detect the nuclear fusion reaction by elemental analysis, and mass number analysis is necessary.

[0053] When hydrogen-containing metal 1 is Cu, the nuclear reaction of the isotope with mass number 64 is unknown, but the isotope with mass number 66 is expected to be converted to Zn by beta decay with a half-life of 5 minutes. The boiling point of Zn is 907°C, so it is thought that Zn will evaporate from hydrogen-containing metal 1 if cold nuclear fusion of Cu is performed at a high temperature of 900°C or higher. If this evaporation phenomenon can be used effectively, new copper elements will be constantly exposed on the surface of hydrogen-containing metal 1, and as a result, hydrogen-containing metal 1 can be efficiently consumed from the surface, making it possible to effectively use hydrogen-containing metal 1 until the very end.

[0054] In this case, it is preferable to keep the temperature of the counter electrode 1 low enough to precipitate Zn, and then precipitate and collect it on the counter electrode 1. In this case, a heat shield is not necessary for the counter electrode 1, and if there is one, it should be limited to one. A similar evaporation phenomenon can be expected for Cd and Hg, which are below Zn in the periodic table, but since the element is toxic to humans, it is most suitable to use Zn.

[0055] For the above purpose, the invention shown in FIG. 6 is designed to increase the hydrogen concentration on the surface of the hydrogen-containing metal 1 to concentrate the cold fusion reaction on the surface, and to consume the hydrogen-containing metal 1 from the surface. In addition to the LC resonant circuit for promoting cold fusion shown in FIG. 1, a DC power supply 19 is provided to apply a negative voltage to the hydrogen-containing metal 1 and irradiate it with hydrogen ions by DC gas discharge in a hydrogen atmosphere, and is switched by a switch 18. The operating voltage of the DC power supply is about 300V to 500V, and the energy of the hydrogen ions is lower than that, so the penetration depth can be considered to be about 10nm at most. If Zn is generated by nuclear fusion at such a depth, it will be easier to evaporate Zn from the surface of the hydrogen-containing metal 1, and it will have useful properties when viewed as a fuel.

[0056] Hydrogen ion irradiation has two other features. The first is the control of cold fusion output by ion current. The gas discharge pressure is almost in the intermediate flow region, which is extremely low compared to atmospheric pressure, and the hydrogen solid solution concentration at thermal equilibrium in Equation 10 is zero compared to the value at atmospheric pressure, so it becomes possible to control cold fusion reactions with hydrogen ion injection current. If 100% of the injected hydrogen ions undergo nuclear fusion, the gain in nuclear fusion reaction output compared to hydrogen gas discharge would exceed 1000 times, and extremely excellent characteristics could be expected.

[0057] Another feature is the oxidation prevention function by applying a negative voltage to the hydrogen-containing metal 1, which is a well-known method known as cathodic protection. Residual gases exist even in a vacuum, but water molecules are particularly troublesome. Water molecules are difficult to eliminate even at high temperatures and act as an oxidizer at high temperatures, so when the metal is heated to several hundred degrees Celsius or higher as in this invention, in the worst case scenario, the water molecules will oxidize the surface. Preventing this makes it possible to operate the device stably for a long period of time. Effect of the Invention

[0058] By adding inexpensive circuitry, a high-power cold fusion device can be provided. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0059] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a cold fusion promotion mechanism according to the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 shows the results of numerical calculations of the relationship between the maximum voltage applied to the capacitor and the optimum frequency when the distance between the electrodes of the capacitor is set to 10 cm for the cold fusion promotion mechanism in FIG. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 shows an example of a driving waveform of the nuclear fusion promotion power source 5 of FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 shows an embodiment in which a preliminary discharge pulse is added to FIG. [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 shows an embodiment in which the hydrogen pressure is controlled in addition to the embodiment in FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 shows an embodiment having a mechanism for promoting nuclear fusion by LC resonance and for injecting hydrogen ions into the hydrogen-containing metal 1 by DC gas discharge, as shown in FIG. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 shows an embodiment in which the cold fusion promotion mechanism of FIG. 1 is applied to a boiler. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 shows an embodiment in which the mechanism for promoting nuclear fusion by LC resonance and for injecting hydrogen ions into the hydrogen-containing metal 1 by DC gas discharge shown in FIG. 6 is applied to a boiler. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 shows an embodiment in which another nuclear fusion / heat extraction portion consisting of the hydrogen-containing metal 1 and the boiler portion 14 in FIG. 8 is prepared and placed opposite to it, one of which is used as a counter electrode. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0060] FIG. 7 shows an embodiment in which the cold fusion promotion mechanism shown in FIG. 1 is applied to a boiler. A backing plate 8 to which a hydrogen-containing metal 1 is bonded is attached to a boiler section 14. A water supply line 16 and a steam extraction line 17 are provided in the boiler section. The inside is filled with water 15, and the heat generated by cold fusion is thermally conducted through the backing plate to heat the water 15, turning it into hot water and steam, which is then used for power generation and the like through the steam extraction line 17. When Cu is used as the hydrogen-containing metal 1, higher heat extraction efficiency can be expected if it is integrated with the backing plate 8.

