Cold fusion device

Abstract

[Problem] To provide a cold fusion device having an output of a practical level. [Solution] A capacitor made up of a counter electrode 2 and a hydrogen-containing metal 1 to be cold-fused is subjected to LC resonance; as a result, electrons having a kinetic energy of 0.78 MeV or more are generated in the capacitor; and the hydrogen-containing metal is irradiated with these electrons to promote nuclear fusion reaction.

Description

cold fusion device

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

[0002] Cold fusion was reported by Professors Fleischman, Pons, and Jones in 1989, 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 conducted through 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 then successfully achieved nuclear fusion by irradiating Ti or Er that has absorbed deuterium with these gamma rays. They explain that the gamma rays break down heavy water into protons and neutrons, resulting in the production of helium and the transformation of metal elements, and claim that this phenomenon is not cold fusion but a new method of nuclear fusion.

[0004] Patent No. 6548102

[0005] Article by Michael Koziol published in IEEE Spectrum on August 5, 2020

[0006] The first thing that needs to be clarified is the principle of cold fusion. Many people believe that the Coulomb shielding effect dramatically increases the probability of collisions between atomic nuclei and protons (including deuterons), but this theory 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 inventors support the involvement of neutrons, positing that atomic nuclei are first excited by external energy sources such as cosmic rays. Experimental evidence suggests that cold fusion rarely produces gamma rays, and the excitation energy of excited atoms in solids is internally converted and used to generate heat or neutrons through the fusion of nearby hydrogen nuclei with electrons. Experimental evidence also suggests that neutrons are difficult to detect, and the neutrons generated fuse with other nuclei with a high probability to become excited nuclei, leading to a chain reaction of nuclear fusion, heat generation through internal conversion, and neutron generation. The energy generated by a single neutron is extremely small, even if it is said to be 10,000 times that of a chemical reaction. It is only after the chain reaction described above has progressed that heat generation can be observed. Finally, when the hydrogen, the neutron source, is lost, the cold fusion reaction and heat generation cease.

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

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

[0010] The key to increasing the power output of cold fusion is to apply high energy from the outside to a solid containing hydrogen (including isotopes) and convert as much hydrogen as possible into neutrons, and the inventors thought that electrons would be the most efficient method. 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. This is about one-third of the energy required to decompose deuterium into protons and neutrons, which is about 2.2 MeV, as described in Non-Patent Document 1. Furthermore, when using radioactive materials as the energy source, there are problems with safety and controllability because radiation is constantly emitted.

[0011] Currently, it is difficult or very expensive to obtain a DC power supply with a voltage of 0.78 MV or more, i.e., a 1 MV class power supply, so the resonance effect of an LC resonant circuit is used to provide electrons with energy of 0.78 MeV or more. 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 resistance 4, which 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 equation 1.

[0012] (Math 1) ω ＬＣ = 1 / √(LC)

[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. ＬＣ When driven at a resonant angular velocity, the voltage V applied to the capacitor is amplified to the maximum by the resonance effect.

[0014] (Math. 2) V = V ＦＡ / (ω ＬＣ RC)

[0015] Here, R is the resistance value of resistor 4, V ＦＡ is the maximum applied voltage of the nuclear fusion promotion power supply 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] (Math. 3) Q = 1 / (ω ＬＣ RC)

[0017] If this Q factor can be increased by, for example, 1 million times, and the voltage VFA of the fusion promotion power supply 5 is set to 5 V, the voltage V applied to the capacitor will be 5 million V, and the electrons emitted from the counter electrode 2 will be able to impart 5 MeV of energy to the hydrogen-containing metal 1.

[0018] However, because of the high frequency drive, in order for the emitted electrons to impart maximum energy to the hydrogen-containing metal 1, the hydrogen-containing metal 1 must be at a maximum voltage when the electrons arrive at the hydrogen-containing metal 1. In other words, the following formula 4 must be satisfied.

[0019] (Math. 4) f = (c / 4d) / ((1 / α) ± 1)

[0020] f is the frequency multiplied by 2π to give the angular velocity. c is the speed of light, and α is the value of the average speed when electrons reach the hydrogen-containing metal 1 from the counter electrode 2 in 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, i.e., 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 actually suitable for practical use. Therefore, in the present invention, the high-frequency electric field felt by the space electrons in the capacitor is in a traveling wave state.

