HK1241647B - Systems and methods for merging and compressing compact tori - Google Patents

Description

Systems and methods for merging and compressing compact rings

Technical Field

The embodiments described herein relate generally to pulsed plasma systems, and more particularly, to systems and methods that facilitate merging and compressing compact rings with excellent stability, significantly reduced losses, and increased efficiency.

Background Art

The field-reversed configuration (FRC) belongs to a class of magnetic plasma confinement topologies known as compact torus. It exhibits a predominantly poloidal magnetic field and has zero or small self-generated torus fields (see M. Tuszewski, Nucl. Fusion 28, 2033 (1988)). The appeal of this configuration lies in its simple geometry, which is easy to construct and maintain; a naturally unconfined divertor that facilitates energy extraction and ash removal; and a very high average (or external) β (β is the ratio of the average plasma pressure within the FRC to the average magnetic field pressure), which translates to high power density. The β metric is also an excellent measure of magnetic efficiency. High average β values, such as those close to 1, represent efficient use of the deployed magnetic energy and are therefore essential for optimal economical operation. High average β also largely enables the use of neutron-free nuclear fuels such as D- ^He₃ and ^pB₁₁₁ .

The traditional method of forming FRCs uses the field-reversal theta pinch technique to generate a hot, high-density plasma (see A.L. Hoffman and J.T. Slough, Nucl. Fusion 33, 27 (1993)). A variation on this is the translational capture method, in which the plasma generated in the theta pinch "source" is ejected more or less immediately from the formation region and into the confinement chamber. The translating plasma mass is then captured between two strong mirrors at the ends of the confinement chamber (see, for example, H. Himura, S. Okada, S. Sugimoto, and S. Goto, Phys. Plasmas 2, 191 (1995)). Once in the confinement chamber, various heating and current drive methods can be applied, such as beam injection (neutral or neutralized), rotating magnetic fields, RF or ohmic heating, etc. This separation of source and confinement functions provides a key engineering advantage for potential future fusion reactors. FRCs have been shown to be very robust and resilient to dynamic formation, translation, and violent capture events. In addition, they show a tendency to exhibit a preferred plasma state (see, for example, H.Y. Guo, A.L. Hoffman, K.E. Miller, and L.C. Steinhauer, Phys. Rev. Lett. 92, 245001 (2004)). In the past decade, significant progress has been made in developing other FRC formation methods: merging spherical marks with counter-rotating helices (see, for example, Y. Ono, M. Inomoto, Y. Ueda, T. Matsuyama, and T. Okazaki, Nucl. Fusion 39, 2001 (1999)), and by driving the current with a rotating magnetic field (RMF) (see, for example, I.R. Jones, Phys. Plasmas 6, 1950 (1999)), which also provides additional stability.

The FRC consists of a loop of closed field lines inside the dividing line and a ring-like edge layer on the open field lines only outside the dividing line. The edge layer coalesces into a jet that exceeds the length of the FRC, providing a natural divertor. The FRC topology is consistent with that of field-reversal mirror plasmas. However, a significant difference is that FRC plasmas can have an internal β of about 10. The inherently low internal magnetic field provides a certain local dynamical population of particles, i.e., particles with large Larmor radii - comparable to the small radius of the FRC. These strong dynamical effects appear to contribute, at least in part, to the overall stability of past and present FRCs, such as those produced in recent collisional merger experiments.

The collisional merging technique proposed long ago (see, for example, D.R. Wells, Phys. Fluids 9, 1010 (1966)) has been significantly further developed: two plasmons (e.g., two compact rings) are simultaneously generated at two separate theta pinches at opposite ends of a confinement chamber and accelerated toward each other at high speeds; they then collide and merge at the center of the confinement chamber to form a composite FRC. In the construction and successful operation of one of the largest FRC experiments to date, a conventional collisional merging method was shown to produce stable, long-lived, high-flux, high-temperature FRCs (see, for example, M. Binderbauer, H.Y. Guo, M. Tuszewski et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 105, 045003 (2010), which is incorporated herein by reference). In a related experiment, the same research group combined a collisional merger technique with simultaneous axial acceleration and radial compression to produce a high-density transient plasma in a central compression chamber (see V. Bystritskii, M. Anderson, M. Binderbauer et al., Paper P1-1, IEEE PPPS 2013, San Francisco, CA (hereinafter “Bystritskii”), which is incorporated herein by reference). This latter experiment reported in Bystritskii utilized numerous acceleration and compression stages prior to the final collisional merger and represents a precursor concept to the system subject to this patent application.

