Bubble fusion
Bubble fusion is the common name for a nuclear fusion reaction hypothesized to occur during acoustic cavitation, an extreme form of sonoluminescence. The high temperatures produceable through sonoluminescence raises the possibility that it might be a means to achieve thermonuclear fusion.
Recent experiments of Taleyarkhan et.al. in deuterated acetone show measurements of tritium and neutron output consistent with fusion, but these measurements have not been confirmed and are highly debated. Although the apparatus operates in a room temperature environment, this is not strictly cold fusion, as the claimed nuclear reactions would be occurring at the very high temperatures in the core of the imploding bubbles.
The achievement of fusion through sonoluminescence was fictionalized in the poorly received movie Chain Reaction, starring Keanu Reeves and Morgan Freeman.
Recent experiments by a group of physicists led by R. P. Taleyarkhan in deuterated acetone show measurements of tritium and neutron output consistent with fusion, but these measurements have not been confirmed and are highly debated, recalling the 1989 cold fusion fiasco.
These experiments have been repeated at Oak Ridge National Laboratory by D. Shapira and M. J. Saltmarsh with more sophisticated neutron detection equipment and the neutron release was consistent with random coincidence.
References
- R. P. Taleyarkhan, C. D. West, J. S. Cho, R. T. Lahey, Jr. R. Nigmatulin, and R. C. Block, Evidence for Nuclear Emissions During Acoustic Cavitation, Science 295, 1868 (2002). (available online, see link below)
- D. Shapira, M. J. Saltmarsh. Comments on Reported Nuclear Emissions during Acoustic Cavitation, 1 March 2002. (available online, see link below)
- F. Becchetti, Evidence for Nuclear Reactions in Imploding Bubbles, Science 295, 1850 (2002)
- D. Kennedy, To Publish or Not to Publish, Science 295, 1793 (2002)
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