[0021] (Math. 5) f = (c / 4d) / ((1 / α)+1)

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

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

[0024] (Math. 6) f = (c / 8d)

[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 in accordance with f determined by Equation 5, and is a value that is sufficiently feasible for commercially available RF inductors.

[0027] Figure 2 shows the results of numerical analysis of the relationship between the maximum voltage and optimal frequency applied to a capacitor composed of a hydrogen-containing metal 1 and an opposing electrode 2 when d in Equation 5 is set to 10 cm. When calculations were performed with different values ​​of d, the α value in Equation 5 did not clearly depend on d, and the α value appeared to be a pure function of the maximum voltage. When the maximum voltage was in the range of 0.78 MV to 10 MV, the α value in Equation 5 was approximately 0.8 to 1. To be on the safe side, considering the α value of 0.72 for a maximum voltage of 0.5 MV, the design should be considered with an α value between 0.72 and 1. Under the conditions for implementing the present invention, the optimal frequency was nearly saturated, which is advantageous for resonant circuit design.

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

[0029] (Math. 7) C = ε0S / d

[0030] where 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] (Math. 8) Q = (2d 2 ) / (πε0cRS) / ((1 / α)+1)

[0032] Since α can be considered to be a constant in design, the Q value is determined by the internal resistance R of the fusion promotion power supply 5, the area S of the capacitor consisting of the hydrogen-containing metal 1 and the counter electrode 2, and the distance d. In Equation 8, R = 0.001 Ω, d = 0.1 m, and S = 0.0025 m 2 (5 cm square), if α = 0.9, Q is 450,000 times, and the voltage V of the fusion promotion power supply 5 ＦＡ If the voltage is set to 3V, the capacitor will be impressed with a maximum of 1.35MV, making it possible to increase the nuclear fusion output. ２If 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, then d must be increased. However, in that case, the resonant frequency in equation 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, the formulas required for designing the device according to the present invention are Formula 1, Formula 5, and Formula 8. Formula 5 and Formula 8 are used to design the device while taking into consideration the performance of the fusion promotion power source 5 and the desired dimensions of the device, and finally the inductance L of the inductor 3 is determined by Formula 1.

[0034] So far, we have discussed the applied voltage assuming that the hydrogen in the hydrogen-containing metal 1 is light hydrogen, but in the case of deuterium, it is expected that the deuterium will split into a proton and a neutron at an applied voltage of 2.2 MV or more. Furthermore, it is expected that the deuterium will convert into two free neutrons at an applied voltage of 3 MV or more, which will lead to an increase in the output of cold fusion due to a more chain-like fusion.

[0035] In the present invention, the LCR circuit is driven under resonant conditions, which is like operating the fusion promotion power supply 5 while it is shorted, and it is impossible to drive it with 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 duty ratio for the period Tint of the fusion promotion pulse 6 and the time width TLC of the fusion promotion pulse 6 is given by the following Equation 9.

[0036] (Equation 9) (2 TLC) / Tint

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

[0038] Figure 4 shows an example of stabilizing the main fusion-promoting discharge by performing a preliminary discharge of up to 2000 V (approximately 1 to 100,000 shots) before applying the voltage of 0.78 MV or more required for fusion promotion to the capacitor formed by the hydrogen-containing metal 1 and the counter electrode 2. As mentioned above, the duty ratio of Equation 9 is small. Without the preliminary discharge, the hydrogen ion concentration immediately before the main cold fusion-promoting discharge would be lower than immediately after the discharge, resulting in an unstable discharge initiation voltage. Therefore, increasing the hydrogen ion concentration by the preliminary discharge is effective in stabilizing the cold fusion-promoting discharge. In this case, if the discharge frequency of the preliminary discharge is the same as the frequency of the cold fusion-promoting discharge (1 / (2·TLC)), the circuitry can be simplified. Furthermore, the electrons emitted during the preliminary discharge do not have enough time to reach the hydrogen-containing metal 1, thereby providing space electrons near the counter electrode 2 and creating an ideal discharge preparation state. This also has the effect of preventing electrons of the preliminary discharge energy from irradiating the hydrogen-containing metal 1, which would hinder cold fusion promotion.

