Both the merging of atomic nuclei (nuclear fusion) and their splitting (nuclear fission), release a lot of energy. Nuclear energy is a potential building block for a more sustainable energy economy. However, the technology must then be available, affordable, clean and safe. In principle, nuclear fusion has some significant advantages over nuclear fission technology, especially in terms of waste and safety issues. The development of a continuously operating fusion reactor has been hard at work for decades. However, due to technical as well as political and administrative obstacles, there is no concrete prospect yet of a commercially available product that can be implemented on a large scale. For this reason, nuclear fusion does not feature in most scenarios for our future energy supply. The question is whether development can be accelerated and, if so, what is technically/scientifically needed to do so. Nuclear fission would be better positioned as a sustainable energy option if there were a convincing solution to the issues around safety and waste in particular. The question is what opportunities science and technology can offer to force a breakthrough here that also convinces the public. The Netherlands has traditionally been an important and valued participant in international nuclear fusion programmes and has good knowledge of nuclear technology and safety.
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Addressing this question requires a multidisciplinary effort from fields such as physics, materials science and mechanical engineering. The development of nuclear fusion in a European context involves many high-tech companies. The progress of this research offers economic opportunities. However, European research depends on European regulations and decision-making processes. In nuclear fission, because of its relationship with the arms industry, early emphasis has been placed on the use of uranium. Another option is to build reactors based on the element thorium. Such a thorium reactor can be built more safely and poses fewer waste problems, so it also has less impact on the environment. Around the issue of nuclear energy, attention to social acceptance and interaction with politics, both nationally and internationally, are essential.