In contrast to the embodiments described here, the precursor system described in Bystritskii is characterized by the use of active fast magnetic coils to simultaneously compress and accelerate the compact ring within the same stage. Five such stages are arranged on either side of a central compression chamber before magnetically compressing the merged compact ring. Although the precursor experiments achieved impressive performance, they exhibited the following drawbacks: (1) simultaneous compression and acceleration resulted in inefficient use of the drive energy allocated for magnetic compression due to timing mismatches; (2) temperature and density decreased due to plasma expansion during transitions between sections; and (3) abrupt transitions between adjacent sections resulted in significant losses due to shock wave generation and plasma wall contact.

In addition to the fundamental challenge of stability, pulsed fusion concepts in the intermediate-density regime will have to address adequate transport timescales, efficient driver, repetition rate capability, and appropriate final target conditions. While precursor systems have successfully achieved stable single discharges under favorable target conditions, the collective losses between formation and final target parameters (currently around 90% for energy, flux, and particles) and the coupling efficiency between the driver and plasma (currently around 10-15%) need to be significantly improved.

In view of the foregoing, it is therefore desirable to provide improved systems and methods for pulsed fusion concepts that facilitate significantly reduced translational and compressional losses and increased driver efficiency.

Summary of the Invention

The present embodiments provided herein relate to systems and methods that facilitate merging and compressing compact rings with excellent stability, significantly reduced translational and compression losses, and increased coupling efficiency between the driver and the plasma. Such systems and methods provide access to a variety of applications including compact neutron sources (for medical isotope production, nuclear waste remediation, materials research, neutron radiography and tomography), compact photon sources (for chemical production and processing), mass separation and enrichment systems, and fusion for future power generation and reactor cores for fusion propulsion systems.

The systems and methods described herein are based on the application of successive axially symmetric acceleration and adiabatic compression stages to accelerate and heat two compact rings towards each other and ultimately collide and rapidly magnetically compress the compact rings within a central compression chamber.

In certain embodiments, a system for merging and compressing compact rings comprises a staged, symmetrical sequence: compact ring formation, axial acceleration via fast active magnetic coils, passive adiabatic compression with the aid of a tapered, converging flux retainer, and final merging and rapid magnetic compression of the compact rings in a central compression chamber. The intermediate steps of sufficient axial acceleration followed by adiabatic compression can be repeated multiple times to achieve sufficient target conditions before merging and final compression. In this manner, reactors can be implemented by adding additional components to the system.

Preferably, the forming and acceleration stages or sections and the central compression chamber are preferably cylindrical in shape, wherein the walls are formed of a non-conductive or insulating material such as, for example, ceramic. The compression stage or section is preferably frusto-conical in shape, wherein the walls are formed of a conductive material such as, for example, metal.

The forming section, acceleration section, and compression chamber include a modular pulsed power system that drives fast active magnetic coils, in addition to a magnetic bias field (DC guide field) supplied by slow coils. The pulsed power system enables the compact ring to be formed in situ within the forming section, accelerated and injected (statically formed) into the first compression section, accelerated in the acceleration section and injected into the next compression section, and so on, and then magnetically compressed within the compression chamber. A system of slow or DC magnetic coils positioned throughout and along the axis of the system provides an axial magnetic guide field to properly center the compact ring as it translates through the section toward the mid-plane of the central compression chamber.

Alternatively, the modular pulse power system forming part can also drive the fast active magnetic coils in such a way that a compact ring is formed and accelerated simultaneously (=dynamic formation).

The systems and methods described herein deploy FRC in the highest-beta plasma known in magnetic confinement to provide a starting configuration. Further passive and active compression builds on this highly efficient magnetic topology. The process of using axial acceleration via an active fast magnet section, followed by adiabatic compression in a simple flux-contained conical section, provides the most efficient energy transfer with minimal complexity in pulsed power circuits. Furthermore, these basic building blocks can be sequenced to achieve the added advantage of an inherently favorable compression ratio, namely, Δp∝R ⁴ .

In another embodiment, the system is configured to deploy a spheromak rather than an FRC initiator plasma.

In another embodiment, the system comprises a staged asymmetric sequence from a single side of a central compression chamber, comprising: compact ring formation, axial acceleration by fast active magnetic coils, passive adiabatic compression with the aid of a conical converging flux retainer, and final merging of the compact rings and final fast magnetic compression in the central compression chamber. Such an asymmetric system would include a reflector or rebound cone positioned adjacent the other side of the central compression.

In yet another embodiment, the system includes a thin cylindrical shell or liner constructed of a conductive material such as, for example, metal, for rapid liner compression within a central compression chamber.

Other systems, methods, features, and advantages of the example embodiments will be apparent and will become apparent to one with skill in the art upon examination of the following drawings and detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate presently preferred embodiments, and together with the general description given above and the detailed description of the preferred embodiments given below, serve to explain and teach the principles of the invention.

FIG1 illustrates the basic layout of a system for forming, accelerating, adiabatically compressing, merging and finally magnetically compressing a compact ring.

FIG2 illustrates a schematic diagram of components of a pulsed power system for forming and accelerating a portion.

