Collaboration drives fusion innovation

In the past 10 years, numerous privately funded companies have emerged with the goal of producing commercial energy from nuclear fusion. Now, many of these startup companies are drawing on Los Alamos’ fusion expertise. Kathleen McDonald helps facilitate these partnerships in her role as a commercialization manager for the Lab’s Richard P. Feynman Center for Innovation. The center helps businesses and organizations work with Los Alamos to turn research into practical products and solutions. 

“Tremendous capabilities exist at the Lab to support the fusion energy community,” McDonald says. “Our legacy of national security–related fusion research positions Los Alamos as an ideal partner in topics around materials for fusion, fuels, diagnostics, target fabrication, and more.” She explains that Los Alamos supports companies by sharing advice and technical approaches based on the Lab’s decades of research. “Our goal is to provide a path for the Lab to collaborate with industry partners on research and development efforts that will benefit the nation’s economic competitiveness,” she says, adding, “Los Alamos can provide technical expertise that, in collaboration with technical experts at the companies, enable concepts to be advanced from theory to practical application.”

Often, these partnerships are formalized through Cooperative Research and Development Agreements or CRADAs. So far, the Lab has established three CRADAs with private fusion companies and two more are in the works. McDonald says Los Alamos has also formed strategic partnership projects in fusion-related technology with other companies. “Each company is pursuing a different approach to fusion or is focused on a different aspect of technology,” she says.

John Kline, the Fusion Energy Sciences program manager at Los Alamos, is working closely with many of the private companies to build relationships and enable success. “These companies are developing capabilities that support our national security mission,” Kline says. “By engaging with industry, we can make research and development economical and viable,” he adds, noting that private companies often work at a faster pace and pursue different areas of research than the national labs.

A recent memorandum signed by deputy Laboratory directors Bob Webster and Pat Fitch emphasized the importance of these partnerships. The memorandum states, “it is in the interest of LANL and the nation for LANL to actively engage with private fusion companies to collaboratively drive advancements in fusion understanding and modeling, to benefit from access to cutting-edge experimental facilities for our mission, and to tap into a skilled workforce now and in the future.” The memorandum goes on to explain that industry partners can contribute agility, innovation, and commercialization pathways, while the Lab will provide mission alignment, infrastructure, and credibility. The document notes that several private sector companies are proposing to develop high yield fusion facilities that the Lab could potentially use for mission-relevant experiments.

Kline points out that the companies currently working with the Lab each have different approaches and culture. He also says that the more people working on fusion research, the faster the technology will evolve and improve. 

“More companies pursuing fusion research means more data,” Kline says. “The more data we can get, the better our science will be.” 

Kline feels excited and optimistic about these new relationships. “Private companies have disruptive approaches and will test new ideas and engage in creative problem-solving. Working with them helps further the development of fusion energy and help the Lab fulfill its national security mission. Together, we will grow.” ★