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58 comments on The Trouble With Energy - Part 3.
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58 comments on The Trouble With Energy - Part 3.
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phoenix,
There are reactors operating now as breeders and some designs such as Candu reactors can use thorium/U238 not as a breeder but to stretch out U235 fuel. They don't have to be operating now, we have lots of uranium available, even at today's relatively low prices. When prices rise to $300-500/Kg then breeders and thorium reactors will make more sense.
Here is a link to Barry Brook's post on the topic
http://bravenewclimate.com/2009/04/30/rethinking-nuclear-power/#more-1316
The other consideration is China's plans for nuclear are fairly ambitious at least after 2015 assuming the present 25 or so reactors planned or under construction are completed on time and on budget.
There's a small company called Thorium Power who are pushing a nuclear rod design that uses Thorium and can be inserted in existing reactors if 'm reading their marketing schpeel correctly... Sounds like a possible stop-gap...
I don't think we have scratched the surface of what can or will be done yet -nuclear is going to be a big chunk of the solution IMO because:
1. It is a base-load technology
2. It is scaleable to the sorts of power levels we need
3. It was the solution we went for before, France has proved it can work and BIG GOVERNMENT can control it.
On the negative side its an electrical solution and it has -shall we say- "an image issue"...
Nick.
"On the negative side its an electrical solution and it has -shall we say- "an image issue"..."
It does indeed. Today, nuclear proponents here and elsewhere are saying that it is perfectly safe and will be essentially free (especially given the scientific breakthroughs that are "right around the corner") and will not be targets of terror or sources of material for nuclear weapons.
It seems to me that I have heard this before from the same industry. How many times should we fall for this? You nuke proponents certainly have your work cut out for you.
All it will take is one serious breakdown and that is the end of the nuclear industry. One terrorist bombing, one shipment of fuel diverted to a 'rogue state' one core containment 'event'.
The costs associated with building conventional, light water plants cannot be wished away. Added to this is the uncertainty over liability. For some strange reason, the US tolerates + 40,000 fatalities on the highway every year. The same public will not tolerate less than fail safe performance of reactors.
Until the liability issues are resolved it is hard to see any public embrace of nuclear power. Some of the new designs show a great deal of promise, but these must be tested and assurance given that this inherent safety isn't compromised by scaling of plant production.
These are all stupendously expensive plants, who will pay, both for the plants themselves as well as cover the all important liability? The government is heading toward insolvency. The ratepayers won't shoulder the cost and allow themselves to be stuck with liabilities at the same time.
This is a concept killer. It put Shoreham in Long Island out of business. It is the reason no new nuclear plants have been built in the US since Three Mile Island. Electric utilities sell convenience. Selling anything else is difficult ... unless the power industry can figure out how to put nuclear power stations into the backs of peoples' cars.
On the other hand, strong opinions will soften when the beer gets warm and the television goes off.
You think so?
I didn't mean to make this whole thread about nuclear, but we really do need to separate the facts from the propaganda.
Gotta admit, though. The whole thing keeps lots of lawyers rich, and politicians are almost always lawyers...
Who knows? Maybe because cars and trucks are quite practical and nuclear power plants are actually not the only option to generate energy for a hot coffee or a warm shower or some lighting.
So if the huge capital costs were not to blame, why did they have to pass laws forcing consumers to pay for the capital costs of new nuclear power plants in advance?
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=89169837