31: Chapter 31: A Terrifying Debugging Experience! Plasma Out of Control Crisis, Teamwork Saves the Day

Morning sunlight pierced through the clouds, spilling over the core area of the Ji Province Nuclear Fusion Power Station. Mu Li stood before the floor-to-ceiling windows of the Main Control Room, watching the busy figures of the R&D team members, a gratified smile appearing on his face. After several days of recuperation, his body had basically recovered, though the doctor still exhorted him to avoid overexertion. But at this moment, the debugging work for the first commercial Controllable Nuclear Fusion reactor was about to start; he couldn't rest easy at all and stayed in the Main Control Room throughout, ready to handle emergencies at any time.

Inside the Main Control Room, the holographic projection screen clearly displayed the reactor's various parameters. The technical backbones of the R&D team gathered around the screen, making the final preparations before debugging. Academician Chen stood to the side, carefully checking the debugging plan and exchanging a few words with the technicians from time to time. Zhang Hongyuan was on-site coordinating resources from all parties to ensure the debugging work could proceed smoothly.

"Engineer Mu, all pre-debugging preparations are complete. The reactor systems are operating normally, and we can start the first plasma generation debugging at any time!" Dr. Chen, the head of the R&D team, walked up to Mu Li and reported in an excited tone.

Mu Li nodded, his gaze sweeping over everyone in the Main Control Room, and said in a firm tone, "Everyone, the first plasma generation debugging is a key step in the debugging work of the Controllable Nuclear Fusion reactor, and it's also a comprehensive test of our previous work. I require everyone to operate strictly according to the debugging plan and pay close attention to changes in parameters. If any abnormality occurs, report it immediately and activate the emergency plan."

"Understood!" everyone responded in unison, their eyes filled with fighting spirit and expectation.

"Start the first plasma generation debugging!" Mu Li ordered.

Dr. Chen immediately operated the console and pressed the start button. On the holographic projection screen in the Main Control Room, images of the reactor's interior were clearly presented. As energy was continuously input, the gas inside the reactor's Vacuum Chamber began to be ionized, gradually forming a faint cloud of plasma.

"plasma generation successful! Current temperature is 10 million degrees Celsius, density meets expectations, and stability is good!" a technician shouted excitedly.

A soft cheer rang out in the Main Control Room. A smile appeared on Mu Li's face as well, but he did not relax his vigilance, staring closely at the parameters on the screen: "Continue to increase energy input. Target temperature is 150 million degrees Celsius; this is the minimum temperature threshold for a Controllable Nuclear Fusion reaction."

"Received! Increasing energy input!"

The energy input slowly increased, and the temperature of the plasma also continued to rise. On the holographic projection screen, the color of the plasma gradually changed from a faint red to a dazzling white, and its volume was also expanding. All parameters fluctuated within the normal range, and everything was progressing in the expected direction.

"Temperature reached 120 million degrees Celsius! plasma stability is good!"

"Temperature 140 million degrees Celsius! All parameters are normal!"

Just as the temperature was about to reach 150 million degrees Celsius, an accident suddenly occurred. On the holographic projection screen, the brightness of the plasma suddenly intensified sharply, its volume expanded several times in an instant, and the temperature and density parameters began to fluctuate violently.

"Not good! The plasma is showing signs of going out of control!" Dr. Chen's face changed drastically as he shouted, "Immediately reduce energy input! Activate the Magnetic Confinement Enhancement System!"

The technicians immediately operated according to the emergency plan, reducing energy input while activating the Magnetic Confinement Enhancement System. However, the speed at which the plasma went out of control far exceeded expectations; the magnetic field generated by the Magnetic Confinement Coil simply could not restrain the expanding plasma.

"Magnetic confinement failure! plasma temperature has broken through 200 million degrees Celsius! Vacuum Chamber pressure is rising sharply!" another technician shouted anxiously, a hint of trembling in his voice.

The atmosphere in the Main Control Room instantly became tense. Everyone knew that once the plasma broke through the Vacuum Chamber, it would not only lead to severe damage to the reactor but could also trigger a violent explosion, dealing a devastating blow to the construction site and the surrounding area.

