Good Clean Energy

For decades, Field-Reversed Configurations (FRCs) have been one of the most attractive opportunities in fusion because of the large power output, but one of the biggest doubts was whether they scale to power plant conditions. Conventional wisdom says the higher the temperature, the less stable plasma would become. But now according to TAE’s new paper, that roadblock has been cleared. In this episo...

In this episode, Matthew Lipka from TAE’s Policy & Global Affairs team explores how policy is shaping and accelerating the future of fusion energy in the United States. He shares his work educating policymakers on the trade-offs between different energy technologies—and why government leadership is essential to advancing next-generation solutions. Compared to fission, fusion is a cleaner, safe...

In this episode, Kyoto Fusioneering co-founder Dr. Richard Pearson shares how his company is supplying the essential technology components others need to succeed. Rather than building reactors, Kyoto focuses on the “picks and shovels” of fusion, including systems such as:  Gyrotrons: High-frequency microwave devices to heat plasma in magnetic fusion reactors.  Fuel Cycle Systems: Enablin...

In this episode, TAE Director of Computational Science Sean Dettrick explores the groundbreaking role of simulation in advancing commercial fusion. Since joining TAE in 2002, Dettrick has led efforts to build a "digital twin" of fusion reactors—high-fidelity simulations that mirror the physical machines under development, allowing researchers to predict and optimize reactor behavior without physic...

Good Clean Energy is a podcast that tackles one of the most existential questions of our time: how to build a world with abundant, affordable, carbon-free electricity. This season we’re going to unpack what TAE is working on to make fusion energy a reality. In this episode, TAE Director of Diagnostics Thomas Roche discusses his groundbreaking paper that showcases a significant advancement in fusio...

Good Clean Energy is a podcast that tackles one of the most existential questions of our time: how to build a world with abundant, affordable, carbon-free electricity. This season we’re going to unpack what TAE is working on to make fusion energy a reality. In this episode, TAE CEO Michl Binderbauer dives deep into a specific fusion machine design called the Field-Reversed Configuration that TAE h...

Roughly 42% of energy-related carbon emissions come from households—our cars, water heaters, furnaces, dryers, cooktops and where we get our energy. Stephen Pantano, head of Market Transformation for Rewiring America , joins Good Clean Energy to explain how replacing fossil-fueled machines at home with electric ones is a critical and achievable strategy for reaching net zero emissions in the U.S. ...

At COP28, U.S. Climate Envoy John Kerry announced a major fusion strategy for the world.  Former U.S. Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz joins Good Clean Energy from Dubai to break down this White House plan to bring fusion to market as fast as possible. For a full transcript, head to the episode page . Listen and Follow 'Good Clean Energy' on Apple Podcasts Listen and Follow 'Good Cl...

Cement accounts for 8 percent of global CO2 emissions. The production of one ton of Portland cement — the kind most commonly used — results in one ton of CO2 released into the atmosphere. And since cement is exceptionally cheap and the most massively produced man-made material in the world, those emissions are going to grow. “In a do-nothing scenario, emissions from cement are projected to increas...

Anu Khan, Deputy Director of Science and Innovation at the nonprofit Carbon180 , joins Good Clean Energy to discuss the ins and outs of removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Throughout the industrial era, we’ve emitted roughly 2 trillion tons of carbon dioxide, 1 trillion of which is still in the atmosphere today and is going to continue to cause warming for an extended period of time. Most...

What are the biggest challenges to widespread adoption of electric vehicles? Cost, range anxiety and charge time. Kedar Munipella, CEO of TAE Power Solutions ,  joins the show to talk about how his company solves for all that. Working with a radical new approach to power distribution, battery performance is optimized and charge time is reduced. That, in turn, will make EVs less expensive. For show...

Industrial heat accounts for 25% of global energy consumption to make products ranging from steel to cement to paper and so many other things you've probably never thought about. It’s a huge chunk of our climate problem — and it’s uniquely hard to decarbonize. That’s where John O’Donnell’s company, Rondo Energy , steps in. Rondo is using hot bricks to store energy as heat. And since industria...

Priya Donti, co-founder and executive director of Climate Change AI, joins Good Clean Energy to talk about the role AI and machine learning can play in transforming America's power grid to optimize clean power production and consumption. For show notes and a full transcript, head to the episode page . Listen and Follow 'Good Clean Energy' on Apple Podcasts Listen and Follow 'Go...