[0039] 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 n Ｈ teeth

[0040] (Number 10) n Ｈ ∝ (P Ｈ２ ) １／２ exp(E / k Ｂ T)

[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, and E<0, which indicates that the solid solution of hydrogen in general metals is an endothermic reaction. In the case of Ti, TiH ２ is a chemically stable exothermic reaction with E>0, and Equation 10 is measured as the concentration of hydrogen chemically converted to TiH2 rather than as a solid solution.

[0042] To increase the power output of cold fusion, Ｈ From the viewpoint of kinetics, it is required that P Ｈ２It is important that the temperature and energy are high. Even if the temperature reaches 1000°C and cold fusion progresses, the nuclear reaction cannot be affected by the thermal energy of 0.1 eV at 1000°C; this is simply due to an increase in the hydrogen concentration in the metal.

[0043] However, in the case of a fusion-promoting discharge, in order to allow high-energy electrons to reach the hydrogen-containing metal 1 without loss in the LC circuit for fusion promotion, the hydrogen pressure P Ｈ２ In this case, the nuclear reaction would be difficult due to the concentration of hydrogen dissolved in the metal. In this situation, the mean free path λ of hydrogen must be greater than the distance d between the hydrogen-containing metal 1 and the counter electrode 2, which is the measure of nuclear fusion-enhanced discharge, and the following formula 11 holds true:

[0044] (Math. 11) d ≦ λ = k Ｂ T / (√2·σP Ｈ２ ) = k Ｂ T / (√2 πd Ｈ２ ２ P Ｈ２ )

[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 the hydrogen molecule, and σ = πd Ｈ２ ２ holds true. Ｈ２ Considering also = 0.268 nm

[0046] (Number 12) P Ｈ２ d ≦ k Ｂ T / (√2 πd Ｈ２ ２ ) = 4.325E-05・T

[0047] P Ｈ２d is a quantity called the Pd product, an important indicator of gas discharge. At room temperature of 300 K, the Pd product in Equation 12 is 0.013 Pa·m. The Pd product, which is the minimum discharge voltage of hydrogen molecules, is measured using the Paschen curve. It is known that hydrogen gas initiates gas discharge at a minimum voltage of approximately 300 V when the Pd product is approximately 1 Pa·m. Therefore, with a Pd product two orders of magnitude lower than this, the discharge initiation voltage becomes extremely high. Conversely, as the nuclear fusion reaction progresses and the temperature inside the capacitor rises, the Pd product in Equation 12 increases, enabling fusion-enhanced discharge at high hydrogen pressures. For example, when the temperature rises from room temperature of 300 K to 1000°C, the discharge pressure can be increased by approximately four times.

[0048] The above-mentioned problems are solved by the drive and hydrogen pressure control of the fusion promotion power supply 5 shown in Figure 5. This process is divided into three steps. The first is the preliminary discharge step. When the hydrogen pressure is set to a value close to the minimum voltage for gas discharge according to Paschen's law and the discharge is performed at the optimal frequency for the second fusion promotion step, the secondary electrons generated by hydrogen ions hardly move forward and remain near the opposing electrode. For example, when the capacitor is driven at 300 V with the optimal frequency and a maximum applied voltage of 1 MV, the electrons from the initial discharge move approximately 5.5 mm under vacuum conditions when exposed to 300 V, and the same distance when the voltage is lowered. Therefore, it is estimated that the maximum distance traveled per discharge is 11 mm, or approximately 10% of the distance between the capacitor electrodes. If the hydrogen pressure is then reduced to 1 / 100, approximately 1 / 100 of the original concentration of electrons can be expected to remain in the capacitor. In practice, increasing the Pd product increases the frequency of collisions between electrons and gas molecules, increasing the electron concentration and impeding electron movement, which is desirable for the present invention. Finally, it is not essential that the frequency of the preliminary discharge is the resonance frequency of the LC resonator, but what is important is that the secondary electrons generated from the counter electrode 2 are allowed to remain in the vicinity of the counter electrode 2 .