FIG3 illustrates an isometric view of the individual pulse power formation and acceleration sleds.

FIG4 illustrates an isometric view of the forming and accelerating tube assembly.

FIG5 illustrates the basic layout of an alternative embodiment of an asymmetric system for forming, accelerating, adiabatically compressing, merging, and finally magnetically compressing a compact ring.

6 illustrates a detailed view of the system shown in FIG. 1 , modified to include a shell or liner positioned within the central compression chamber for rapid liner compression within the central compression chamber.

It should be noted that the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale, and for illustrative purposes, elements of similar structure or function are generally represented by similar reference numerals. It should also be noted that the drawings are intended only to facilitate the description of the various embodiments described herein. The drawings do not necessarily describe every aspect of the teachings disclosed herein and do not limit the scope of the claims.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present embodiments provided herein relate to systems and methods that facilitate merging and compressing compact rings with excellent stability, significantly reduced translational and compression losses, and increased coupling efficiency between the driver and the plasma. Such systems and methods provide access to a variety of applications including compact neutron sources (for medical isotope production, nuclear waste remediation, materials research, neutron radiography and tomography), compact photon sources (for chemical production and processing), mass separation and enrichment systems, and fusion for future power generation and reactor cores for fusion propulsion systems.

The systems and methods described herein are based on the application of successive axially symmetric acceleration and adiabatic compression stages to heat two compact rings and accelerate them toward each other, ultimately colliding and rapidly magnetically compressing the compact rings within a central compression chamber. FIG1 illustrates the basic layout of a system 10 for forming, accelerating, adiabatically compressing, merging, and ultimately magnetically compressing the compact rings.

As depicted, the system comprises a staged, symmetrical sequence of compact ring formation in forming sections 12N and 12S, axial acceleration through sections 12N, 12S, 16N, and 16S by fast active magnetic coils 32N, 32S, 36N, and 36S, passive adiabatic compression with the aid of tapered converging flux retainers in sections 14N, 14S, 18N, and 18S, and finally merging of the compact ring and final rapid magnetic compression in central compression chamber 20 by fast active magnetic coils 40. As illustrated, the intermediate steps of sufficient axial acceleration followed by adiabatic compression can be repeated multiple times to achieve sufficient target conditions before merging and final compression. In this manner, a reactor can be realized by adding additional sections to the depicted system.

As depicted, the forming and acceleration stages or sections 12N, 12S, 16N, and 16S and the central compression chamber 20 are preferably cylindrical in shape with walls formed of a non-conductive or insulating material such as, for example, ceramic. The compression stages or sections 14N, 14S, 18N, and 18S are preferably frusto-conical in shape with walls formed of a conductive material such as, for example, metal.

The forming sections 12N and 12S, the accelerating sections 16N and 16S, and the compression chamber 20 include a modular pulsed power system that drives fast active magnetic coils 32N, 32S, 36N, 36S, and 40, in addition to a magnetic bias field (DC guide field) supplied by a slow passive coil 30. The pulsed power system enables the compact ring to be formed in situ within the forming sections 12N and 12S, accelerated and injected (=statically formed) into the first compression section 14N and 14S, accelerated in the accelerating section 16N and 16S and injected into the next compression section 18N and 18S, and so on, and then magnetically compressed in the compression chamber 20. The slow passive magnetic coil system 30, which is positioned throughout and along the axis of the system, provides an axial magnetic guide field to properly center the compact ring.

Alternatively, the modular pulse power system forming part can also drive the fast magnetic coils in such a way that a compact ring is formed and accelerated simultaneously (=dynamic forming).

The systems and methods described herein deploy FRC in the highest-beta plasma known in magnetic confinement to provide a starting configuration. Further passive and active compression builds on this highly efficient magnetic topology. The process of using axial acceleration via an active fast magnet section, followed by adiabatic compression in a simple flux-contained conical section, provides the most efficient energy transfer with minimal complexity in pulsed power circuits. Furthermore, these basic building blocks can be sequenced to achieve the added advantage of an inherently favorable compression ratio, namely, Δp∝R ⁴ .

Based on experimental and theoretical studies to date, precursor experiments described by Bystritskii using FRC initiator plasmas achieved densities of approximately 10 ¹⁷ cm ^-3 at 1 keV. It is estimated that the embodiments proposed herein achieve densities of approximately 10 ¹⁸ cm ^-3 at 1 keV, while the addition of additional stages to the central chamber and fast magnetic coils, along with appropriate upgrades, could yield final densities of approximately 10 ¹⁸ cm ^-3 under fully Lawson conditions.

In another embodiment, the system is configured to deploy a spheromak rather than an FRC initiator plasma.

