An anonymous reader writes "The italian economic journal "Il sole 24 ore" published an article about a successful cold fusionexperiment performed by Yoshiaki Arata in Japan. They seems to have pumped high pressure deutherium gas in a nanometric matrix of palladium and zyrcon oxide. The experiments generates a considerable amount of energy and they found the presence of Elium-4 in the matrix ( as sign of the fusion ). I was not able to find other articles about this but the journal is very authoritative in Italy. Google translations are also available."
Any local Italians able to give us the skinny on this? I've heard from other sources that the journal is supposedly reputable in Italy, but if the Slashdot poster isn't just incorrect in calling it an economic journal, what the hell is going on here, and when are we could to see some proper peer-reviewed studies on this?
It's reputable, but not, obviously, a peer-reviewed publication (nor scientific in focus).
The result is very new and this could explain the absence of articles on actual scientific journals, but it's still a bad sign.
I've found a few other sources, but nothing peer reviewed as of yet. It could just be that people are being very cautious considering what happened last time someone cried cold fusion, but I'm rather skeptical as well. If he did, in fact, manage cold fusion, I'd expect it to show up in Nature or Science, not just a few regular journals.
Spin Echo wrote:I've found a few other sources, but nothing peer reviewed as of yet. It could just be that people are being very cautious considering what happened last time someone cried cold fusion, but I'm rather skeptical as well. If he did, in fact, manage cold fusion, I'd expect it to show up in Nature or Science, not just a few regular journals.
I think before it shows up in Nature, the reviewers are likely to request that the experiment be duplicated elsewhere before it turns up in Nature.
For now, I guess the paper will be stuck in the Archive.
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Spin Echo wrote:I've found a few other sources, but nothing peer reviewed as of yet. It could just be that people are being very cautious considering what happened last time someone cried cold fusion, but I'm rather skeptical as well. If he did, in fact, manage cold fusion, I'd expect it to show up in Nature or Science, not just a few regular journals.
I think before it shows up in Nature, the reviewers are likely to request that the experiment be duplicated elsewhere before it turns up in Nature.
Err.. Yeah, that's what I meant. It could take a while for the paper to work it's way through the peer reviewed system because of the previous cold fusion debacle, but I'd expect it to show up in some high impact factor journal eventually if it's true.
Not that surprising. Cold fusion does work, its just that it has so much bullshit around it that the real thing (I don't know about electron-tricked fusion but muon catalysed fusion does work) is barely able to get a breath of air in the virulent storm of it.
The sad thing is that this does not automatically mean the energy woes of the world is solved. Just because it happens doesn't mean that it produces energy rather then takes energy.
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Fairly sure it was stated in the articles that it's supposed to have created more energy than it's produced. Of course, these are only small scale experiments. Even if he's on the right track, it could take decades until whatever process he's using can be refined for use in a power station, assuming this isn't a crock like last time.
One thing to consider as well is that if they are using exotic materials to make their machine, is that although the machine produces a net energy gain while in use, there will be fixed energy costs for producing the machines. It could well be that the costs of refining and producing the parts exceed the energy gains over the lifetime of the parts.
A few details about how this is supposed to work here
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Steel wrote:One thing to consider as well is that if they are using exotic materials to make their machine, is that although the machine produces a net energy gain while in use, there will be fixed energy costs for producing the machines. It could well be that the costs of refining and producing the parts exceed the energy gains over the lifetime of the parts.
Yeah. It is going to do no good if they end up with an even more expensive and complex version of those RTGs on billion dollar space probes that can barely power an airconditioner.
I have to tell you something everything I wrote above is a lie.
Sarevok wrote:It is going to do no good if they end up with an even more expensive and complex version of those RTGs on billion dollar space probes that can barely power an airconditioner.
RTGs are actually very cheap and simple, compared with the solar panels, electronics and engines. They are, basically, just a box with a nuclear isotope inside. And, frankly, I'd love to have an RTG in the house which could power my refridgerator or AC for 80 years
I can easily live without electricity as long as my fridge is running, and if I have enough left over to occasionally power the cooker - and a medium-sized RTG could easily do that, giving you 470 watts for the first 23 years. Enough to run a large fridge and charge batteries for electric cooking.
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PeZook wrote:RTGs are actually very cheap and simple, compared with the solar panels, electronics and engines. They are, basically, just a box with a nuclear isotope inside. And, frankly, I'd love to have an RTG in the house which could power my refridgerator or AC for 80 years
I can easily live without electricity as long as my fridge is running, and if I have enough left over to occasionally power the cooker - and a medium-sized RTG could easily do that, giving you 470 watts for the first 23 years. Enough to run a large fridge and charge batteries for electric cooking.
Call me cynical, but what company is stopping you from getting one?
Sarevok wrote:It is going to do no good if they end up with an even more expensive and complex version of those RTGs on billion dollar space probes that can barely power an airconditioner.
RTGs are actually very cheap and simple, compared with the solar panels, electronics and engines. They are, basically, just a box with a nuclear isotope inside. And, frankly, I'd love to have an RTG in the house which could power my refridgerator or AC for 80 years
I can easily live without electricity as long as my fridge is running, and if I have enough left over to occasionally power the cooker - and a medium-sized RTG could easily do that, giving you 470 watts for the first 23 years. Enough to run a large fridge and charge batteries for electric cooking.
I'd be much more interested in seeing that kind of technology for vehicles.
"I just finished refueling my vehicle."
"Oh, how much?"
"Cheaped out and only went for another twenty years."
Call me cynical, but what company is stopping you from getting one?
Homeland Security, I bet.
I hardly think nuclear isotopes are easy to get, and I'd imagine they would probably be illegal.
And dangerous as hell without proper care. In the hand of trained engineers, RTG's are safe but there is nothing in the world that can withstand the abuse of a moronic user. NOTHING!
Also, we are talking about highly radioactive materials here. If there is faulty unit, highly radioactive isotopes can escape.
Plus the typical fuel for RTG's is Plutonium 238. It has to be bred (artificially made by neutron radiation) and it is very expensive to do. NASA right now is moving towards solar panels because they can't get a new supply of the stuff.
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If RTG's became widespread, everyone could have an electric car with a hookup in their garage. Better than making the thing mobile.
Why do you need a RTG to have an electric car? Why can't we have electric cars with the power supply houses usually receive now?
Because nuclear cars would just be so fucking cool.
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