Cold fusion

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Cold nuclear fusion is nuclear fusion at room temperature and normal pressure. Nuclear fusion is the process by which many nuclei, the center of an atom, containing protons and neutrons, are forced to join together to form a heavier nucleus (singular of nuclei) and during that process, energy is released. Some scientists hope that this may be Earth's future energy source, but many scientist do not agree.

For nuclear fusion to take place, you need a lot of energy. With this energy, you push the atoms together, which are repelled by the electrostatic force (a force between protons which are particles in the nucleus of the atom and have a positive electrical charge). But once you overcome this force and push the nuclei close enough together, another much more powerful force will take over: the strong nuclear force. It only operates at short distances, so when the nuclei are close enough, they attract each other because of the strong nuclear force which is stronger than the electrostatic force. It is hoped that the energy released by cold fusion is much greater than the energy used to push the atoms together. Some scientists have done experiments showing this is possible at room temperature. Sadly they are not always able to repeat their results, so many scientists do not believe them.

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