Fusion

Nuclear Fusion

What does the word fusion mean in our everyday lives?

Nuclear Fusion • Nuclear fusion occurs when more than one light nuclei (such as hydrogen) fuse, or combine, to form a larger single nucleus (such as helium) • Just like in fission reactions, the mass of the products is less than the mass of the reactants • The ‘lost mass’ is converted to energy

Where does fusion occur? • Fusion is the type of nuclear reaction that occurs on the sun (and other stars) • Note: The sun is a star!

How much energy is required? • Forcing small nuclei to fuse requires huge amounts of energy • When fusion reactions occur on the sun more energy is released than the amount required to produce the reaction

Do we use fusion? • Using fusion for human applications is still in the developmental stage

Fusion

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Fusion Joins Atoms

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Fusion as an Energy Source

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Fusion Creates New Elements

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