"Immediately activate the Emergency Cooling System! Cut off all energy input!" Mu Li said calmly, without a hint of panic in his tone. In the face of an emergency, his calmness settled everyone down.

The technicians immediately executed Mu Li's order, activating the Emergency Cooling System and cutting off all energy input. However, after the Emergency Cooling System was activated, the temperature and volume of the plasma were not effectively controlled; instead, they continued to rise and expand.

"Emergency Cooling System failure! The Vacuum Chamber is about to be unable to withstand the pressure!"

Academician Chen frowned, quickly analyzing the parameters on the screen: "It's the plasma turbulence causing the energy to be unable to conduct effectively; the Emergency Cooling System can't function! We must find a way to stabilize the plasma turbulence to regain control of the situation!"

Mu Li immediately walked to the console, his fingers quickly sliding across the screen to check the reactor's technical parameters and design blueprints. His brain worked at high speed, thinking of a solution. Suddenly, he thought of the Intelligent Equipment Fault Diagnosis System he had just unlocked and the rewarded Controllable Nuclear Fusion Reactor Debugging and Optimization Technology.

"Immediately activate the Intelligent Equipment Fault Diagnosis System to analyze the specific cause of the plasma going out of control!" Mu Li said to the technicians, while simultaneously invoking the relevant plans from the Controllable Nuclear Fusion Reactor Debugging and Optimization Technology in his mind.

[Intelligent Equipment Fault Diagnosis System activated, analyzing cause of plasma loss of control... Analysis complete: plasma turbulence is caused by uneven magnetic field distribution of the Magnetic Confinement Coil. It is recommended to adjust the current distribution of the Magnetic Confinement Coil to form a Dynamic Magnetic Field to stabilize the plasma turbulence.] The system's voice rang in Mu Li's mind.

Mu Li was overjoyed and immediately said to Dr. Chen and the technicians, "The plasma turbulence is caused by the uneven magnetic field distribution of the Magnetic Confinement Coil. We can adjust the current distribution of the Magnetic Confinement Coil to form a Dynamic Magnetic Field to stabilize the plasma turbulence. The specific plan is to increase the current of Magnetic Confinement Coil No. 1, 3, and 5 by 15%, and decrease the current of coils No. 2, 4, and 6 by 10%, forming an alternating Dynamic Magnetic Field to suppress the spread of turbulence."

Dr. Chen's eyes lit up: "This plan is feasible! A Dynamic Magnetic Field can effectively break the stable structure of plasma turbulence, thereby stabilizing the plasma."

The technicians immediately adjusted the current distribution of the Magnetic Confinement Coil according to Mu Li's plan. On the holographic projection screen in the Main Control Room, the magnetic field distribution image of the Magnetic Confinement Coil gradually changed, forming an alternating Dynamic Magnetic Field.

"Dynamic Magnetic Field successfully formed! Monitoring plasma status!"

Everyone stared closely at the screen, their hearts filled with expectation and tension. A few seconds later, the brightness of the plasma on the screen gradually weakened, its volume began to shrink, and the temperature and density parameters also gradually stabilized.

"plasma turbulence suppressed! Temperature returned to 150 million degrees Celsius! All parameters are trending toward stability!" the technician shouted excitedly.

Thunderous cheers erupted in the Main Control Room. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, faces showing smiles of having survived a disaster. Mu Li also let out a long breath, a layer of fine sweat beads seeping from his forehead. The few minutes just now were undoubtedly one of the most tense moments since he had engaged in new energy technology research and development.

"Engineer Mu, you are too amazing! If you hadn't proposed the solution in time, the consequences would have been unimaginable!" Dr. Chen said excitedly.

"This is the result of everyone's collective efforts," Mu Li said with a smile. "The crisis just now also allowed us to discover problems existing in the debugging process. Next, we must organize the technical staff to analyze the cause of this plasma loss of control in detail and optimize the debugging plan to ensure subsequent debugging work can proceed smoothly."

"Understood!"

That afternoon, Mu Li organized the R&D team and Academician Chen to hold a plasma loss of control crisis analysis meeting. At the meeting, the technicians reported in detail the occurrence process of this crisis and the changes in various parameters, deeply analyzing the reasons for the uneven magnetic field distribution of the Magnetic Confinement Coil.

