In the eyes of many people, it may be much easier to make a model than to build a complete thing.
After all, the model is only so small, so it doesn't require much material or effort.
But people who have actually made models, especially those who have made 1:1 completely realistic models, will tell you that making a model is sometimes more difficult than making it real.
Because it is easy to make a small thing bigger, but it is difficult to make a big thing small.
Although what Chen Xin wants to do is a miniature version of a nuclear fusion reactor, the technical requirements are no lower than building a large-scale reactor. The requirements for parts processing accuracy are even higher than those of a large-scale reactor. .
Although large-scale nuclear fusion reactors have strict requirements, there is still a certain margin for the tolerance allowed by large-scale equipment. However, when you reduce the equipment proportionally, the original tolerance margin will also shrink.
For example, an error of ±5 on large equipment may not even be ±0.5 on a scaled-down model. The smaller the model, the more so.
Especially when you have to completely restore the structure and function of large equipment, the cost of parts that are smaller and require higher processing accuracy is often many times higher than the parts required by large equipment.
To give a simple example, in the existing nuclear fusion reactor technology, the structure on the magnetic confinement nuclear fusion device that blocks neutrons and plasma, prevents high-energy hydrogen ions from splashing, and serves as a heat exchanger in the future is called the first wall. In the selection of materials for nuclear fusion reactors, the requirements for this first wall are extremely high.
In reality, neutron blocking can be achieved by processing the first wall to a certain thickness. However, when the scale of the model is reduced to a very small scale, the thickness of the first wall will become thinner. In this case, you want to continue to maintain it. The blocking of neutrons places higher demands on itself.
In particular, the first wall itself is a consumable product. As neutrons bombard the first wall, its surface will bubble!
Larger equipment can rely on thickness to extend service life and replace it regularly to avoid penetration of the entire first wall.
But for small models, this is very fatal. After all, it is impossible to stop and replace consumables after the reactor rotates a few times, right?
This is also the reason why nuclear fusion devices are getting bigger and bigger now. Due to technical reasons, only by making the equipment bigger can we ensure the expected performance and achieve the ignition of nuclear fusion.
However, what Chen Xin wants to do is just a model for verifying technology. If it is not too exaggerated, he even wants to make one as big as being placed on the table.
But in the end, he compromised on reality and did not actually build an LED lamp of the same type as Iron Man, but a micro reactor about as tall as a person.
Although it is a micro-reactor with the same model, the structure and functions of the nuclear fusion reactor that Chen Xin previously imagined are reproduced in this micro-reactor, and it can actually ignite and react, and the reaction is controllable and can Continuously and stably output energy.
To achieve this, it is obvious that there are very strict requirements on the materials and processes for manufacturing this micro-reactor.
Fortunately, Chen Xin's drawings are products that have been upgraded to the system after being drawn, and the tools he uses to make parts are also robotic arms and workbenches produced by the system, so there is no problem in terms of processing accuracy and part quality. .
As for the materials for manufacturing this micro-reactor, Chen Xin chose to obtain some core parts by himself through system upgrades, while other parts were obtained from the national scientific research department. After obtaining the materials, he used workbenches and robotic arms to process them.
In order to process these parts, Chen Xin not only made a small-scale upgrade to his robotic arm, but also made an exact replica of the workbench in his shelter in the office of the military camp, with the capabilities of drawing, scanning and and upgrade features.
It is precisely because of this that Chen Xin was able to upgrade the drawings of the heating hub, energy tower and this nuclear fusion reactor.
After the drawings were upgraded, not only the technical design was optimized, but also the parts were optimized. The drawings that specifically adjusted the direction of the upgrade simplified and reduced the difficulty of the parts requirements, and also allowed Chen Xin to create a micro-reactor for verification. Technology ideas can be realized.
Because it is just a micro-reactor, it does not require a lot of related materials, and some rare materials are used in very small quantities. Therefore, when the helicopter came for the second trip to take away Chen Xin's upgraded heavy-duty mecha, he also took him there. The required materials have been shipped.
It has to be said that after the aircraft resumed its flight capabilities, at least transportation became much more convenient.
Chen Xin started manufacturing micro-reactors directly after receiving the materials delivered by air express. However, because there were other things to deal with, he basically dealt with other things in the morning every day, and only came to the military camp to manufacture micro-reactors in the afternoon. Reactor parts until going back to bed at night.
This kind of regular schedule actually makes it easy for people to figure out the trajectory of the action to a large extent. Whether it is kidnapping, assassination or tracking, it is easy to find loopholes and opportunities.
But fortunately, Chen Xin spent more than half of his time in a military camp where a whole special force was stationed. When he went out, he only had to walk to a camp less than a hundred meters away. There was also a combat team to escort and protect him throughout the process. There were still safety issues. Enough protection.
Under such circumstances, Chen Xin's work on manufacturing the micro-reactor was carried out smoothly. Various precision parts were manufactured and then assembled.
Soon, the fission furnace part of the micro-reactor was completed.
Compared with fusion reactions, fission reactions are undoubtedly much easier to control. Coupled with people's years of research on nuclear fission technology, a miniature fission furnace is not that difficult to make.
Of course, this is not difficult for Chen Xin. For others, this is still a difficult thing.
Because the smaller the reactor, the higher the enrichment of nuclear fuel required, the higher the control requirements for the reactor, and the difficulty and cost of manufacturing also rise linearly.
And don’t confuse radioisotope batteries with nuclear reactors. The two are fundamentally different things in principle.
The radioisotope battery itself has no nuclear reaction. It just uses the thermal energy rays released by the radioactive isotope to convert thermal energy into electrical energy.
However, nuclear reactors use the energy released by substances when nuclear reactions occur to generate heat and convert it into electrical energy. The two are very different in terms of volume and efficiency.
Chen Xin can make isotope thermoelectric cells, but this is the first time he has made a small nuclear reactor.
