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New Design Molten Salt Reactor Is Cheaper To Run, Consumes Nuclear Waste
by Llewellyn King at forbes.com
If you want to design a car, there are certain constants like four wheels. And for a car, you can draw on millions of design hours that are readily accessible, and trillions of years of operating experience.
If you want to design a nuclear reactor, there are almost no limitations. In fact, there are a mind-boggling number of design possibilities.
Hundreds of reactor designs have made it onto paper and the constants are few. You’ll need a fissile fuel, or a fertile fuel element with a fissile trigger, but otherwise there are no limits. Not all that is known about reactor design is accessible because it is either proprietary or classified.
The reactor fuel, the moderator, the size, the operating characteristics are all wide-open choices. More: For each reactor type, there are huge variations. Choosing an optimum design going forward is the challenge.
America Steps Forward To Expand Nuclear Power
by James Conca at forbes.com
Last week, the United States Department of Energy (DOE) selected two teams - one led by https://www.terrapower.com/doe-natrium-demonstration-award/" data-ga-track="ExternalLink:https://www.terrapower.com/doe-natrium-demonstration-award/" aria-label="TerraPower">TerraPower in partnership with GE Hitachi, and one led by https://x-energy.com/media/news-releases/x-energy-awarded-80-million-department-of-energy-advanced-reactor-demonstration-program-ardp" data-ga-track="ExternalLink:https://x-energy.com/media/news-releases/x-energy-awarded-80-million-department-of-energy-advanced-reactor-demonstration-program-ardp" aria-label="X-energy">X-energy - to receive $80 million each in initial funding under the Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program (ARDP).
In this program, DOE provides initial funding to develop, test, license, and build advanced nuclear reactors within five to seven years of the award. DOE plans to invest about $3.2 billion over seven years in these projects that will be matched by the industry.
ANEEL: Thorium-Based Reactor Fuel Could Support A New Wave Of Nuclear Power
by James Conca at forbes.com
For decades, nuclear engineers have dreamt up new formulas, shapes and sizes for the radioactive fuel that powers the reactors of the world’s nuclear power plants (our greatest source of zer0-carbon electric power). Today most of what’s used for reactor fuel is enriched uranium. In the future, fuel compositions could shift toward the very promising element thorium.
A potential breakthrough: The United States Department of Energy (DOE) Idaho National Laboratory (INL) and the Nuclear Engineering & Science Center at Texas A&M have partnered with Clean Core Thorium Energy (CCTE) to fabricate a new type of nuclear fuel, called “Advanced Nuclear Energy for Enriched Life”, or ANEEL.
Letter to the National Academy from William Hannum, PhD
Gentlemen:
Various people have brought to my attention the National Academy's recently established Expert Panel on the Merits and Viability of Different Nuclear Fuel Cycles and Technology Options and the Waste Aspects of Advanced Nuclear Reactors. These are highly important topics, and deserving of an expert review. I have spent almost my entire career studying advanced nuclear fuel cycles and nuclear waste handling and disposal. There are several key points that I believe should be addressed by the panel:
1. The viability of different fuel cycles in the context of this study must include economic as well as technical viability.
2. It will be important to differentiate between technical and political considerations.
3. This topic can only be discussed in a world context, not a national context.
4. There is great uncertainty in the characterization of the risks of radiation.
5. Discussing the waste aspects of advanced nuclear reactors without addressing other nuclear wastes destined for disposal is meaningless.
I have attached a brief statement on the situation as I see it. I would appreciate your forwarding these comments and the attached paper to the Panel.
William H. Hannum, Ph.D., fellow of the American Nuclear Society
Nuclear industry leaders discuss game-changing issues
Leaders of World Nuclear Association working groups participated in a webinar yesterday to highlight some of the issues of key importance to the global nuclear industry. These include harmonisation in reactor licensing; energy market design; safety regulation; and, new applications of nuclear energy. The Industry Gamechangers webinar was a pre-event to the Association's Strategic eForum to be held next week.
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