"After analysis, we found that the uneven magnetic field distribution of the Magnetic Confinement Coil was mainly due to tiny deviations in the installation precision of the coils. Although such deviations met requirements during the installation phase, they are infinitely amplified under high energy input, leading to uneven magnetic field distribution and triggering plasma turbulence and loss of control," said a technical backbone of the R&D team.

Academician Chen nodded: "This also reminds us that during the commissioning phase of the Controllable Nuclear Fusion reactor, the requirements for equipment installation precision are even higher than we imagined. We need to re-detect and adjust the installation precision of all Magnetic Confinement Coil to ensure a uniform magnetic field distribution."

Mu Li pondered for a moment and said: "I agree with Academician Chen's opinion. Next, we will proceed in two steps: First, Academician Chen will lead the technical team to re-detect and adjust the installation precision of all Magnetic Confinement Coil, using Laser Interferometers for precise calibration to ensure uniform magnetic field distribution. Second, the R&D team will combine the lessons learned from this crisis to optimize the commissioning plan, gradually increasing the energy input in the subsequent commissioning process to avoid another plasma loss-of-control situation."

"Additionally," Mu Li added, "the Intelligent Equipment Fault Diagnosis System must be turned on throughout the entire process to monitor various operating parameters of the reactor in real-time, providing early warnings for potential failures and ensuring the success of our commissioning work."

Over the next three days, the R&D team and the technical team led by Academician Chen devoted themselves wholeheartedly to the precision detection and adjustment of the Magnetic Confinement Coil. Using Laser Interferometers, they re-detected the installation precision of every single Magnetic Confinement Coil, discovering and adjusting several coils that had minute deviations. Mu Li also remained on-site throughout the process, participating in the detection and adjustment work and offering his own opinions and suggestions from time to time.

On the morning of the fourth day, the precision detection and adjustment of the Magnetic Confinement Coil were successfully completed. The R&D team also finished optimizing the commissioning plan, slowing down the rate of energy input increase and adding several intermediate test nodes to ensure that every step of the commissioning could proceed steadily.

"Engineer Mu, all preparations are complete. We can start the second plasma generation commissioning at any time!" Dr. Chen reported.

Mu Li nodded and walked into the Main Control Room once again. This time, although the atmosphere inside the Main Control Room was still tense, everyone's face showed a bit more composure and confidence. After the previous crisis, their technical level and emergency response capabilities had been greatly improved.

"Start the second plasma generation commissioning!"

At Mu Li's command, the technicians pressed the start button. Inside the reactor's Vacuum Chamber, the gas was ionized once again, forming a stable mass of plasma. This time, the rate of energy input increase was significantly slower; at every stage of the increase, the technicians would pause to carefully monitor the changes in various parameters.

"Temperature 50 million degrees Celsius, parameters stable!"

"Temperature 100 million degrees Celsius, magnetic field distribution is uniform, plasma stability is good!"

"Temperature 150 million degrees Celsius, reached the Controllable Nuclear Fusion reaction threshold!"

When the temperature reached 150 million degrees Celsius, the technicians paused the energy input increase to conduct a comprehensive check of the reactor's parameters. The results showed that all parameters were within the normal range, the plasma was running stably, and no abnormalities had occurred.

"Continue increasing energy input, target temperature 200 million degrees Celsius!" Mu Li ordered.

The energy input continued to rise, and the plasma temperature increased steadily. On the holographic projection screen, the color of the plasma became even more dazzling as it operated stably within the reactor's Vacuum Chamber.

"Temperature has reached 200 million degrees Celsius! Controllable Nuclear Fusion reaction successfully initiated! Energy conversion efficiency meets expectations!" the technician shouted excitedly, his voice tinged with a hint of a sob.

Thunderous cheers rang out in the Main Control Room once again. This time, the cheering was louder and more sustained than before. Everyone embraced each other excitedly, celebrating this historic moment.