In another embodiment, the system comprises a staged asymmetric sequence from a single side of a central compression chamber, comprising: compact ring formation, axial acceleration by fast active magnetic coils, passive adiabatic compression with the aid of a conical converging flux retainer, and final merging of the compact rings and final fast magnetic compression in the central compression chamber. Such an asymmetric system would include a reflector or rebound cone.

In yet another embodiment, the system includes a thin cylindrical shell or liner constructed of a conductive material such as, for example, metal, for rapid liner compression within a central compression chamber.

Current fusion concepts focus on either the steady-state or ultrashort pulse regimes. Both approaches require significant capital investment: in steady-state magnetic fusion, large superconducting magnets and auxiliary heating/current drive technologies incur high costs; in the inertial regime, high driver costs dominate due to the large energy delivery on nanosecond timescales. The embodiments proposed herein are characterized by compact size and submillisecond timescales. This results in a regime with relaxed peak power requirements and attractive intermediate timescales.

1 , a system 10 for merging and compressing compact annular plasmas includes a central compression chamber 20 and a pair of northern and southern diametrically opposed compact annular forming sections 12N and 12S. The first and second forming sections 12N and 12S include a modular forming and acceleration system 120 (discussed in detail below with reference to FIGs. 2-4 ) for generating first and second compact plasma annuli and axially accelerating and translating the compact annuli toward a midplane of the compression chamber 20.

As depicted, the system 10 also includes a first pair of north and south diametrically opposed compression sections 14N and 14S coupled at a first end to the outlet ends of the north and south forming sections 12N and 12S. The north and south compression sections 14N and 14S are configured to adiabatically compress the compact ring as it traverses the north and south compression sections 14N and 14S toward the mid-plane of the compression chamber 20.

As depicted, the system 10 also includes a pair of northern and southern diametrically opposed acceleration sections 16N and 16S coupled at a first end to the second ends of the first pair of northern and southern compression sections 14N and 14S. The northern and southern acceleration sections 16N and 16S comprise a modular acceleration system (discussed below with respect to Figures 2-4) for axially accelerating and translating the compact ring toward the mid-plane of the compression chamber 20.

As further depicted, the system 10 also includes a second pair of northern and southern radially opposed compression sections 18N and 18S, which are coupled on a first end to the second ends of the northern and southern acceleration sections 16N and 16S and on a second end to the radially opposed first and second ends of the compression chamber, the second pair of northern and southern compression sections 18N and 18S being configured to adiabatically compress the compact ring as the compact ring traverses the second pair of northern and southern compression sections 18N and 18S toward a mid-plane of the compression chamber 20.

The compression chamber includes a modular compression system configured to magnetically compress the compacting rings upon collision and merging.

As depicted, the north and south forming sections 12N and 12S, the north and south acceleration sections 16N and 16S, and the compression chamber 20 are cylindrical in shape. The diameters of the north and south acceleration sections 16N and 16S are smaller than the diameters of the north and south forming sections 12N and 12S, while the diameter of the compression chamber 20 is comparable to the diameters of the north and south acceleration sections 16N, 16S.

The first and second pairs of northern and southern compression sections 14N, 14S, 18N and 18S are frustoconical in shape with a larger diameter at a first end than at a second end to enable a transition in the overall diameter of the system 10 from the forming sections 12N and 12S to the acceleration sections 16N and 16S to the compression chamber 20. As depicted, the northern and southern forming sections 12N and 12S, the first pair of northern and southern compression sections 14N and 14S, the northern and southern acceleration sections 16N and 16S, and the second pair of northern and southern compression sections 18N and 18S are axially symmetrical.

As depicted, a first and second plurality of active magnetic coils 32N and 32 are arranged around and axially along the northern and southern forming portions 12N and 12S, a third and fourth plurality of active magnetic coils 36N and 36S are arranged around and axially along the northern and southern acceleration portions 16N and 16S, and a fifth plurality of active magnetic coils 40 are arranged around and axially along the compression chamber 20.

Compression sections 14N, 14S, 18N and 18S are preferably formed of a conductive material such as, for example, metal, while central compression chamber 20 and forming acceleration sections 12N, 12S, 16N and 16S are preferably formed of a non-conductive or insulating material such as, for example, ceramic.

As depicted, a plurality of DC magnetic coils 30 are arranged around and axially along the central compression chamber 20 and forming, compression and acceleration sections 12N, 12S, 14N, 14S, 16N, 16S, 18N and 18S to form a bias or DC guide field within and extending axially through the central compression chamber and forming, compression and acceleration sections.

2-4 is configured to implement a staged, symmetrical sequence of compact loop formation in the north and south forming sections 12N and 12S by the active magnetic coils 32N and 32S, axial acceleration in the north and south accelerating sections 16N and 16S by the active magnetic coils 36N and 36S, and compression in the compression chamber 20 by the active magnetic coils 40. The trigger control and switching system 120 is configured to synchronize compact loop formation and acceleration in the north and south forming sections 12N and 12S, compact loop acceleration in the north and south accelerating sections 16N and 16S, and compact loop merging and compression in the compression chamber 20.

