How does arc reactor work

Basically it mashes two isotopes of hydrogen, deuterium and tritium, together at such high energies that they combine into one atom. When they fuse, the reaction produces helium and a free neutron. That energy can be captured as heat to run a traditional steam-driven turbine like any other power plant. It means there are charged particles moving in a circle, contained by a magnetic field. You may notice that current fusion reactor designs have a lot of magnet coils on the outside of the torus, whereas the Stark Industries arc reactor has a viewing window.

Plasma containment is the single biggest challenge for hot fusion, but the arc reactor makes it look effortless. From this we can conclude that a key technology in the full-scale arc reactor is a way to contain the reaction in a self-sustaining ring. This line of reasoning is definitely backed up by the toroidal field lines drawn in the Stark Industries arc reactor blueprints:. There is also a remarkable lack of cooling loops, turbines, or anything that a traditional thermal reactor would require.

Which means the arc reactor produces electricity directly, rather than by first generating heat. So it cannot be a hot-fusion reactor, or a traditional thermal-fission reactor. Back to the drawing board! Well, let us be of help.

The Arc Reactor is in the most basic sense, a fusion reactor. As we know, fusion involves the nuclear reaction between 2 lighter nuclei to form a heavier nuclei. The circular part of the Arc Reactor tells us that there are highly energized particles moving in a circular path due to magnetic field acting upon them,and thus generating energy through collisions, much like how the Large Hadron Collider works in real life.

We know from the movies that the Arc Reactor has a palladium core and emits a white-blue light indicating the presence of Cherenkov Radiation, a phenomenon which causes white-blue light to appear from an underwater reactor due to nuclear decay.

Palladium isotopes possess distinct nuclear properties, and as a result, the reactor produces more energy than required for it to keep running, meaning, it would be self sustaining! Palladium is also responsible for cold nuclear fusion, due to its ability to absorb hydrogen, as discovered by Thomas Graham. The ionization acts to delay the electron capture step until the atom encounters a free electron, and the high kinetic energy due to velocity increases the chances of electron capture occurring once an electron is encountered.

In effect, the radioactive decay of Pd can be started, stopped, and throttled by the device simply by controlling the ionization and circulation of the Pd The device's geometry and electromagnetic fields route the high-energy electrons from the Pd core towards the outer ring.

There, the electrons are captured by high-energy Pd ions. This electron capture process emits gamma rays, which are deflected inward to catalyze the beta decay of the Pd core. We have some good evidence for this gamma ray emission, because the suit's chestpiece unibeam weapon is clearly an emission of a large number of high-energy photons directly from the arc reactor.

Normally, the gamma rays are directed inward to catalyze the device's operation, but they can be directed outward in a concentrated energy beam weapon:. So to summarize: electrons project outward from the inner core, and gamma rays project inward from the outer ring. The ejection of electrons from the core towards the rim of the device produces an electrical cell capable of generating enormous voltage and current.

I can't speak for the next-gen "new element" arc reactor, but presumably, it replaces the palladium isotopes with a hypothetical element that also undergoes gamma-ray-mediated beta decay, but in a less-toxic and higher-output fashion. First, the reactor's glow :. It could be caused by the ionization arc, but I think Cherenkov radiation is a much better explanation. This is a special type of light emission that occurs when an energetic particle such as electron enters a medium like water or air at a speed faster than the speed of light in that medium.

The high-energy electron flux within the arc reactor would be a natural fit to generate this effect. This is a picture of an actual nuclear reactor producing Cherenkov radiation:. Notice the similarities? Unlike electrical arcs, the light from Cherenkov radiation is quiet, cool-blue, and fricken' awesome. This is a no-brainer -- the arc reactor's glow is definitely being produced by high-energy electron flux. Another aspect of the original model palladium arc reactor was poisoning due to "palladium toxicity.

I have a theory that fits the symptoms better. Remember, the proposed palladium decay reactions produce rhodium and silver. Excess internal silver is known to stain skin blue:. Rhodium compounds also stain skin, and are highly toxic. Chemical properties, Health and Environmental effects In fact, because most people have essentially zero exposure to rhodium, the toxicity of rhodium is very poorly-understood. This perfectly explains why Tony didn't seek help from the medical establishment for his accumulated heavy metal toxicity -- because he knew the doctors wouldn't know how to deal with rhodium poisoning.

This is a no-brainer — the arc reactor's glow is definitely being produced by high-energy electron flux. Another aspect of the original model palladium arc reactor was poisoning due to "palladium toxicity". It's very possible that palladium is simply being ejected from the device into Tony's blood by all the high-energy collisions going on, but this doesn't explain the freaky circuit-looking lines on his chest, and it doesn't explain why doctors can't help him. I have a theory that fits the symptoms better.

Remember, the proposed palladium decay reactions produce rhodium and silver. Excess internal silver is known to stain skin blue:. Rhodium compounds also stain skin, and are highly toxic. Chemical properties, Health and Environmental effects In fact, because most people have essentially zero exposure to rhodium, the toxicity of rhodium is very poorly-understood. This perfectly explains why Tony didn't seek help from the medical establishment for his accumulated heavy metal toxicity — because he knew the doctors wouldn't know how to deal with rhodium poisoning.

Tony Stark didn't have simple palladium poisoning, he had "palladium decay-product" poisoning! So you see, everything fits together perfectly. I will start working on my own arc reactor prototype and will post updates when I produce a working replica. This answer has been lightly edited for grammar and clarity. I hope this was all intentional so that Tony would be affected by Rhodium poisoning while keeping himself alive. The A. About Gizmodo Advisor Gizmodo Store.

By Ryan Carlyle - Quora. Science Physics. Because his friend is Rhodey.