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Whatever Happened to Cold Fusion?

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Whatever Happened to Cold Fusion? Whatever Happened to Cold Fusion? According to everything we know about the behavior of mat­ ter and nuclei, by David L. Goodstein cold fusion is impossible. On December 6-9, 1993, the Fourth Inter­ more fuel for external critics, if anyone outside national Conference on Cold Fusion took place the group was bothering to listen. In these cir­ on the island of Maui, in Hawaii. It had all the cumstances, crackpots flourish, making matters trappings of a normal scientific meeting. Two worse for those who believe that there is serious hundred and fifty scientists took part, mostly science going on here. In the five and a half years since the from the United States and Japan (hence the The origins of cold fusion have been loudly Caltech Three burst site in Hawaii), but also a sprinkling from Italy, and widely documented in the press and popular the cold fusion France, Russia, China, and other countries. More literature. Pons and Fleischmann, fearing they bubble, they've done very little with the than 150 scientific papers were presented on sub­ were abour to be scooped by a competitor named subject beyond jects such as calorimetry, nuclear theory, materi­ Steven Jones from nearby Brigham Young Uni­ keeping track of the als, and so on. The founders of the field, Stanley versity, and with the encouragement of their own literature and posing for this picture: from Pons and Martin Fleischmann, were in atten­ administration, held a press conference on March left, Nate Lewis, pro­ dance and were treated with the deference due 23,1989, at the University of Utah, to announce fessor of chemistry; their celebrity status. Pons and Fleischmann what seemed to be the scientific discovery of the Steve Koonin, profes­ sor of theoretical carry out their research today in a laboratory built century. Nuclear fusion, producing usable physics; and Charles for them in Nice, on the French Riviera, by amounts of heat, could be induced to take place Barnes, professor of TECHNOVA, a subsidiary of Toyota. At the on a tabletop by electrolyzing heavy water, using physics, emeritus. meeting it was announced that the Japanese trade electrodes made of palladium and platinum, two ministry, MITI, has committed $30 million over precious metals. If so, the world's energy prob­ a period of four years to support research on what lems were at an end, to say nothing of the fiscal was delicately called "new hydrogen energy," difficulties of the University of Utah. What including cold fusion. followed was a kind offeeding frenzy, science by Contrary to appearances, however, this was no press conference and e-mail, confirmations and normal scientific conference. Cold fusion is a disconfirmations, claims and retractions, ugly pariah field, cast our by the scientific establish­ charges and obfuscation, science gone berserk. ment. Between cold fusion and respectable For all practical purposes, it ended a mere five science there is virtually no communication at all. weeks after it began, on May 1, 1989, at a dra­ Cold fusion papers are almost never published in matic session of the American Physical Society, refereed scientific journals, with the result that in Baltimore. Although there were numerous Reprinted from The those works don't receive the normal critical presentations at this session, only two really American Scholar, scrutiny that science requires. On the other counted. Steven Koonin and Nathan Lewis, Volume 63, Number 4, hand, because the cold-fusioners see themselves as speaking for himself and Charles Barnes, all three Autumn 1994. a community under siege, there is little internal from Caltech, executed between them a perfect Copyright© by the criticism. Experiments and theories tend to be slam-dunk that cast cold fusion right out of the author. accepted at face value, for fear of providing even arena of mainstream science. Engineering & SciencelF all 1994 15 At a press conference on March 23, 1989 at the University of Utah, R. Stanley Pons (left) and Martin Fleisch­ mann announced that they had created nuclear fusion at room temperature in the flask they display here. When other scientists got through debunking what was supposed to be the discovery of the century, cold fusion looked effectively dead. Before I go any further in telling this tale, old. The reason is that, in the corrupt Italian 1 think I'd better come clean about my own system that has collapsed only recently, these prejudices. (Those of us concerned about the promotions were based on political affiliation issue of conflicts of interest in academic life refer more than scientific accomplishment. For every to this as "disclosure." It's supposed to help two Christian Democrats promoted, there would protect