Turning to Figures 2-4 , individual pulsed power systems 120 are present, corresponding to and powering individual magnets in the first, second, third, fourth, and fifth plurality of active magnets 32N, 32S, 36N, 36S, and 40 in the forming sections 12N and 12S, the acceleration sections 16N and 16S, and the compression chamber 20. In the forming sections, the pulsed power systems 120 operate on a modified theta pinch principle to form a compact ring. Figures 2-4 illustrate the main building blocks and arrangement of the pulsed power system 120. The pulsed power system 120 consists of a modular pulsed power arrangement comprised of individual units (=slides) 122, each of which activates a subset of coils 132 of a ribbon assembly 130 (=ribbon) wrapped around a section of tube 140. Each slide 122 is composed of a capacitor 121, an inductor 123, a fast, high-current switch 125, and an associated trigger 124 and dump circuit 126. Coordinated operation of these components is achieved via state-of-the-art triggering and control systems 124 and 126, which allow for synchronized timing between the pulsed power system 120 on each of the forming sections 12N and 12S, the acceleration sections 16N and 16S, and the compression chamber 20, and minimize switching jitter to tens of nanoseconds. The advantage of this modular design is its flexible operation. In the forming sections 12N and 12S, the FRC can be formed in situ and then accelerated and injected (static formation) or formed and accelerated simultaneously (dynamic formation).

In operation, a DC guide field is generated by the passive coil 30 within and extending axially through the compression chamber 20, the forming sections 12N and 12S, the accelerating sections 16N and 16S, and the compression sections 14N, 14S, 18N, and 18S. Then, in a staged, symmetrical sequence, compact rings are formed within the forming sections 12N and 12S and the accelerating sections 16N and 16S and accelerated toward the midplane of the central chamber 20, passively adiabatically compressed within the compression sections 14N, 14S, 18N, and 18S, and merged and magnetically compressed within the central chamber 20. These steps of forming, accelerating, and compressing the compact rings cause the compact rings to collide and merge within the central chamber 20.

The compact ring is formed and accelerated by energizing active magnetic coils 32N and 32S surrounding and extending axially along forming portions 12N and 12S, further accelerated by energizing active magnetic coils 35N and 36S surrounding and extending axially along accelerating portion 16N, and compressed by energizing active magnetic coils 40 surrounding and extending axially along compression chamber 20. The steps of forming, accelerating, and compressing the compact ring also include synchronously firing radially opposed pairs of active magnetic coils 32N and 32S and 36N and 36S positioned around and along forming portions 12N and 12S and accelerating portions 16N and 16S, and a set of active magnetic coils 40 positioned around and along compression chamber 20.

As the compact ring accelerates toward the mid-plane of the compression chamber 20, the compact ring is compressed as it translates through the tapered, converging flux retainers of the compression stages 14N, 14S, 18N, and 18S.

Turning to FIG5 , an alternative embodiment of a system 100 for merging and compressing compact ring plasmas is illustrated. As depicted, system 100 includes a staged, asymmetric sequence from a single side of a central compression chamber 20. System 100 includes: a single compact ring forming section 12S; a first compression section 14S coupled on a first end to the outlet end of forming section 12S; an acceleration section 16S coupled on a first end to the second end of compression section 14S; a second compression section 18S coupled on a first end to the second end of acceleration section 16S and on a second end to the first end of compression chamber 20. A reflector or rebound cone 50 is positioned adjacent the other end of central compression 20.

In operation, a first compact ring is formed and accelerated in a staged sequence within the forming portion 12S, and then accelerated in one or more acceleration stages 16S toward the mid-plane of the central chamber 20 to collide with and merge with a second compact ring. The first compact ring is passively adiabatically compressed in one or more compression stages 14S and 18S, and then magnetically compressed with the second compact ring into a merged compact ring within the central chamber 20.

A second compact ring is formed in the forming portion 12S in a staged sequence and is accelerated toward the mid-plane of the central chamber 20 in one or more acceleration stages 16S, passively adiabatically compressed in one or more compression stages, and then biased back toward the mid-plane of the central chamber 20 as it passes through the central chamber 20 having a reflector or rebound cone 50 positioned adjacent one end of the central chamber 20.

6 , an alternative embodiment of a system 200 for merging and compressing a compact toroidal plasma is illustrated in a partial detailed view showing a compression chamber 20 with diametrically opposed compression sections 18N and 18S coupled to opposite sides of the chamber 20. The system 200 also includes a cylindrical housing or liner 60 positioned within the central compression chamber 20 for rapid liner compression.