[0061] The hydrogen-containing metal 1 and backing plate 8 are applied with a maximum voltage of 0.78 MV or more by the fusion promotion power supply 5 and inductance 3, so the boiler section needs to be insulated. The resistivity of water is at most a few to a few tens of MΩ·cm, and at high voltages of the 1 MV level, leakage current through the water 15 becomes too large to be ignored, so insulation of the boiler section 14 is also necessary. The boiler section 14 is also the outer wall of the room temperature fusion reactor body, and mechanical strength and reliability are also required. For these reasons, a composite material of fine ceramics and stainless steel is suitable for the boiler section.

[0062] In addition to preventing the radiant heat generated by the hydrogen-containing metal 1 during cold fusion from flowing to the outer wall 13 of the fusion reactor, the thermal shield 9 also prevents high-energy electrons used to promote fusion from being irradiated to anything other than the hydrogen-containing metal 1 by covering the outer periphery of the hydrogen-containing metal 1.

[0063] The hydrogen supply line 11 introduces hydrogen into the reactor, and a mass flow controller is used to introduce hydrogen up to a specified pressure. The vacuum pump 12 is a pump for creating a vacuum inside the reactor, and a turbomolecular pump / diaphragm pump is recommended for its oil-free and simple structure. The heater 10 serves to bake during evacuation and to preheat before cold fusion.

[0064] FIG. 8 shows an embodiment in which the cold fusion boiler of FIG. 7 is equipped with a switch 18 for switching between a DC power source 19 for hydrogen ion irradiation by applying a negative voltage to the hydrogen-containing metal 1 of FIG. 6 and an LC resonator for promoting cold fusion.

[0065] FIG. 9 shows an embodiment in which another fusion / heat extraction part consisting of the hydrogen-containing metal 1 and the boiler part 14 in FIG. 8 is prepared and placed opposite to it, with one of them used as a counter electrode. If the used hydrogen-containing metal 1 can be used to recover evaporated Zn, it will be an effective use of waste materials. In this case, compared to the counter electrodes in the embodiments of FIG. 7 and FIG. 8, the recovery efficiency of Zn is also increased because it is cooled by boiler water. Also, if a fusion reaction product with a relatively long half-life is produced on the used hydrogen-containing metal 1, using it as a counter electrode can ensure a natural cooling period. [Explanation of symbols]

[0066] 1. Hydrogen-containing metals 2 Counter electrode 3. Inductor 4. Resistance 5 Nuclear fusion promotion power source 6 Fusion-enhancing pulse 7 Pre-discharge Pulse 8 Backing Plate 9. Heat Shield 10. Heater 11 Hydrogen supply line 12 Vacuum Pump 13 Furnace outer wall 14 Boiler section 15 Water (boiling water) 16 Water Supply Line 17 Steam extraction line 18 Changeover Switch 19 DC power supply

Claims

1. A nuclear fusion device which performs nuclear fusion by irradiating hydrogen-containing metals, including heavy water, with electrons having a kinetic energy of 0.78 MeV or more.

2. 2. A nuclear fusion device according to claim 1, wherein an LC circuit formed by a capacitor consisting of a hydrogen-containing metal and a counter electrode is resonated, and high-energy electrons generated in said capacitor are irradiated onto said hydrogen-containing metal.

3. In claim 2, the distance between the electrodes of the capacitor is d, the speed of light is c, and the coefficient α is a value between 0.72 and 1, and the resonant frequency of the LC resonant circuit is (c / 4d) / (1+1 / α) A nuclear fusion device comprising:

4. 3. A nuclear fusion device according to claim 2, characterized in that, when the distance between the capacitor electrodes is d and the hydrogen pressure is P, a gas discharge is caused with a Pd product of 1 Pa·m or more, and then exhaust is performed, and high-energy electrons generated in the capacitor under the resonance conditions of the LC resonator are irradiated onto the hydrogen-containing metal.

5. 3. A nuclear fusion device according to claim 2, wherein zinc, which is a nuclear fusion product, is evaporated at a temperature of 900° C. or higher and deposited on said opposing substrate.

6. 3. A nuclear fusion device according to claim 2, wherein the hydrogen-containing metal is used as a negative electrode and nuclear fusion is carried out while irradiating the hydrogen-containing metal with hydrogen ions.

7. A boiler device equipped with the nuclear fusion device according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

8. 8. A boiler apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the heat generated by the hydrogen-containing metal is conducted from a backing plate on the back side of the hydrogen-containing metal to heat water in the boiler.

9. 9. The boiler system according to claim 8, wherein the hydrogen metal is electrically insulated from the boiler, and the portion in contact with water inside the boiler is insulated.

10. A boiler system comprising the boilers according to claims 7 to 9 arranged to face each other, and one of the hydrogen-containing metals being used as a counter electrode.

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