# Just built a Nuclear Reactor - What can I do with it? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 2, 2013, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-built-a-nuclear-reactor-what-can-i-do-with-it/659961 "2013-06-02T18:03:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2013, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-built-a-nuclear-reactor-what-can-i-do-with-it/659961/1 "2013-06-02T18:03:25Z")
Well to be precise - A high school student built a inertial electrostatic confinement fusion reactor in a garage. > **[Conrad Farnsworth built an inertial electrostatic confinement fusion reactor](https://helenair.com/conrad-farnsworth-built-an-inertial-electrostatic-confinement-fusion-reactor/image_c53f41a0-6f02-11e2-aebc-001a4bcf887a.html)** > > Conrad Farnsworth, 18, of Newcastle built an inertial electrostatic confinement fusion reactor in his garage. The glow comes from 600 million degree plasma at the heart of the nuclear fusion > **[Teenager who built nuclear reactor in his dad's garage disqualified from...](https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2334472/Teenager-built-nuclear-reactor-dads-garage-disqualified-science-fair--attending-wrong-order.html)** > > Conrad Farnsworth, 18, a Wyoming high school senior who built a nuclear reactor in his garage was disqualified from the International Science and Engineering Fair in Phoenix last month on a technicality. Exactly what has this kid built? Can it run safely over an extended time and be used for anything? What would it take to actually use this for something? Could this kid build a small electrical generator for the house? Or hook up a fan? How do you refuel it? Does he have control rods like a power plant? I recall that the heat from the reactor is the useful energy source. > **[Nuclear reactor](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_reactor)** > > A nuclear reactor is a device used to initiate and control a fission nuclear chain reaction. They are used for commercial electricity, marine propulsion, weapons production and research. Fissile nuclei (primarily uranium-235 or plutonium-239) absorb single neutrons and split, releasing energy and multiple neutrons, which can induce further fission. Reactors stabilize this, regulating neutron absorbers and moderators in the core. Fuel efficiency is exceptionally high; low-enriched uranium is 120,0... > [@](#): > > Heat from nuclear fission is passed to a working fluid (water or gas), which runs through turbines. These either drive a ship’s propellers or turn electrical generators. Nuclear generated steam in principle can be used for industrial process heat or for district heating. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2013, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-built-a-nuclear-reactor-what-can-i-do-with-it/659961/2 "2013-06-02T18:10:25Z")
You can use it to generate neutrons, and to further your understanding of these types of reactors, but they currently (and likely forever) consume way more power then they generate. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2013, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-built-a-nuclear-reactor-what-can-i-do-with-it/659961/3 "2013-06-02T18:15:51Z")
Farnsworth…ha. ---
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2013, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-built-a-nuclear-reactor-what-can-i-do-with-it/659961/4 "2013-06-02T19:00:04Z")
Hopefully he won’t be another R[adioactive Boy Scout.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Hahn) ---
**Author:** ![Ranger\_Jeff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranger_jeff/32/2065_2.png) [@Ranger\_Jeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranger_Jeff)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2013, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-built-a-nuclear-reactor-what-can-i-do-with-it/659961/5 "2013-06-02T20:06:26Z")
> [@gotpasswords](#): > > Hopefully he won’t be another R[adioactive Boy Scout.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Hahn) Yep, I was thinking of the same thing. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2013, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-built-a-nuclear-reactor-what-can-i-do-with-it/659961/6 "2013-06-02T20:40:49Z")
Quite a few students have built reactors. It’s amazing and scary at the same time. Farnsworth took his to science fairs. The government didn’t confiscate it. I guess tt must not be cranking out uncontrolled radioactive material. > [@](#): > > The newspaper reports Farnsworth is one of only about 15 high school students in the world to successfully build a nuclear fusion reactor. He built it by hand in his garage at home. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2013, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-built-a-nuclear-reactor-what-can-i-do-with-it/659961/7 "2013-06-02T20:50:10Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > I recall that the heat from the reactor is the useful energy source. > [Nuclear reactor - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_reactor) The article you quoted is about nuclear fission, not fusion. ---
**Author:** ![Arkcon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Arkcon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arkcon)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2013, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-built-a-nuclear-reactor-what-can-i-do-with-it/659961/8 "2013-06-02T20:54:50Z")
Good news, everybody, here’s the Farnsworth-Hirsh Fusor: [Fusor - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fusor) It doesn’t say how its refueled, it seems to be connected to a constant ionized gas source. But again, all he’s going to get is neutrons. ---
**Author:** ![handsomeharry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9c0ed/32.png) [@handsomeharry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handsomeharry)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2013, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-built-a-nuclear-reactor-what-can-i-do-with-it/659961/9 "2013-06-03T00:22:39Z")
> [@Arkcon](#): > > Good news, everybody, here’s the Farnsworth-Hirsh Fusor: [Fusor - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fusor) It doesn’t say how its refueled, it seems to be connected to a constant ionized gas source. But again, all he’s going to get is neutrons. Well, when he starts getting electrons, have him give me a call. ---
**Author:** ![yoyodyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/a9a28c/32.png) [@yoyodyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yoyodyne)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2013, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-built-a-nuclear-reactor-what-can-i-do-with-it/659961/10 "2013-06-03T01:13:49Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > Farnsworth…ha. The original inventor was Philo Farnsworth, who invented the TV and preceded both Futurama and this kid. ---
**Author:** ![Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e36b37/32.png) [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Airman_Doors_USAF)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2013, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-built-a-nuclear-reactor-what-can-i-do-with-it/659961/11 "2013-06-03T01:38:31Z")
My understanding is that he built a reactor that could work if he had the fuel, which he will never get. So, assuming you did the same, you could show it off to your friends as a really neat but otherwise useless design exercise. ---
**Author:** ![Isilder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/cc9497/32.png) [@Isilder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isilder)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2013, 7:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-built-a-nuclear-reactor-what-can-i-do-with-it/659961/12 "2013-06-03T07:08:21Z")
> [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](#): > > My understanding is that he built a reactor that could work if he had the fuel, which he will never get. Fuel.. an isotope that works as an input is Helium 3 (regular Helium is mass 4 ) > **[Helium-3](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helium-3#Production)** > > Helium-3 (3He see also helion) is a light, stable isotope of helium with two protons and one neutron. (In contrast, the most common isotope, helium-4, has two protons and two neutrons.) Helium-3 and hydrogen-1 are the only stable nuclides with more protons than neutrons. It was discovered in 1939. > Helium-3 occurs as a primordial nuclide, escaping from Earth's crust into its atmosphere and into outer space over millions of years. It is also thought to be a natural nucleogenic and cosmogenic nucli... $100 a litre, but has risen to $2000 a litre. (since people want it now, to use for neutron source and for fusion research ?) ---
**Author:** ![thirdname](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d07c76/32.png) [@thirdname](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thirdname)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2013, 7:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-built-a-nuclear-reactor-what-can-i-do-with-it/659961/13 "2013-06-03T07:56:00Z")
Are you pondering what I’m pondering? ---
**Author:** ![AndrewL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@AndrewL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AndrewL)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2013, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-built-a-nuclear-reactor-what-can-i-do-with-it/659961/14 "2013-06-03T14:41:27Z")
> [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](#): > > My understanding is that he built a reactor that could work if he had the fuel, which he will never get. Deuterium gas isn’t hard to get. This type of fusion reactor can produce a barely detectible neutron output when everything is working perfectly, and has a power in to power out ratio of something like a million to one. So it’s not really useful for anything other than a science fair demonstration.