Dr. Ernie Moniz, an acclaimed nuclear physicist and former U.S. Secretary of Energy,  joins Good Clean Energy again to discuss the film “Oppenheimer” and the dawn of the nuclear age through the lens of today. For show notes and a full transcript, head to the episode page . Listen and Follow 'Good Clean Energy' on Apple Podcasts Listen and Follow 'Good Clean Energy' on Spotify H...

Willy Shih, Professor of Management Practice in Business Administration at Harvard Business School, joins Good Clean Energy to talk about the impact of the Inflation Reduction Act on reshoring manufacturing and how it can help the U.S. reassert itself as a leader in innovation, particularly in the transition to clean energy. For show notes and a full transcript, head to the episode page . Listen a...

 About 90 percent of the world's trade is transported by sea, on giant polluting cargo ships that burn particularly dirty oil. Last week, the International Maritime Organization, the UN body responsible for regulating  global shipping, set a new CO2 reduction target for the industry to get to net zero by 2050. To help us make sense of the transition that will need to happen, Maria Gallucci ,...

Paul Eremenko, co-founder and CEO of Universal Hydrogen , believes that there is a relatively simple way to solve the aviation industry’s carbon emissions problem. Today’s sustainable fuels aren’t really all that sustainable, he says, and electric planes, while great in theory, don’t scale. That leaves one obvious choice for Eremenko: green hydrogen. “There is a very significant sort of low-hangin...

As a former chairman of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission with both a law background as well as a PhD in applied physics, Richard "Dick" Meserve is uniquely qualified to speak on the future of both nuclear fission and fusion in the U.S.  “We have a huge challenge in confronting climate change, and it's my view that we need to marshal all the resources we can to address it,&quot...

Jamie Alexander is working to make capitalism compatible with a climate-safe world. Alexander is the director of Drawdown Labs, a branch of the nonprofit organization Project Drawdown that works directly with corporations to think beyond net zero and use their existing social, political, financial, and employee power to accelerate climate solutions at an unprecedented scale. "The more that co...

Jane Hotchkiss, the president and cofounder of nonprofit Energy for the Common Good , is on a mission to educate the public about the promise of fusion and to support the buildout of a future fusion energy sector. For the full transcript, head to the episode page. Listen and Follow 'Good Clean Energy' on Apple Podcasts Listen and Follow 'Good Clean Energy' on Spotify Hosted on...

 Gaia Vince, a science journalist and the author of Nomad Century: How To Survive The Climate Upheaval, joins the show to talk about how climate change and energy will play a factor in mass migration to come. For a full transcript, head over to the episode page .  Listen and Follow 'Good Clean Energy' on Apple Podcasts Listen and Follow 'Good Clean Energy' on Spotify Hosted on...

The U.S. power grid is old. On average, it’s 40 years old — a quarter of the grid is 50 years old and there are parts that are 100 years old. And as we strive for a net-zero future, that grid is going to play a massive role, says Christina Hayes, Executive Director of Americans for a Clean Energy Grid , a coalition focused on preparing the U.S. grid for new renewable and clean energy sources. For...

Col. Terry Virts, a former NASA astronaut and commander of the International Space Station, believes we need to focus on smarter ways to abate carbon emissions. "In every way, if you can get clean, abundant energy, human life is better.” For a full transcript, head to the episode page . Listen and Follow 'Good Clean Energy' on Apple Podcasts Listen and Follow 'Good Clean Energy...

Scientists at TAE and the National Institute for Fusion Science in Japan have demonstrated the first-ever hydrogen-boron fusion experiments in a magnetically confined fusion plasma. Rich Magee, Senior Director of Physics Research and Development at TAE, joins the show to break down this promising achievement in the development of fusion power with hydrogen-boron, the cleanest, most cost-competitiv...

Kaylee Cunningham is a PhD student at MIT in nuclear engineering and a popular TikTok influencer who’s focused on communicating about the potential for nuclear power. She joins the show to talk about small modular reactors, how NRC regulations affect the nuclear industry, and how she addresses people's worries about nuclear waste and meltdowns. For a full transcript, head to the episode page...