Recently, CHINA STAR MARKET exclusively interviewed Tan Yi, chief scientist of Startorus Fusion, to reveal the “Ten-year Engagement” of China’s commercial fusion enterprises.

As one of the top fusion R&D teams in China, Startorus Fusion is creating many records at the “Chinese speed”: building a fusion apparatus in only 279 days; verifying the feasibility of original technology in 11 months; and achieving a breakthrough in 480 kA plasma current. The NTST apparatus to be built is expected to become the world’s first native negative triangle spherical Tokamak.

The company’s original high temperature superconducting spherical Tokamak reconnection technology is rewriting the commercialization process of fusion energy, it plans to build a fusion demonstration reactor around 2030, so that the “1 dime per kilowatt hour” fusion power will come into reality, enabling China’s commercial fusion power reshape the global energy pattern.

The following is an exclusive report:

CHINA STAR MARKET Daily, April 20 (Reporter Huang Xiumei) In recent years, with the breakthrough of high temperature superconducting materials, artificial intelligence and other technologies, controllable nuclear fusion has attracted great attention from the capital market.

Shaanxi Startorus Fusion Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “Startorus Fusion”) is one of the top teams engaged in controllable nuclear fusion research and development in China. Its repeated reconnection controllable fusion technology scheme based on high temperature superconducting spherical Tokamak is also considered to be one of the most potential commercial paths.

Established in October 2021, Startorus Fusion aims at building the first commercial controllable fusion reactor in China, focusing on miniaturization, commercialization and rapid iteration of controllable fusion energy apparatus. Its core team members all graduated from the Department of Engineering Physics of Tsinghua University and have been engaged in controllable nuclear fusion research for more than 20 years.

A reporter from CHINA STAR MARKET recently interviewed Tan Yi, chief scientist of Startorus Fusion, in order to understand the new progress of the company’s controllable nuclear fusion engineering verification and the commercialization stage of domestic controllable nuclear fusion.

(Photo: Tan Yi, Founder and Chief Scientist of Startorus Fusion; Doctor of Nuclear Science and Technology, Tsinghua University; and Associate Professor of the Department of Engineering Physics, Tsinghua University)

Controllable Nuclear Fusion Enters a New Stage, Verifying Engineering Feasibility

The engineering verification of controllable nuclear fusion is an innovative work without any past experience for reference.

Tan Yi said frankly, “From a theoretical and logical point of view, every fusion energy technology route adopted by various research institutes or enterprises seems to be reasonable.  But whether fusion can be made, or whether it can be verified by engineering, there is a risk that it may not go through.”

Therefore, the development of fusion energy requires the construction of apparatus and a large number of experimental verifications. Based on more than 20 years of engineering construction and experimental research in the Department of Engineering Physics of Tsinghua University, SUNIST-2, jointly built by Startorus Fusion and Tsinghua University, has accumulated a large number of technical solutions and experimental data support.

Startorus Fusion chooses the repeated reconnection technology route, which uses magnetic confinement to control the plasma and let it float in the vacuum chamber but not contact the inner wall of the vacuum chamber. At the same time, the plasma is heated by magnetic reconnection.

Unlike other technical routes, the route chosen by Startorus Fusion changes the traditional idea of “maintaining high temperature plasma for a long time”, but like an internal combustion engine, it uses short pulses to continuously and rapidly “ignite” the plasma and does work back and forth.

“SUNIST-2 is only a preliminary verification of the feasibility of the magnetic reconnection scheme.” Tan Yi said, “The strategic plan of Startorus Fusion is: preliminarily verify the feasibility of the scheme in 2024 and build a new generation of apparatus CTRFR-1 from 2024 to 2027. CTRFR-1 is configured to thoroughly verify the feasibility of the project, and then the construction of a commercial demonstration reactor can begin.”

Up to now, Startorus Fusion is in such a stage: the preliminary feasibility verification of SUNIST-2 has been completed, and the construction preparation of the next generation apparatus CTRFR-1 is under way. At this stage, the company will rapidly build a negative triangle spherical Tokamak NTST.

 Negative Triangle Spherical Tokamak NTST by Startorus Fusion 

From the point of view of engineering and technology, the magnet manufacturing process, vacuum chamber structure and cryogenic cooling form of NTST are very close to those of CTRFR-1. Through the rapid construction and operation of NTST, Startorus Fusion can verify the technology of fusion apparatus related magnets, vacuum, low temperature, power supply, control and heat removal, and prepare for the construction of CTRFR-1.

In addition to these engineering and technical implications, the apparatus is expected to become the world’s first native negative triangle spherical Tokamak and explore more possibilities.

Tan Yi said that in order to truly realize the safe availability of controllable nuclear fusion energy, it is necessary to go through various stages, such as scientific feasibility verification, engineering feasibility verification, commercial demonstration, and so on, until the commercial demonstration reactor is successful, large-scale production and scenario adaptation can be carried out.

Therefore, the goal of CTRFR-1, a complete engineering feasibility verification apparatus, is very stringent, requiring to heat plasma to 100 million degrees Celsius, which is the reaction temperature of deuterium-tritium fusion. CTRFR-1 needs to stabilize and confine the plasma on the basis of this extremely high temperature.