While the invention is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific examples thereof have been shown in the drawings and are herein described in detail. However, it should be understood that the invention is not limited to the particular forms or methods disclosed, but on the contrary, the invention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

In the above description, for illustrative purposes only, specific nomenclature is set forth to provide a thorough understanding of the present disclosure. However, it will be apparent to one skilled in the art that these specific details are not required to practice the teachings of the present disclosure.

Various features of the representative examples and dependent claims may be combined in ways not specifically and expressly recited to provide additional useful embodiments of the present teachings. It is also expressly noted that all value ranges or indications of groups of entities disclose every possible intermediate value or intermediate entity for purposes of original disclosure as well as for purposes of limiting the claimed subject matter.

Systems and methods for merging and compressing compact rings have been disclosed. It should be understood that the embodiments described herein are for illustrative purposes and should not be considered to limit the subject matter of the present disclosure. Various modifications, uses, substitutions, combinations, improvements, and production methods will be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention. For example, the reader should understand that the specific ordering and combination of process actions described herein are merely illustrative unless otherwise stated, and that the invention may be performed using different or additional process actions, or different combinations or orderings of process actions. As another example, each feature of one embodiment may be mixed and matched with other features shown in other embodiments. Features and processes known to those of ordinary skill in the art may be similarly incorporated as needed. In addition and as will be apparent, features may be added or subtracted as needed. Therefore, the invention is not limited except in view of the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims (54)

