If my mind serves me correctly, fission is splitting a particle into two, and fusion is bringing those two together, and nuclear fission and fusion produce huge amounts of energy, so why couldn’t we theoretically create a reactor that alternates between those two sometime way in the future?
In: Physics
Because you always end up with iron.
Fusing smaller elements into larger elements yields more energy than it takes to achieve. Fusion yields less energy as the elements you fuse get bigger, until you produce iron. Fusing anything iron sized or bigger takes more energy than it will yield.
Splitting larger elements into smaller elements yields more energy than it takes to achieve. Fission yields less energy as the elements you fuse get smaller, until you produce iron. Splitting anything iron sized or smaller takes more energy than it will yield.
This is why stars go supernova fractions of a second after they start fusing iron. They produce even more of it in the ensuing collapse. Iron is the most stable atomic element.
Latest Answers