The Future Of Clean Nuclear Energy Is Coming

**The Future of Nuclear Energy: Exploring Molten Salt Reactors and Thorium Fuel**

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### Introduction to Nuclear Power

Nuclear energy often finds itself in the shadow of more celebrated sustainable energy sources. Despite its vast potential, it frequently garners attention only when incidents occur. Yet, nuclear power holds a unique position as a reliable low-carbon energy source, capable of meeting global energy demands without contributing to climate change.

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### Current State of Renewable Energy (Solar & Wind)

While solar and wind energy capture significant interest, their current contributions are modest. In the United States, wind provides 4.13% of total energy production, while solar contributes just 0.23%. These figures highlight a substantial gap in meeting future energy demands. Moreover, challenges like storage during non-windy or cloudy periods necessitate significant infrastructure investments to ensure consistent power supply.

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### Light Water Reactors: The Present Technology

Currently, the majority of nuclear reactors in the U.S. are Light Water Reactors (LWRs), a technology dating back to the 1950s. These reactors split uranium-235 by heating water under high pressure, which then generates steam to drive turbines. Despite their simplicity and widespread use, LWRs operate at about 5% fuel efficiency, leaving vast amounts of nuclear waste that remains radioactive for over 10,000 years.

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### Challenges with Traditional Nuclear Waste Storage

The storage of nuclear waste is a contentious issue. While France has effectively reduced high-level waste through recycling, challenges persist. In California alone, solar panel production generates over 13 million tons of toxic waste annually. The need for sustainable waste management solutions remains critical, underscoring the limitations of current practices.

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### Molten Salt Reactors: A Promising Alternative

Enter Molten Salt Reactors (MSRs), a technology shelved in the 1960s but now gaining renewed attention. MSRs use liquid salt as a coolant, eliminating pressure-related risks inherent in LWRs. This design allows for self-regulating and meltdown-proof reactors. MSRs offer significant advantages, including the ability to utilize thorium as fuel, which is abundant and less hazardous after use.

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### Thorium as a Fuel Source

Thorium-232, a byproduct of rare-earth mining, is approximately three to four times more abundant than uranium. When used in Liquid Fluoride Thorium Reactors (LFTRs), it undergoes neutron bombardment to produce uranium-233, which sustains the nuclear chain reaction. LFTRs can achieve nearly 100% fuel efficiency, significantly reducing waste and minimizing proliferation risks due to the difficulty of using waste for nuclear weapons.

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### Advantages and Limitations of MSRs

The advantages of MSRs are manifold: enhanced safety, reduced waste longevity (80% decay to safe levels in 10 years), and lower proliferation risks. However, challenges remain, particularly regarding corrosion of reactor components from liquid fluoride salts. These issues are being addressed by ongoing research.

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### China's Role in MSR Development

China is at the forefront of MSR innovation, aiming to deploy a functioning thorium reactor within a decade. This commitment positions them as a leader in next-generation nuclear technology, promising safer and more sustainable energy solutions.

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### Addressing Concerns About Nuclear Waste

For those concerned about waste storage, Anthony's insights on current compaction and storage methods offer valuable perspectives. As the industry evolves, innovative solutions like MSRs promise to mitigate these challenges.

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### Conclusion and Call to Action

The future of nuclear energy is brimming with potential. From advancing MSR technology to harnessing thorium as a fuel source, innovations are paving the way for cleaner, safer power generation. Join the conversation by sharing your thoughts on the future of energy in the comments below. Stay tuned for more insights into this transformative field.

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This article delves into each aspect of nuclear power's current state and promising advancements, offering an informative and engaging exploration of its future.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enNuclear power is like the unloved child ofsustainable energy.It’s got so much potential, but it onlygets noticed when it does something wrong.If only people could just see how cool itis.Ahoy-hoy fallout boys and girls, Julian herefor DNews and today we’re going to talkabout nuclear power.Now I know this is an element that splitsthe internet and leads to an explosive chainreaction (see what I did there?) but we aregoing to gingerly handle this sensitive materiallike the science-loving adults that we are.The most popular green energies people liketo discuss are solar and wind power, and Iagree, the idea of harnessing the phenomenalcosmic power of the sun and...snazzy earthyblowingness of wind is pretty cool.But we’re going to have to upscale our productionin a big way if we are going to meet demands.Last year in the US, wind provided 4.13% ofour power, and solar?A microscopic .23%.So we’d need almost 25 times as much ofeach just to meet demands, not to mentionwe’d have to overproduce and store energyfor when it’s dark and not windy.And we’ll have to build the storage facilities.Meanwhile nuclear provides 19% of our energyin this country, but we’re using an ideawe haven’t updated since the 50’s; theLight Water Reactor.Light Water Reactors split uranium 235 toheat water.In the US this water is kept at extremelyhigh pressures to keep it in liquid form.This super-heated super-pressurized waterthen heats a second loop of water, turningit to steam and driving a turbine.Reactors like this became widespread becauseof their simplicity, but they only use about5% of their fuel and the waste is radioactivefor 10,000 years.The fuel can be recycled though.France has been relying on nuclear power sincethe 70s and by recycling, the total amountof high-level waste that could give a familyof 4 power from when the kids are born untilthey’re in college is about the volume ofa cigarette lighter.You still have to put that somewhere, andwaste storage is one of the major dividingissues.Don’t kid yourself though, in Californiaalone the production of solar panels makesover 13 million tons of toxic waste annually,and that’s just stored somewhere too.There’s no such thing as a free lunch.Molten Salt Reactors were a competing ideathat were shelved in the 60’s, despite thefact that engineers built reactors that provedthey could work.Lately interest in them is growing becauseof their potential benefits.The concept is liquid salt is the reactor’scoolant, meaning it doesn’t need to be pressurizedlike it’s light water counterparts.This means there’s no complications fromloss of pressure like the rapid expansionof radioactive gas or loss of coolant to thereactor.In fact it’s possible to design molten saltreactors in such a way that they are self-regulatingand melt-down proof.Pretty neat, huh?And it gets better, Molten Salt Reactors thatwould use Thorium as their fuel source woulduse almost 100% of their fuel.And they would breed more of their own.When thorium 232 is hit with a neutron, itabsorbs it and eventually decays into uranium233.U-233 is fissile, and shoots out 2 or 3 moreneutrons.These can keep the chain reaction going andalso bombard more thorium to generate moreuranium.Thorium has the benefit of being 3 to 4 timesmore abundant than uranium, and right nowis just a hazardous waste byproduct of rare-earthmining.So we’re already digging the stuff up, andhave nothing to use it for.Thorium 232 has a half-life of over 14 billionyears, but once it’s been used in a LiquidFluoride Thorium Reactor, 80% of the wastedecays to safe levels in 10 years.A small amount would need up to 300 yearsbefore it was safe, but that beats 10,000years by a long shot.And the products of a LFTR reactor are harderto use for nuclear weapons, so there’s lessof a worry about nuclear proliferation.Not that we don’t have enough weapons tomurderize everyone already.MSRs still have issues of their own to workout, like keeping the liquid fluorides fromcorroding the metal they’re stored in.China thinks they can solve these problemsand make safer, more sustainable, and lesspolluting nuclear power.They’ve planned to have a functioning thoriumreactor within the next decade.If you’re worried about the storage of nuclearwaste, Anthony has some pretty cool info foryou here about how it’s compacted and stored.What are your thoughts on the future of energy?Do you have a personal favorite solution?Let us know in the comments.I’ll see you next time on DNews.\n"