Reduce the Cost of Fusion Reactor: Key to Realize Controllable Nuclear Fusion Electric Energy

“Making Tokamak smaller” and “Making Tokamak simple again” are the starting points for reducing the cost of fusion reactors by Startorus Fusion.

In Tan Yi’s view, because of the frontier and great prospects of controllable nuclear fusion research, all countries tend to build larger fusion apparatus, which is quite a “great power competition” situation.

“In the ‘great power competition’ of controllable nuclear fusion, domestic and foreign countries are running side by side. What we are fighting for now is who can land better, faster and in a more cost-effective way”. Tan Yi explained, “China has advantages in this respect. We have a perfect industrial chain, strong engineering landing ability, and a large number of talents in the fields of electronics, machinery and AI.”

However, for commercial teams such as Startorus Fusion, how to truly realize the commercialization of fusion reactors is its fundamental purpose. Tan Yi said that the key to achieving low-cost controllable nuclear fusion power generation is to reduce the cost of experimental apparatus through technological progress.

In recent years, with the application of high temperature superconducting magnets and AI in plasma control, it provides a strong support for the miniaturization and rapid iteration of controllable nuclear fusion apparatus, and provides a new direction for the development of controllable nuclear fusion.

“The final size of Startorus Fusion Reactor is about six meters in diameter and ten meters in height. Fusion reactors of this size can be adapted to richer use scenarios”. Tan Yi mentioned, “For example, it can be provided on medium and large cruise ships and spacecraft, it can become the power supply room of AI data center, or it can generate electricity for a medium-sized residential area/community. Its final electricity cost is expected to be as low as 1 dime per kilowatt hour.”

“Since the fuel cost of controlled nuclear fusion power is almost negligible, the vast majority of its power generation costs ultimately come from the cost of fusion reactors and their maintenance costs”. Tan Yi further said, “Therefore, the size and efficiency of the fusion reactor is the key to determine the final commercialization of controllable nuclear fusion.”

It Is Planned to Carry out the Construction of Commercial Demonstration Reactor as Early as the End of 2027.

As far as Startorus Fusion is concerned, the cost of SUNIST-2 is about 100 million yuan, and the budget for manufacturing the next generation apparatus CTRFR-1 is about 1 billion yuan. How to improve the hematopoietic capacity of enterprises themselves and how to attract more investment to the outside world are the urgent issues to be tackled for Startorus Fusion in the future.

Up to now, Startorus Fusion has received two rounds of financing.

In June 2022, Startorus Fusion received angel round investment from Shunwei Capital, Casstar, KunLun Capital, Telescope Investment, MSA Capital, and Unity Ventures. In March 2024, Startorus Fusion completed Pre-A round financing, which was led by Shanghai Intellectual Property Fund and followed by Huacheng Venture Capital, MSA Capital and Casstar.

In the research process of controllable nuclear fusion, Startorus Fusion has also achieved a number of outstanding achievements at an alarming rate.

From the initial empty factory building without doors to the completion of the construction and successful operation of the entire fusion apparatus, it took only 279 days for Startorus Fusion, which, in Tan Yi’s view, may be the fastest known speed in the world.

Only 11 months later, Startorus Fusion successfully verified the feasibility of the original repeated reconnection scheme.

From the initial lighting of the first plasma to the realization of 100 ka, 220 ka, or even 480 A plasma current, it is also the process of Startorus Fusion gradually possessing powerful plasma control. By combining engineering with self-developed AI algorithms, the team further enhanced the ability of the apparatus to control plasma in complex situations.

A large number of self-developed instruments and equipment have also moved from the laboratory of Startorus Fusion to the stage of commercial application and promotion, including: pulse power supply, high-bandwidth isolation amplifier, high-performance analog integrator, extreme physics integrated tester and other products that have been sold to universities and research institutes, so that Startorus Fusion has its own “hematopoietic” capability.

(Photo: Derivative high-bandwidth isolation amplifier developed by Startorus Fusion)

In 2024, the new plant of Startorus Fusion was completed, which is dedicated to the research and development of high temperature superconducting magnets.

Up to now, Startorus Fusion has carried out a large number of experiments and iterations in the analysis, design and technical manufacturing of the magnet, which has the ability and successful experience of the whole process of high temperature superconducting magnet, and will be applied to the construction of CTRFR-1 apparatus.

It is worth mentioning that there was an interesting “50-year law” for everyone’s expectation that “controllable nuclear fusion really enters people’s lives”. That is to say, at any historical node, when controllable nuclear fusion will be realized, the answer of the scientific community will always be “the next 50 years”. Now, this situation is changing quietly.

From the perspective of time planning, Startorus Fusion will start the construction of commercial demonstration reactor at the end of 2027 or the beginning of 2028, and will complete it in 3-5 years. Its goal is to demonstrate a fusion reactor that can output electric energy around 2030.

Judging from the current stage progress of Startorus Fusion, it is possible for people to see a key breakthrough in controllable nuclear fusion within ten years. “It is expected that the 50-year law of controllable nuclear fusion will be completely changed by the Ten-year Engagement of Startorus Fusion”, Tan Yi said.