1. A system for merging and compressing compact ring plasmas, comprising: Compression chamber, The first and second radially opposing compact ring forming portions include a modular forming and acceleration system for generating the compact ring and axially accelerating the compact ring and translating the compact ring toward the intermediate plane of the compression chamber. The first and second radially opposing compression portions are coupled at a first end to the outlet ends of the first and second radially opposing compact ring forming portions. The first and second radially opposing compression portions are configured to adiabatically compress the compact ring as it passes through the first and second radially opposing compression portions toward the midplane of the compression chamber. First and second radially opposed acceleration portions, the first and second radially opposed acceleration portions coupled at a first end to a second end of the first and second radially opposed compression portions, the first and second radially opposed acceleration portions including a modular acceleration system for axially accelerating the compact ring and translating the compact ring toward the intermediate plane of the compression chamber; and The third and fourth radially opposing compression portions, which are coupled at a first end to the second end of the first and second radially opposing acceleration portions and at a second end to the first and second radially opposing ends of the compression chamber, are configured to adiabatically compress the compact ring as it passes through the third and fourth radially opposing compression portions toward the midplane of the compression chamber. 2. The system of claim 1, wherein the compression chamber is configured to magnetically compress the compact ring during collision and merging of the compact ring. 3. The system of claim 1, wherein the compression chamber comprises a modular acceleration system for magnetically compressing the compact ring during collisions and mergers. 4. The system of claim 1, wherein the first and second radially opposed compact ring forming portions, the first and second radially opposed acceleration portions, and the compression chamber are cylindrical in shape, the diameters of the first and second radially opposed acceleration portions are smaller than the diameters of the first and second radially opposed compact ring forming portions, and the diameter of the compression chamber is smaller than the diameters of the first and second radially opposed acceleration portions. 5. The system of claim 1, wherein the compression portion is truncated conical in shape, wherein the diameter of the compression portion is larger at the first end than at the second end. 6. The system of claim 1, wherein the first and second radially opposed compact ring forming portions, the first and second radially opposed compression portions, the first and second radially opposed acceleration portions, and the third and fourth radially opposed compression portions are axially symmetrical. 7. The system of claim 1, wherein a plurality of active magnetic coils are arranged around and axially along the first and second radially opposed compact ring forming portions, the first and second radially opposed acceleration portions, and the compression chamber. 8. The system of claim 2 or 3 further includes a trigger control and switching system configured to achieve a phased symmetrical sequence: compact ring formation in the first and second radially opposite compact ring forming portions, and axial acceleration by active magnetic coils in the first and second radially opposite acceleration portions. 9. The system of claim 8, wherein the trigger control and switching system is configured to: synchronize the formation and acceleration of the compact ring in the first and second radially opposite compact ring forming portions, and synchronize the acceleration of the compact ring in the first and second radially opposite acceleration portions. 10. The system of claim 8, wherein the trigger control and switching system is further configured to synchronize the magnetic compression with the compact ring formation and acceleration in the first and second radially opposite compact ring forming portions and the compact ring acceleration in the first and second radially opposite acceleration portions. 11. The system of claim 1, further comprising: a plurality of DC magnetic coils arranged around and axially along the compression chamber and the forming portion, compression portion and acceleration portion to form a bias or DC guiding field within the compression chamber and the forming portion, compression portion and acceleration portion and extending axially through the compression chamber and the forming portion, compression portion and acceleration portion. 12. The system of claim 1, further comprising a cylindrical housing or liner positioned within the compression chamber for rapid liner compression. 13. A system for merging and compressing compact ring plasmas, comprising: Compression chamber, A compact ring forming portion, the forming portion including modular forming and accelerating sections for generating a compact ring, axially accelerating the compact ring, and translating the compact ring toward the intermediate plane of the compression chamber. A first compression section, coupled at a first end to the outlet end of the forming section, is configured to adiabatically compress the compact ring as it passes through the first compression section toward the midplane of the compression chamber. An acceleration section, which is coupled at a first end to a second end of the first compression section, includes a modular acceleration system for axially accelerating the compact ring and translating the compact ring toward the mid-plane of the compression chamber; A second compression section is coupled at a first end to a second end of the acceleration section and at a second end to a first end of the compression chamber. The second compression section is configured to adiabatically compress the compact ring as it passes through the second compression section toward the midplane of the compression chamber. 14. The system of claim 13, wherein the compression chamber is configured to magnetically compress the compact ring. 15. The system of claim 13, wherein the forming portion, the accelerating portion, and the compression chamber are cylindrical in shape, the diameter of the accelerating portion is smaller than the diameter of the forming portion, and the diameter of the compression chamber is smaller than the diameter of the accelerating portion. 16. The system of claim 13, wherein the first compression portion and the second compression portion are truncated conical in shape, wherein the diameter of the first compression portion and the second compression portion is larger at the first end than at the second end. 17. The system of claim 13, wherein the forming portion, the first compression portion and the second compression portion, the acceleration portion and the compression chamber are axially aligned. 18. The system of claim 13, wherein a plurality of active magnetic coils are arranged around and axially along the forming portion, the acceleration portion and the compression chamber. 19. The system of claim 13, further comprising a trigger control and switching system configured to realize a phased sequence of compact loop formation and axial acceleration via an active magnetic coil. 20. The system of claim 19, wherein the trigger control and switching system is further configured to: realize magnetic compression of the compact ring through the active magnetic coil in the phased sequence following the formation of the compact ring and the axial acceleration through the active magnetic coil. 21. The system of claim 19, wherein the trigger control and switching system is configured to synchronize the formation and acceleration of the compact ring in the forming portion, the acceleration of the compact ring in the acceleration portion, and the merging and compression of the compact ring in the compression chamber. 22. The system of claim 13 further includes a plurality of DC magnetic coils arranged around and axially along the compression chamber and the forming portion, compression portion and acceleration portion to form a bias or DC guiding field within the compression chamber and the forming portion, compression portion and acceleration portion and extending axially through the compression chamber and the forming portion, compression portion and acceleration portion. 23. The system of claim 13 further includes a cylindrical housing or liner positioned within the compression chamber for rapid liner compression. 24. The system of claim 13, further comprising one of a reflector and a rebound cone coupled to a second end of the compression chamber. 