[0049] If the second step, the fusion-promoting discharge, were performed under these conditions, electrons would move in a manner similar to that of electrons in a vacuum, rather than in the Paschen gas discharge model, enabling discharge under conditions closer to Equation 5, thereby enabling irradiation of the hydrogen-containing metal 1 with high-energy electrons capable of neutron generation, etc. Furthermore, if five 300 V pulses were discharged in the preliminary discharge step, electrons would reach approximately 55 mm, or half the capacitor spacing, as calculated under vacuum conditions. However, by devising an appropriate exhaust system, it is possible to return the space electrons to the conditions modeled in the fusion-promoting discharge by diffusing them toward the counter electrode. Specifically, an exhaust port would be provided on the counter electrode 2 side for exhaust. Conversely, if an exhaust port were provided on the hydrogen-containing metal 1 side, electrons in the capacitor would reach the hydrogen-containing metal 1 during the exhaust after the preliminary discharge step, resulting in failure to irradiate the hydrogen-containing metal 1 with high-energy electrons capable of fusion promotion in the fusion-promoting discharge. Controlling the space charge within the capacitor through exhaust as described above is also an important design element of the present invention. 3, it is not unusual for a discharge to occur at a voltage of 1 MV or more, even without the preliminary discharge shown in FIG. 3, but in that case, a spark discharge occurs, and uniform electron irradiation over the entire surface of the hydrogen-containing metal 1 cannot be expected. In this respect, too, the invention shown in FIG. 5 is superior.

[0050] After the second fusion-promoting discharge ends, 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, creating a positive feedback loop for 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 decaying. Currently, hydrogen pressure is limited to atmospheric pressure, taking into account the simplicity of the equipment and the likelihood of accidents, but to further increase the power output of cold fusion, it may be necessary to increase the hydrogen pressure to 10 or 100 atmospheres.

[0051] Considering current cold fusion reactions, the hydrogen solid solution concentration in 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 conditions, the most likely reaction is for it to collide with a metal nucleus to form an isotope with a mass number one higher, and there is a very small probability that it will fuse with a hydrogen nucleus to form a deuteron. If the nucleus whose mass number has increased through fusion is stable, it will remain that way unless there is further nuclear fusion. However, 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 to 65, and then 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 the 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, and it is thought that if cold fusion of Cu is performed at a high temperature of 900°C or higher, Zn will evaporate from the hydrogen-containing metal 1. If this evaporation phenomenon can be used effectively, new copper elements will be constantly exposed on the surface of the hydrogen-containing metal 1, and as a result, the hydrogen-containing metal 1 can be efficiently consumed sequentially from the surface, making it possible to effectively utilize the 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 recover it on the counter electrode 1. In this case, a heat shield is not required for the counter electrode 1, and if any, it should be limited to one. A similar evaporation phenomenon can be expected with Cd and Hg, which are below Zn in the periodic table, but since these elements are toxic to humans, the use of Zn is the most suitable.

[0055] To achieve the above objective, the invention shown in Figure 6 was designed to increase the hydrogen concentration on the surface of the hydrogen-containing metal 1, concentrating the cold fusion reaction at the surface and consuming the hydrogen-containing metal 1 from the surface. In addition to the LC resonant circuit for promoting cold fusion shown in Figure 1, a DC power supply 19 is provided for applying a negative voltage to the hydrogen-containing metal 1 to irradiate it with hydrogen ions by DC gas discharge in a hydrogen atmosphere, and this is switched on and off by a switch 18. The operating voltage of the DC power supply is approximately 300V to 500V, and the energy of the hydrogen ions is lower than this, so the penetration depth can be considered to be approximately 10 nm at most. If Zn is produced by fusion at such a depth, evaporation of Zn from the surface of the hydrogen-containing metal 1 becomes even easier, making it useful 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 the cold fusion reaction by hydrogen ion injection current. If 100% of the injected hydrogen ions undergo nuclear fusion, the gain in fusion reaction output compared to hydrogen gas discharge would exceed 1,000 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. Therefore, when the metal is heated to temperatures of several hundred degrees Celsius or higher, as in this invention, in the worst case scenario, the water molecules can oxidize the surface. Preventing this from happening enables long-term stable operation.

