Column by Dominick Bindl – VP of Technical Development at Realta Fusion
About Realta Fusion
Realta Fusion is a cutting-edge fusion energy company revolutionizing the way we decarbonize industrial process heat and electricity.
About Dominick Bindl
A Wisconsin native, Dominick received his PhD in Materials Science at UW-Madison. After working across the country in R&D, Dominick returned to Wisconsin in 2016 to focus on Green Tech Development which led to his current position as VP of Technical Development at Realta Fusion.
HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN IN OUR STATE? TELL US ABOUT THE ROAD THAT LED YOU TO WISCONSIN.
I’m a native son of Wisconsin. Though my career has taken me across the country, I seem to always find my way home. I grew up on a farm in the driftless area before pursuing my Bachelor’s degree at the University of Minnesota. I came back to do my PhD at UW-Madison before starting my private sector career in R&D at Intel in Portland, OR. I moved back to Wisconsin in 2016 to focus my career on Green Tech Development.
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE PART ABOUT BEING A WISCONSIN RESIDENT?
Wisconsin has a lot to offer and I specifically enjoy spending time outdoors in Wisconsin’s natural areas. However, my favorite part of Wisconsin by far is the people. I feel very grounded in the engaged, community-oriented Wisconsin culture and I’m privileged to have many deep and meaningful relationships here.
CAN YOU EXPLAIN WHAT REALTA FUSION DOES AS AN INNOVATOR IN ENERGY TECHNOLOGY?
Realta is developing technology to unlock fusion energy as a new source of clean, abundant, energy for humankind.
Fusion is the power of the stars. It is the energy released when two small atoms – like hydrogen – are squeezed together until become a larger atom – like helium. The amount of energy released in these reactions is incredible. For reference, a 5 gallon pail of fusion fuel would provide the same energy as burning the coal in a train of 50’ rail cars carrying 100T of coal each, linked together for 44 miles.
Stars like our sun squeeze with gravity – they are massive enough that they can do that. Unfortunately, we don’t have that luxury here on earth, so we building a machine to kickstart these reactions, control the reactions, and deliver the energy that’s produced.
We think we can get to commercial fusion within a decade. However, commercializing Fusion still faces risks. Realta is currently working to de-risk remaining physics and technology risks with high fidelity, experimentally validated simulations, and through sponsored experimental research at the University of Wisconsin.
In addition, Realta is designing our prototype fusion machine – which we call Anvil. Anvil will be a technology demonstration for Realta and will also be a ‘volumetric neutron source’ – a test platform to develop fusion technologies which the planet currently lacks and which the fusion research community has been requesting for decades.
WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR PAST EXPERIENCE WITH WEDC?
I became most familiar with WEDC through my work supporting startup companies in the UW-Madison ecosystem. WEDC is a great conduit for resources and services many of these startups are seeking to establish and grow a business in Wisconsin. More recently, I’ve been working with WEDC to inform Realta’s growth plans and to understand the potential impact our growth could have on Wisconsin communities.
WHAT EXCITES YOU THE MOST ABOUT THE WISCONSIN BUSINESS CLIMATE GOING FORWARD?
With respect to deep tech startups, there is an increasing national acknowledgement that Wisconsin is more than a place where talent is from, Wisconsin’s a place where talent is. The UW system has long been an R&D powerhouse. Wisconsin’s manufacturing talent is equally impressive but less broadly known. R&D and manufacturing are two pieces of the puzzle critical to building the 21st century economy we need, and Wisconsin has them both in spades.
WHAT DO YOU HOPE TO SEE IMPROVE IN THE WISCONSIN BUSINESS CLIMATE GOING FORWARD?
I hope to see Wisconsin collectively develop the third and final piece of the puzzle. I’d like to see Wisconsin continue to build a startup ecosystem to develop the brilliant ideas born in our research institutes to the point where our manufacturing base can be engaged for broad deployment. Wisconsin can attract more capital and the teams to plug this gap, and there are many encouraging signs to suggest this is happening.
Related Posts