Mu Li's eyes also welled up with tears. He knew that the arrival of this moment was inseparable from everyone's hard work and dedication. From the project's initiation to the R&D of core equipment, from the anti-typhoon emergency rescue to the installation of core equipment, and finally to today's successful initiation of the Controllable Nuclear Fusion reaction, they had overcome one technical hurdle after another, pouring in countless amounts of effort and sweat.

"You've all worked hard!" Mu Li stepped forward and said in a slightly hoarse voice, "The successful initiation of the Controllable Nuclear Fusion reaction is only our first step. Next, we still need to conduct long-term stable operation tests and optimize various reactor performances to ensure that the first commercial Nuclear Fusion Power Station can be completed and put into operation as soon as possible."

"Understood!" everyone responded in unison, their eyes filled with fighting spirit.

Over the next few days, the R&D team continued to conduct stable operation tests on the reactor. The reactor's operating state became better and better, with all parameters remaining within stable ranges and energy conversion efficiency constantly improving.

Just then, the system's voice rang in Mu Li's mind: [Detected that the host successfully led the team to initiate the Controllable Nuclear Fusion reaction, overcame the plasma loss-of-control crisis, and pushed the commissioning work of the first commercial Nuclear Fusion Power Station to achieve a major breakthrough. Completed the 'Fusion Initiation' plot challenge. Gained 150,000 system points. Current remaining points: 497,000 + 150,000 = 647,000 points.]

[Unlocked new function: Global Energy Dispatch Synergy System. It can achieve precise collaborative dispatch between Nuclear Fusion Power Stations and the national new energy network, improving energy utilization efficiency.]

[Received reward: Controllable Nuclear Fusion Reactor Long-term Stable Operation Technology. It can increase the operating lifespan of the reactor and reduce maintenance costs, laying the foundation for commercial operation.]

Mu Li was overjoyed. The 647,000 system points and the newly acquired technology gave him more confidence to push forward with the subsequent work. He immediately handed the Controllable Nuclear Fusion Reactor Long-term Stable Operation Technology to the R&D team, letting them optimize the reactor's operating parameters and maintenance plans based on the actual situation.

That afternoon, Wang Jianguo, the Director of the China Energy Administration, personally came to the Ji Province Nuclear Fusion Power Station construction site to visit and offer condolences to the frontline R&D and construction personnel. When he learned of the successful initiation of the Controllable Nuclear Fusion reaction, he said excitedly: "Engineer Mu, you have created history! The construction of the first commercial Nuclear Fusion Power Station will not only completely solve our country's energy shortage problem but also push our country's new energy technology to achieve leapfrog development, allowing our country to occupy a leading position in the global energy field!"

"This is inseparable from the strong support of the country," Mu Li said. "We will definitely speed up the subsequent work to ensure that the first commercial Nuclear Fusion Power Station can be completed and put into operation as soon as possible, contributing to the development of the country's energy cause."

Wang Jianguo nodded and said: "The state will continue to increase its support for the new energy industry, coordinate resources from all parties, and provide guarantees for the project's progress. In addition, the State Council has already decided to promote Controllable Nuclear Fusion Technology nationwide and build more commercial Nuclear Fusion Power Stations, so that clean and efficient new energy can benefit the people across the country as soon as possible."

Mu Li's heart was full of expectation. He knew that with the completion and operation of the first commercial Nuclear Fusion Power Station, the development of the domestic new energy industry would enter a brand-new stage. And his path to an energy empire would also welcome a broader space for development. But he also knew that the subsequent work was still full of challenges, such as the long-term stable operation testing of the reactor, the exploration of commercial operation models, and the collaborative dispatch of the new energy network.

That evening, Mu Li stood on a high point of the construction site, overlooking the brightly lit Nuclear Fusion Power Station. In the distance, the city lights and the construction site lights complemented each other, forming a beautiful picture. He knew that the completion of the first commercial Nuclear Fusion Power Station would bring a continuous stream of clean energy to this city and the entire country, driving rapid social and economic development.

Mu Li clenched his fist and made a silent vow in his heart: No matter how many difficulties and challenges lay ahead, he would lead his team forward, overcome all obstacles, and ensure that Controllable Nuclear Fusion Technology is widely applied throughout the country and even the world, achieving the great goal of a global energy revolution and leading humanity into a new era of clean, efficient, and sustainable new energy!