[0058] The addition of inexpensive circuitry provides a high-power cold fusion device.

[0059] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a cold fusion promotion mechanism according to the present invention. Figure 2 shows the results of a numerical calculation of the relationship between the maximum voltage applied to the capacitor and the optimal frequency when the inter-electrode distance of the capacitor is 10 cm for the cold fusion promotion mechanism of Figure 1. Figure 3 shows an example of the drive waveform of the fusion promotion power supply 5 of Figure 1. Figure 4 shows an example in which a pre-discharge pulse is added to Figure 3. Figure 5 shows an example in which a pre-discharge pulse is added after controlling the hydrogen pressure to Figure 3. Figure 6 shows an example in which the cold fusion promotion mechanism of Figure 1 is combined with a mechanism for injecting hydrogen ions into the hydrogen-containing metal 1 by LC resonance and DC gas discharge. Figure 7 shows an example in which the cold fusion promotion mechanism of Figure 1 is applied to a boiler. Figure 8 shows an example in which the mechanism for injecting hydrogen ions into the hydrogen-containing metal 1 by LC resonance and DC gas discharge is applied to a boiler. Figure 9 shows an example in which another fusion / heat extraction section consisting of the hydrogen-containing metal 1 and boiler section 14 of Figure 8 is provided and placed opposite to it, with one electrode serving as a counter electrode.

[0060] Figure 7 shows an example in which the cold fusion promotion mechanism shown in Figure 1 is applied to a boiler. A backing plate 8 bonded with a hydrogen-containing metal 1 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 interior is filled with water 15, and the heat generated by cold fusion is thermally conducted through the backing plate, heating the water 15 and turning it into hot water and steam, which is then used for power generation and the like via 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 subjected to a maximum voltage of 0.78 MV or more by the fusion promotion power supply 5 and inductance 3, so the boiler section must be insulated. The resistivity of water is at most a few to several tens of MΩ·cm, and at high voltages of the 1 MV class, leakage current through the water 15 becomes significant enough to be ignored, making the boiler section 14 insulated. The boiler section 14 also forms the outer wall of the cold fusion reactor body, and is therefore required to have mechanical strength and reliability. For these reasons, a composite material of fine ceramics and stainless steel is suitable for the boiler section.

[0062] The heat shield 9 not only serves to prevent the radiant heat generated by the hydrogen-containing metal 1 during cold fusion from flowing to the outer wall 13 of the fusion reactor, but also serves to prevent high-energy electrons for promoting fusion from being irradiated onto 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 controls the introduction up to a predetermined pressure. The vacuum pump 12 creates a vacuum inside the reactor; a turbomolecular pump or diaphragm pump is recommended for its oil-free and simple configuration. The heater 10 serves to bake the reactor during evacuation and to preheat the reactor before cold fusion.

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

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

[0066] REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 hydrogen-containing metal 2 counter electrode 3 inductor 4 resistor 5 fusion promotion power supply 6 fusion promotion pulse 7 preliminary discharge pulse 8 backing plate 9 heat shield 10 heater 11 hydrogen supply line 12 vacuum pump 13 reactor outer wall 14 boiler section 15 water (hot water) 16 water supply line 17 steam extraction line 18 changeover switch 19 DC power supply

Claims

1. A nuclear fusion device characterized by resonating an LC circuit formed by a capacitor consisting of a hydrogen-containing metal containing deuterium and an opposing electrode, and irradiating the hydrogen-containing metal with high-energy electrons generated by the capacitor.

2. A nuclear fusion device according to claim 1, wherein the distance between the electrodes of the capacitor is d, the speed of light is c, 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).

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

4. A nuclear fusion device according to claim 1, characterized in that zinc, a nuclear fusion product, is evaporated at 900°C or higher and deposited on the counter electrode.

5. A nuclear fusion device according to claim 1, characterized in that 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.

6. A boiler system equipped with a nuclear fusion device according to any one of claims 1 to 5.

7. A boiler system according to claim 6, 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 the water in the boiler.

8. A boiler system according to claim 7, wherein the hydrogen-containing metal is electrically insulated from the boiler, and the portion of the boiler that comes into contact with water is insulated.

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