us from sin.) The Caltech protagonists, also be a new Socialist, a Communist, and some­ Steve Koonin, Nate Lewis, and Charlie Barnes, one from one of the smaller parties among the are not only my faculty colleagues, I count them ranks of the Dirigenti. Franco had not been The chemists had all among my personal friends of many years. On promoted because he refused to join a political beaten the physi­ the other hand, there is a player on the other side party in order to advance his professional career cists, little science of this game who is also one of my oldest personal as a scientist. Franco is, in other words, a man friends, and who is, besides, my longtime scien­ of unflinching integrity. had beaten big tific collaborator. His story is one that, because On the morning of April 18, 1989, Franco science, cleverness it took place outside the United States, was called to warn me that 1 would find his picture in largely off the radar screen of our journalists and the New York Times the next day (1 did). He had had prevailed popular authors. Nevertheless, the story is worth just come out of a press conference announcing over brute force, telling. It shows at the very least that the frenzy the discovery of a new kind of cold fusion. two humble pro­ that began in Utah was not an isolated or unique Like scientists everywhere, he had heard of the phenomenon. Utah announcement and decided to give it a try. fessors from Utah My friend, Professor Francesco (Franco) He reasoned that electrolysis wasn't really neces­ had won out over Scaramuzzi, is the head of a smalliow-tempera­ sary. It served only to get deuterium (the hydro­ ture physics research group at a nationallaborato­ gen isotope in heavy water) to insert itself into the aristocrats ry in Frascati (a suburb of Rome), Italy, run by an the atomic lattice of the palladium electrode. He of bicoastal, agency called ENEA, roughly analogous to our also thought it necessary that the system not be Department of Energy. It is possible within this in thermodynamic equilibrium. He and his non-Mormon agency for a scientist like my friend Franco to be handful of young scientists and technicians America. promoted to the rank of Dirigente (executive). arranged to put some titanium shavings in a cell The promotion would not change in any substan­ pressurized with deuterium gas (titanium is both tial way his assignment or responsibilities, but it cheaper and easier to get hold of than palladium, would carry with it very substantial financial and, like palladium, it is a metal that absorbs rewards and much prestige. Although Franco large quantities of hydrogen or deuterium into was certainly one of the laboratory's more dis­ its atomic crystal lattice). Then they used some tinguished scientists long before cold fusion liquid nitrogen (a refrigerant readily available in appeared on the scene, he had not been awarded any low-temperature physics laboratory) to run this promotion by 1989, when he was 61 years the temperature of the cell up and down, thus 16 Engineering & SCienceIFall1994 Italy. W ithin days, Parliament had approved fi nancing fat ENEA and Franco had been pro­ moted to Dirigente. The agency was solvent once more, and Franco's personal salary had increased overnight from one that would be meager for an Ameri can postdoc ro one that would be generous fo r an American full professor. He had also become the Italian Prometheus, stealing fire fro m the sun. My very reserved , co rrect, self-effacing friend was a med ia celebri ty, suddenly the most famous scientist in Italy. W hen I came to visit just a few months later, in the summer of 1989, he handed me two books, each twO or th ree inches thi ck, of photOcopies of his press notices in Italy and abroad. Although it happened far offstage for most Americans, what happened in Italy had mi rrored in many impor­ tant ways the feedi ng fre nzy in the United States. Meanwhile, back in For one thing, pecuniary motives had driven Italy, physicists at the science out of the laborato ry ioto the blinding ENEA lab in Franscati continued experi­ glare of publicity. For another, the story instant­ m ents on Fusione ly captured the public fancy. Not only were the Fredda . Here, two creating thermodynamic disequili brium. The gallant scientists about to resc ue us fro m the grip days after the April press conference crude apparatus was not suitable for the difficult of the greedy oil barons (the whole affair took announcing their measurement needed co tell whether any heat place just shortly after the Exxon Valdez inc i­ observat ions cre ated was being generated, but fusion should produce dem), the story was spiced with lots of delicious a national furor, members of the lab neutrons (that is what Steven J ones had claimed ironies. In America, mere chemists, spending stay busy.
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