Global Energy Prize laureate Vladislav Khomich has dedicated more than half a century to researching plasma processes. His research forms the basis for technologies that are already making it possible to use plasma not only for thermonuclear fusion but also for practical applications, from industrial heating to the production of useful chemical products. In an interview recorded shortly after the award ceremony, the scientist spoke about his thorny path in science and the ways plasma will help humanity find an endless source of energy and eliminate waste.
You won the Global Energy Prize in the New Ways of Energy Application category for your work in plasma technologies and pulsed power engineering. Can you explain your achievements in a manner accessible to a general audience?
This is a tough ask. Well, even when applying for the Global Energy Prize, you need to prepare a brief summary and abstracts of the studies you’ve contributed to. I’ve been with the Academy of Sciences for over fifty years now, since 1972. And over the years, the topics I’ve been working on have gradually evolved.
I started out as a laser physics researcher at the Physics Institute of the Academy of Sciences. Then, I moved on to the General Physics Institute with the Oscillation Laboratory led by Academician and Nobel laureate Alexander Prokhorov, who essentially made our laboratory a separate division. After that, we worked at the Center of Unique Instrumentation, where the focus of my research gradually shifted.
After getting elected as a corresponding member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, I established a small institute on the basis of my team at a branch of the Institute for Electrophysics and Electric Power in Moscow. At every stage, we constantly explored new areas of research. Eventually, our move away from laser research to energy instrumentation coincided with the transition to the Institute for Electrophysics and Electric Power, which was then headed by Academician Rutberg, a great enthusiast of plasma energy.
Incidentally, Mr. Rutberg was also a Global Energy laureate: he received the Prize in 2011.
Yes, he did. But he was a fan of plasma energy and a pioneer of research in the field back in the late 1970s. Together, we received the State Prize in 2003 for creating plasma energy installations. After his passing, I became head of the Institute; naturally, I continued research in the field under the influence of this school.
Generally speaking, plasma energy is a very broad concept that encompasses many areas. Simply put, all types of energy can be associated with states of matter. There is the solid state, such as coal, shale or wood; the liquid state – oil, water, hydropower; and the gaseous state – natural gas or hydrogen. And plasma is the fourth state. In essence, everything that the Sun gives us is plasma energy, thermonuclear fusion. It’s an inexhaustible source of energy, and many countries are currently moving in this direction. We have the international ITER project, China’s BEST project, Russia’s tokamak and the stellarator at the Kurchatov Institute, as well as laser fusion, another rapidly developing field where breakthroughs are expected to come from achieving the Lawson criterion, which is required for plasma confinement at ultra-high temperatures.
There is also a unique electrophysical device called “plasma torch”, which creates low-temperature plasma. This device can be used to carry out plasma-chemical reactions, like producing carbon monoxide or hydrogen from natural gas. Plus, the plasma torch serves as an effective heat source: it can be used to, for instance, quickly ignite a coke oven.
Incidentally, one of the most important areas our Institute is currently researching is the use of plasma energy for waste disposal. Today, every person on Earth produces an average of more than 500 kilograms of solid waste per year. There are islands of plastic in the ocean already. However, conventional waste incineration is, so to say, a thing of the past in our sport. Because combustion temperatures at waste incineration plants reach 1,500–1,800°C, while temperatures in a plasma torch reach 4,000°C. As is well known, the higher the temperature, the faster the reaction. A plasma torch makes it possible to destroy waste completely, reducing its mass by 400–500 times and making the process faster and cleaner. It can even safely dispose of biohazardous materials.
During the Russian Energy Week, you said that humanity has never been closer to “lighting up the Sun on Earth”, referring to thermonuclear fusion. Isn’t it dangerous to light up the Sun on Earth?
Strangely enough, it’s absolutely safe. From a theoretical perspective, thermonuclear fuel is perfect: it has minimal side effects. The radiation occurring during the irradiation of reactor walls is short-lived. And unlike with conventional nuclear, there are no uncontrolled reactions. A loss of vacuum in the system stops the process immediately.
Furthermore, fusion is extremely energy-intensive: one gram of deuterium is equivalent to approximately ten tons of oil. With laser fusion, energy is released in pulses, with each fuel capsule. And there are no emissions or radioactive waste. Of course, ongoing technological developments could give rise to new technical or physical problems – no one is immune to that. But there is no real alternative to laser fusion today.
Oil, gas and coal are finite resources. Fusion energy, on the other hand, is essentially infinite and environmentally friendly. This is why enormous investments are being made in this field of research. Take the ITER project, which involves Russia, the United States and Europe. Among its key initiators was Academician Velikhov, who received the Global Energy Prize for it, as far as I recall (Evgeny Velikhov was awarded the Prize in 2006 for developing the scientific and technical foundation for the creation of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor – Ed. note). Back then, it was just a project, but today it’s a global program with tangible results.
Artificial intelligence is an increasingly popular topic of conversation. You’ve noted that it’s closer to a fad than a technological revolution. Why?
I think that the very concept of artificial intelligence is largely a matter of terminology. It’s just a name. Essentially, it’s one of the areas of computerization, programming and computing that have been rapidly developing in recent decades. Modern algorithms have indeed come close to simulating intelligent processes. Still, they are more of a tool than an independent intelligence.
