China has raced ahead of the pack in filing patents in nuclear fusion technology, pointing to its ambition to master the science and take the lead in the development of an alternative to fossil fuels, reports Nikkei Asia. China came first in a nuclear fusion patent ranking compiled by Tokyo-based research company Astamuse ahead of second-placed US, which was followed by the UK and Japan.
The research company ranked 30 countries and regions by studying the 1,133 patents filed between 2011 and September 2022. Each country’s score was calculated by using the number of patents filed, the feasibility of each innovation, and the remaining period of exclusivity, among others.
China was also ranked first in the number of patents, and companies and research institutions that had filed patents in the nuclear fusion field. The number of patents filed by China started to increase from 2015, pushing the country ahead of the US.