25. A system for merging and compressing compact ring plasmas, comprising: Central chamber, A pair of radially opposite forming parts, One or more pairs of radially opposing accelerating portions, and Two or more pairs of radially opposing compression portions are inserted between the forming portion and the acceleration portion adjacent to the forming portion, and between the central chamber and the acceleration portion adjacent to the central chamber. The system is configured to achieve a phased symmetrical sequence: the formation of a compact ring around the forming and accelerating portions, axial acceleration via an active magnetic coil, passive adiabatic compression of the compact ring within a conical contraction flux holder in the compression portion, and magnetic compression within the central chamber. 26. The system of claim 25, wherein the central chamber is configured to magnetically compress the compact ring during collision and merging of the compact ring. 27. The system of claim 25, wherein the forming portion, the accelerating portion, and the central chamber are cylindrical in shape, the diameter of the accelerating portion is smaller than the diameter of the forming portion, and the diameter of the central chamber is smaller than the diameter of the accelerating portion. 28. The system of claim 25, wherein the compression portion is truncated conical in shape, wherein the diameter of the compression portion is larger at a first end than at a second end, wherein the second end of each compression portion is closer to the central chamber than the first end. 29. The system of claim 25, wherein the forming portion, the two or more pairs of radially opposed compression portions, and the one or more pairs of radially opposed acceleration portions are axially symmetrical. 30. The system of claim 25, wherein a plurality of active magnetic coils are arranged around and axially along the forming portion, the accelerating portion and the central chamber. 31. The system of claim 25, further comprising a trigger control and switching system configured to achieve compact ring formation in the forming portion and axial acceleration in the acceleration portion. 32. The system of claim 31, wherein the trigger control and switching system is further configured to achieve magnetic compression of the compact ring through the active magnetic coil in the phased sequence following the formation of the compact ring and the axial acceleration through the active magnetic coil. 33. The system of claim 31, wherein the trigger control and switching system is configured to synchronize the formation and acceleration of the compact rings in the pair of radially opposite forming portions, and to synchronize the acceleration of the compact rings in the pair or more pairs of radially opposite accelerating portions. 34. The system of claim 32, wherein the trigger control and switching system is further configured to synchronize the compression of the compact ring with the formation and acceleration of the compact ring in the forming portion and the acceleration of the compact ring in the accelerating portion. 35. The system of claim 25 further includes a plurality of DC magnetic coils arranged around and axially along the central chamber and the forming portion, compression portion and acceleration portion to form a bias or DC guiding field within the central chamber and the forming portion, compression portion and acceleration portion and extending axially through the central chamber and the forming portion, compression portion and acceleration portion. 36. The system of claim 25 further includes a cylindrical housing or liner positioned within the central chamber for rapid liner compression. 37. A method for merging and compressing compact ring plasmas in a system comprising a central chamber, radially opposed forming portions, one or more acceleration stages, and a plurality of compression stages inserted between the forming portions and adjacent acceleration stages and between the central chamber and adjacent acceleration stages, the steps comprising: In a phased, symmetrical sequence, a compact ring is formed within the forming portion and the acceleration phase, and the compact ring is accelerated toward the central plane of the central chamber. The compact ring is passively and thermally compressed during the compression phase, and The merged compact rings are magnetically compressed within the central cavity. 38. The method of claim 37, wherein the steps of forming, accelerating, and compressing the compact ring cause the compact ring to collide and merge within the central cavity. 39. The method of claim 37, wherein the step of forming and accelerating the compact ring comprises supplying power to an active magnetic coil axially surrounding and along the forming portion and acceleration phase. 40. The method of claim 37, wherein the step of compressing the compact ring comprises translating the compact ring through a tapered shrinkage flux retainer of the compression phase. 41. The method of claim 37, wherein the step of forming and accelerating the compact ring further comprises: synchronously igniting a pair of radially opposing active magnetic coils positioned around and along the forming portion and acceleration phase. 42. The method of claim 41, wherein the step of magnetically compressing the merged compact ring comprises: synchronously igniting an active magnetic coil positioned around and along the central chamber and igniting an active magnetic coil positioned around and along the forming portion and acceleration phase. 43. The method of claim 37, further comprising the step of generating a DC guiding field within the central chamber, the forming portion, the acceleration phase, and the compression phase, and extending axially through the central chamber, the forming portion, the acceleration phase, and the compression phase. 44. A method for merging and compressing compact ring plasmas within a system, said system comprising a central chamber, a forming portion, one or more acceleration stages, and two or more compression stages inserted between said forming portion and adjacent acceleration stages and between said central chamber and adjacent acceleration stages, the steps comprising: Within the forming portion, a first compact ring and a second compact ring are formed, and the first compact ring is accelerated toward the intermediate plane of the central chamber during one or more acceleration phases to collide and merge with the second compact ring in a phased sequence. The first compact ring is passively and adiabatically compressed during the two or more compression stages, and Magnetic compression is performed on the merged compact ring of the first compact ring and the second compact ring within the central cavity. 45. The method of claim 44, wherein the steps of forming, accelerating, and compressing the first compact ring result in the first compact ring colliding and merging with the second compact ring within the central cavity. 46. The method of claim 44, wherein the step of forming and accelerating the first compact ring comprises supplying power to an active magnetic coil axially surrounding and along the forming portion and the one or more acceleration stages. 47. The method of claim 44, wherein the step of compressing the first compact ring comprises translating the compact ring through the tapered shrinkage flux retainer of the two or more compression stages. 48. The method of claim 46, wherein the step of forming and accelerating the first compact ring further comprises synchronously igniting the active magnetic coil positioned around and along the forming portion and acceleration phase. 49. The method of claim 44, further comprising the step of generating a DC guiding field within the central chamber, the forming portion, the acceleration phase, and the compression phase, and extending axially through the central chamber, the forming portion, the acceleration phase, and the compression phase. 50. The method of claim 44, further comprising the step of: In the phased sequence, a second compact ring is formed within the forming portion and the one or more acceleration phases, and the second compact ring is accelerated toward the intermediate plane of the central chamber. The second compact ring is passively and adiabatically compressed during the two or more compression stages, and As the second compact ring passes through the central cavity having a reflector positioned at one end adjacent to the central cavity, it returns to be biased toward the mid-plane of the central cavity. 51. The system of claim 1, wherein the compact ring is one of an FRC and a spherical mark initiator plasma. 52. The system of claim 1, wherein the compression portion is formed of a conductive material, and the compression chamber, the forming portion, and the acceleration portion are formed of a non-conductive material. 53. The method of claim 37, wherein the compact ring is one of an FRC and a spherical mark initiator plasma. 54. The method of claim 37, wherein the compression phase is formed of a conductive material, and the central chamber, the forming portion, and the acceleration phase are formed of a non-conductive material.