Project Elpis
A moral ambition fusion energy research activity with a short and moderate cost path to proof-of-concept, a new physics domain, a compact and modular design based on mature technologies, and strong scalability when deployed as a source of electricity or industrial heat.
Elpis is the spirit of hope in Greek mythology.
Started as a Focused Research Organization (FRO)
A novel structure for research teams proposed in 2020, designed to make efficient progress on scientific problems.
Not-for-profit, open science, lean, and scalable, they strive to combine the best of the startup, public institution, and corporate mindsets.
More information here and here. This piece is nice, similar, and one more, this too.
Unfortunately, adoption of new ideas takes a long time, independent of obvious benefits. The window closed for Elpis, which now operates as a traditional, curiosity-driven academic exercise with no fixed timeline or commercialization milestone.
figure: Convergent Research
Extended Benefits to Society
For-profit spin-off companies based around the enabling technologies could be actively developed.
More generally, working on wicked problems like fusion often leads to unexpected added value.
Initial Resource Targets
The original rapid development time and modest investment requirements combined with high efficiency from the FRO-style startup.
The initial target profile is contrasted with the ITER flagship fusion project, which is significantly under-resourced, resulting in continual cost and schedule overruns. ITER also operates within a cumbersome bureaupathological framework.
Successfully executing a baseline schedule always requires sufficient funding, but the small size of the Project Elpis device could have dramatically reduced the overall capital investment compared to many fusion concepts.
Global Ambition
At the inaugural meeting of the IAEA World Fusion Energy Group, there was broad interest in expanding fusion research to new countries. The question of implementation was raised.
Project Elpis uses technology that formed the basis of such an effort in the 1980s, and could facilitate an updated version of this program to help kickstart cost-effective fusion laboratories around the world.