Issues in Nuclear and Plasma Science and Technology: 2012 Edition is a ScholarlyEditions™ eBook that delivers timely, authoritative, and comprehensive information about Plasma Science. The editors have built Issues in Nuclear and Plasma Science and Technology: 2012 Edition on the vast information databases of ScholarlyNews.™ You can expect the information about Plasma Science in this eBook to be deeper than what you can access anywhere else, as well as consistently reliable, authoritative, informed, and relevant. The content of Issues in Nuclear and Plasma Science and Technology: 2012 Edition has been produced by the world’s leading scientists, engineers, analysts, research institutions, and companies. All of the content is from peer-reviewed sources, and all of it is written, assembled, and edited by the editors at ScholarlyEditions™ and available exclusively from us. You now have a source you can cite with authority, confidence, and credibility. More information is available at http://www.ScholarlyEditions.com/.

Humans do not live by bread alone. Physically we are puny creatures with limited prowess, but with unlimited dreams. We see a mountain and want to move it to carve out a path for ourselves. We see a river and want to tame it so that it irrigates our fields. We see a star and want to fly to its planets to secure a future for our progeny. For all this, we need a genie who will do our bidding at a flip of our fingers. Energy is such a genie. Modern humans need energy and lots of it to live a life of comfort. In fact, the quality of life in different regions of the world can be directly correlated with the per capita use of energy [1.1–1.5]. In this regard, the human development index (HDI) of various countries based on various reports by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) [1.6] (Fig. 1.1), which is a parameter measuring the quality of life in a given part of the world, is directly determined by the amount of per capita electricity consumption. Most of the developing world (~5 billion people) is crawling up the UN curve of HDI versus per capita electricity consumption, from abysmally low values of today towards the average of the whole world and eventually towards the average of the developed world. This translates into a massive energy hunger for the globe as a whole. It has been estimated that by the year 2050, the global electricity demand will go up by a factor of up to 3 in a high growth scenario [1.7–1.9]. The requirements beyond 2050 go up even higher.

Nuclear energy is important both as a very large energy resource and as a source of carbon free energy. However incidents such as the Fukashima Daiichi nuclear disaster (2011), the Chernobyl disaster (1986), and the Three Mile Island accident (1979) have cast doubts on the future of nuclear fission as a major player in the future energy mix. This volume provides an excellent overview of the current situation regarding nuclear fission as well as a description of the enormous potential advantages offered by nuclear fusion including an essentially unlimited fuel supply with minimal environmental impact.Energy from the Nucleus focuses on the two main approaches to producing energy from the nucleus: fission and fusion. The chapters on nuclear fission cover the status of current and future generations of reactors as well as new safety requirements and the environmental impact of electricity production from nuclear fission. The chapters on nuclear fusion discuss both inertial confinement fusion and magnetic confinement fusion, including the new international fusion test facility, ITER. The expertise of the authors, who are active participants in the respective technologies, ensures that the information provided is both reliable and current. Their views will no doubt enlighten our understanding of the future of energy from the nucleus.

In this new book, an interdisciplinary and international team of experts provides an exploration of the emerging plasma science that is poised to make the plasma technology a reality in the manufacturing sector. The research presented here will stimulate new ideas, methods, and applications in the field of plasma science and nanotechnology. Plasma technology applications are being developed that could impact the global market for power, electronics, mineral, and other fuel commodities. Currently, plasma science is described as a revolutionary discipline in terms of its possible impact on industrial applications. It offers potential solutions to many problems using emerging techniques. In this book the authors provide a broad overview of recent trends in field plasma science and nanotechnology. Divided into several parts, Plasma and Fusion Science: From Fundamental Research to Technological Applications explores some basic plasma applications and research, space and atmospheric plasma, nuclear fusion, and laser plasma and industrial applications of plasma. A wide variety of cutting-edge topics are covered, including: • basic plasma physics • computer modeling for plasma • exotic plasma (including dusty plasma) • industrial plasma applications • laser plasma • nuclear fusion technology • plasma diagnostics • plasma processing • pulsed power • space astrophysical plasma • plasma and nanotechnology Pointing to current and possible future developments in plasma science and technology, the diverse research presented here will be valuable for researchers, scientists, industry professionals, and others involved in the revolutionary field of plasma and fusion science.

Issues in Nuclear and Plasma Science and Technology: 2011 Edition is a ScholarlyEditions™ eBook that delivers timely, authoritative, and comprehensive information about Nuclear and Plasma Science and Technology. The editors have built Issues in Nuclear and Plasma Science and Technology: 2011 Edition on the vast information databases of ScholarlyNews.™ You can expect the information about Nuclear and Plasma Science and Technology in this eBook to be deeper than what you can access anywhere else, as well as consistently reliable, authoritative, informed, and relevant. The content of Issues in Nuclear and Plasma Science and Technology: 2011 Edition has been produced by the world’s leading scientists, engineers, analysts, research institutions, and companies. All of the content is from peer-reviewed sources, and all of it is written, assembled, and edited by the editors at ScholarlyEditions™ and available exclusively from us. You now have a source you can cite with authority, confidence, and credibility. More information is available at http://www.ScholarlyEditions.com/.