I am devoted to scientific research, but you want to trick me into having a love relationship?

Chapter 739 I almost forgot this kid is rich

graduate School.

The two sat sipping tea and chatting about the development of controlled nuclear fusion at home and abroad. Currently, nuclear fusion is moving from the laboratory to engineering applications, and according to the current trend, it is expected to be commercialized around 2030, reshaping the global energy landscape.

In 2019, global investment in the nuclear fusion industry was approximately $70 billion. In 2020, it surged to $270 billion, and this year it will certainly be another level.

Du Changdao pondered for a moment and said, "I've looked at the funding for controlled nuclear fusion this year, and you only received 1 million. If you need anything, just let me know. Although we can't help you much, we can still help write a letter or two."

This year, the national special fund for nuclear fusion energy development research is 210 billion yuan.

It's astonishing that Xu Qingzhou, a Nobel laureate, only received this little bit of funding for his project.

The subtle relationship between Xu Qingzhou and Zhang Zhigao is no secret in the industry, and as the person in charge of this part of the funding in China, it would be easy for Zhang Zhigao to obstruct the process.

But everything was in accordance with the procedure, leaving no room for criticism.

As the family of the Materials Research Institute, they certainly couldn't stand by and watch Xu Qingzhou be bullied.

Xu Qingzhou was very touched, but still said, "Don't worry, this little difficulty is nothing to us. The research institute is currently able to break even. If we encounter any difficulties, we will definitely ask you for help."

"I almost forgot you're rich."

Du Changdao chuckled. According to external estimates, the market value of Zero Point Technology, the company behind the research institute, has exceeded 100 billion yuan. He paused for a moment, then asked with a smile, "I heard you're planning to set up an AI computing center?"

“Yes, as you know, AI is definitely one of the key areas of competition in the future. I plan to develop it as soon as possible so that I won’t be at the mercy of others later.” Xu Qingzhou nodded.

"To be frank, Xia Guo is indeed at a disadvantage in AI."

Du Changdao said, "The School of Computer Science at Peking University is also working on AI. If you're willing, our two schools can cooperate."

"Okay, I'll have Lao Ji make the arrangements."

Xu Qingzhou naturally had no objection to this. As a domestic university, Peking University was quite strong in the field of computer science, and he was really envious of the old professors at Peking University.

Especially for senior professors who have been rooted in the industry for decades, their entire being exudes the word "experience".

"Then I'll go back and have a meeting to discuss it."

Du Changdao stayed in Xu Qingzhou's office for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea before getting up to go back.

"I'll see you off."

"Wait a minute, I just came here to have a cup of tea, don't delay your business."

At the office door, Du Changdao waved to Xu Qingzhou, indicating that he didn't need to see him off. However, at this moment, he seemed to remember something, and his expression turned serious. "Oh, right, there's something very important I need to tell you beforehand."

"You say."

"My group of professors are here to help; you can't take advantage of them."

Professors from the School of Physics, the School of Chemistry, and the School of Biological Sciences often come here to borrow equipment.

Du Changdao had no doubt that if this kid just beckoned, all the old professors from the Chemistry Department would probably come running over here.

He was envious of those who could easily amass hundreds of millions of dollars.

Despite the large annual budget of Peking University, when divided among each research group and project, there is hardly anything left, let alone the extravagant spending of people like Xu Qingzhou, who can easily spend hundreds of millions on a single piece of equipment.

luxury.

Then look at them, they have to hold countless discussions when they encounter major expenses, and the budget is saved and cut again and again.

Xu Qingzhou's expression stiffened for a moment, but he quickly recovered and assured her, "Don't worry, this won't happen."

The experienced Daoist Du Chang had already noticed the oddity in Xu Qingzhou's expression. This kid definitely had something up his sleeve. However, he chuckled to himself and didn't take it to heart.

Water flows downhill, and people strive for higher positions; this is an age-old truth.

Although it pained him, he has always supported the movement of talent.

The main theme is "The green hills remain unchanged and the clear waters flow forever".

Moreover, if these professors go to Xu Qingzhou's research institute, it's not much different from them going to Peking University, since Peking University and the research institute are essentially in cahoots.

It's a good thing to let people from Kyoto University spread their influence within the system.

It helps enhance Kyoto University's soft power, and these people also feel proud.

By the end of February, the expert team from Kyoto University had arrived. One part was responsible for assisting in the research on the corrosion mechanism of the first wall material, while the other part was responsible for the control of impurities in the curved section and the recovery of hydrogen isotopes in the negative triangle design.

With the addition of experts from Peking University, the speed of each project has improved considerably.

On the 26th, good news came from Li Yi: the nanoporous tungsten membrane design was completed.

Preliminary tests show that the product performance reaches 20 MW/m heat load + 5-year lifespan + near-zero radiation damage, which basically meets Xu Qingzhou's design goals.

This is undoubtedly fantastic news for the research institute.

Nanoporous tungsten membranes can be applied to first-wall materials and divertors, which are areas that the research institute is currently working on.

After Li Yi returned, Wang Wei was dispatched to the Institute of Plasma Physics. As one of the leaders of the quantum sensing magnetic field monitoring system, he assisted the EAST (Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak) in upgrading the monitoring system.

In early March, a fast-moving cold front directly lowered the temperature in Kyoto by 8 degrees Celsius, and a layer of tree-like frost flowers formed on the inside of the glass.

Xu Qingzhou held a cup of hot tea, stood by the window, and relaxed his mind. The grass and trees were withered and yellow, and the bare branches still had traces of snow from the previous few days.

"Actually, compared to other institutions, the Institute of Plasma Physics has much more courage."

He admired Li Gang and his team's determination to make tough decisions, and he knew how troublesome it was for a large organization like EAST to upgrade its supporting facilities.

For example, at the Southwest Institute of Nuclear Physics, his conflict with Zhang Zhigao was one issue, and the complicated upgrade process was another.

The technology is too uncertain; if it fails, several months will be wasted.

The costs incurred—time, money, and manpower—are staggering.

Upgrading and modifying existing equipment is simple and quick, and the results will be seen soon.

If the nanoporous tungsten membrane is designed, the downtime of EAST will probably be longer. After all, it would be better to do it all at once and integrate the nanoporous tungsten membrane technology into the device simultaneously than to do it in two separate steps.

Even if it falls behind in the short term, once the upgrade is complete, its performance will be at least half a generation ahead of other devices.

"The trend of development in the field of controlled nuclear fusion is unstoppable. In this era of rapid technological change, sticking to the old ways will only make us fall behind."

Xu Qingzhou sighed, stretched, and turned back to his seat.

Although Li Yi brought good news, time was still extremely tight.

There are less than two months left until the scheduled installation deadline.

A few minutes ago, Professor Zhao Shengwen sent over the latest negative triangular plasma test data.

He opened the email and carefully read through the data in the spreadsheet.

He then bent down to write the proposal.

(End of this chapter)