Naju Artificial Sun Project Passes Preliminary Feasibility Study... KENTECH Seeks to Link Fusion Research and Education

Exploring links between superconducting conductor testing and graduate education
Cooperating to help talent enter fusion research and industry

With the Naju Artificial Sun Research Facility project having passed its preliminary feasibility study, the Korea Institute of Energy Technology (KENTECH) is exploring ways to link its on-campus fusion research and graduate education with the new facility.

According to KENTECH on November 6, the Ministry of Science and ICT's 1.5 trillion won project to build infrastructure for the development and demonstration of key fusion energy technologies passed its preliminary feasibility study on November 5.

Artist's rendering of the artificial sun research facility. Provided by Naju City.

The project will run from 2027 to 2036. A research facility will be built in the area of Wangok-myeon, Naju, to develop the designs and secure the key technologies needed for a fusion demonstration reactor.

One area of potential collaboration being considered by KENTECH is superconducting conductor testing. Generating electricity through fusion requires technologies to create and control ultra-high-temperature plasma, as well as the performance and reliability of superconducting magnets that confine the plasma.

The 16-tesla-class superconducting conductor test facility SUCCEX, which KENTECH and the Korea Institute of Fusion Energy are building on campus, replicates the strong magnetic fields, high currents, and cryogenic conditions found in a fusion reactor. Once completed, it can be used to validate the designs and evaluate the performance of next-generation superconducting conductors used in fusion magnets.

On campus, Professors Kim Giman, Im Byeongsu, and Chu Yong conduct research and teach in the field of superconductivity, while Professor Dang Jeongjeung focuses on fusion plasma heating.

In 2024, KENTECH signed a cooperation agreement with the ITER Organization to pursue joint research and exchanges of professional personnel. Doctoral students dispatched to ITER took part in technical projects there, and one of them later joined the Korea Institute of Fusion Energy to conduct fusion research.

KENTECH Acting President Park Jinho emphasized, "KENTECH will work with relevant organizations to help talent trained in the region pursue careers in fusion research and industry."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.