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Cold Fusion Heating Up -- Pending Review by U.S. Department
of Energy
Phenomenon discovered by Fleischmann and Pons in 1989,
then disavowed by the scientific establishment, but subsequently confirmed
worldwide in thousands of experiments, may finally be recognized as a
revolutionary discovery of science.
by Marc J. Plotkin
Pure Energy Systems News Service
March 27, 2004
FAIRFAX, VA USA
After fifteen years of wandering in the wilderness, the cold fusioneers
may finally see their field get the recognition they believe it deserves.
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30mw laser-triggered cold fusion cell
Letts Laboratory
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Since 1989, that small but growing band of scientists has persisted in trying
to verify the existence of low- energy nuclear reactions, at great personal
costs and in the face of overwhelming opposition and ridicule from the
mainstream physics community. But now, their persistence may finally be bearing
fruit. The New York Times reported on March 25, 2004, that the U.S. Department
of Energy has decided to give cold fusion a second look. At a meeting with
several top cold-fusion researchers, officials from the Department indicated
that given the Matterhorn of experimental evidence that has accumulated over the
past fifteen years, a second review was reasonable. The Departments findings
will be presented in December 2004 or January 2005.
Three days earlier, New Energy Times science journalists Steven Krivit and
Nadine Winocur have released a 50-page report on the current state of cold
fusion. According to this report, almost 15,000 cold fusion experiments have
been performed around the world since the field was declared anathema in 1989.
In the first years after the initial announcement, experimental results were
erratic and inconsistent, often with positive results occurring in only about 10
percent of the experiments. Within the last five years, however, successful
replications have been occurring much more frequently. Five years ago, the
Fleichmann-Pons effect had been observed in only about 45 percent of the
experiments performed. Now, according to Krivit and Winocur, the effect has been
reproduced at a rate of 83%. Experimenters in Japan, Romania, the United States,
and Russia have reported a reproducibility rate of 100 percent.
This experimental success is due in large measure to more refined methods of
measuring excess heat and detecting the signatures of nuclear reactions. Over
the years, experimenters have discovered that in order to obtain more robust
results, the ratio of deuterium atoms in the electrolyte solution to palladium
atoms in the cathode must be above a certain minimum threshold. This is referred
to as loading. The density of the electric current passing through the
system must likewise reach a certain threshold. More recently, it was discovered
that excess heat could be generated faster if the reaction could be triggered in
some fashion. In a paper presented at the 10th International Conference of Cold
Fusion, held at MIT in August 2003, researchers Dennis Cravens and Dennis Letts
presented a variety of methods that could be used to shock the system,
including current-pulsing, radio frequency excitations, and laser stimulation.
Actual experiments were carried out at the conference, and the results were
manifest for all to see.
According to Dr. Eugene Mallove, editor of Infinite Energy Magazine and a
passionate advocate of cold fusion development, the evidence of excess heat and
products from nuclear reactions is so extensive as to compel a finding that the
cold fusion phenomenon is real. Were it not for Dr. Mallove and others who kept
the faith, cold fusion might well have faded from the public consciousness.
When the Department of Energy decided to give cold fusion another hearing, it
made no public announcement and did not post any information about its decision
on its website. Nevertheless, Dr. Mallove remains confident that once the
Department evaluates the evidence in an open-minded and unbiased fashion, it
will reconsider its earlier rejection of cold fusion and pave the way for
funding of next-generation cold fusion research.
Whether or not cold fusion can be turned into a useful source of energy remains
uncertain. But the first step of that 1000-mile journey has been taken. The
existence of the phenomenon discovered by Fleischmann and Pons in 1989, then
disavowed by the scientific establishment, but subsequently confirmed worldwide
in thousands of experiments, may finally be recognized as a revolutionary
discovery of science. Cold Fusion may become hot news again.
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For Immediate Release:
http://www.prweb.com/releases/2004/3/prweb114697.htm
References
 The
Cold Fusion Report - based on personal communication with more than 50
scientists from around the world. Prominent U.S. scientists verify the
efficacy of this controversial discovery.
Links
See also
Page created by SDA,
March 26, 2004
Last updated July 16, 2005
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