Zap Energy has announced a significant breakthrough in its fusion research, successfully generating a pressure roughly 10,000 times that of atmospheric pressure at sea level – equivalent to the extreme conditions found at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean’s Mariana Trench. This achievement, accomplished by their FuZE-3 device, represents a key validation of their approach to harnessing fusion energy.
‘This is a proof of principle that was designed to hit a particular set of milestones and to validate the principle, and it did that with flying colors,’ said Ben Levitt, Zap’s head of R&D. The company, based in Everett, Washington, is racing to replicate the reactions that power the sun, aiming to create a sustainable and abundant source of clean energy.
Zap’s technology utilizes a high-current plasma, creating a magnetic field – a Z-pinch – to contain and compress the matter, reaching the record-breaking 1.6 gigapascal pressure. The success was achieved by splitting one of the electrodes in the fusion generator, providing the machine with a new mechanism to increase plasma compression. While this milestone represents ‘great progress,’ Levitt emphasized that substantial further development is required to achieve sustained energy production.
‘We’re not waving our flag and resting on our laurels,’ Levitt stated. Scientific breakeven – producing more energy from the fusion reaction than is put in – is a potential goal by the end of the decade, though the progress is expected to be punctuated by significant leaps forward.
Zap’s advancements come as part of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Milestone-Based Fusion Development Program, for which the company received $330 million in investment and is ranked among the top startups in the Pacific Northwest. The company plans to continue its research and development efforts, aiming to unlock the potential of fusion energy for a future powered by clean, limitless resources.