Reprinted from “Legal Uprising”
by Leslie Eastman
The last time we checked in on the nation's energy industry, the Biden-Harris administration banned natural gas and oil extraction on 28 million acres of Alaska (reversing an order signed by President Donald Trump).
However, there is better news on the nuclear front. This is good news because nuclear energy is the only energy source that can compete with fossil fuels in terms of efficiency and cost-effectiveness and is worthy of powering civilization.
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has approved the construction of the country's first fourth-generation nuclear reactor.
According to Interesting Engineering, the new Hermes reactor will be the first reactor built in the United States in 50 years that does not use light water cooling. Instead, it will use a molten fluoride salt system, and a TRISO (tristructural isotropic particle) fuel pebble bed design will power the generator.
According to the report, molten fluoride salt has “excellent chemical stability and huge heat transfer capabilities,” meaning it stays cooler and dissipates heat much faster than the light water long used in U.S. reactors.
Based on ultra-safe nuclear technology, the fuel bed consists of hundreds of millimeter-sized uranium particles wrapped in multiple layers of special ceramics, which gives each piece of fuel its own containment and pressure vessel. The ceramic casing is stronger and more resilient than typical zirconium alloys, meaning it can withstand higher temperatures and neutron bombardment beyond the failure point of other types of fuel.
Best of all, since each piece of fuel is so small, in the event of a failure, the ensuing burst of radiation will be significantly reduced and further damage will be less likely to occur due to the cooling system.
Fourth-generation nuclear power utilizes a system of fuel fabrication plants and reprocessing facilities that together overcome some of the shortcomings of previous generations of nuclear power plants.
To be classified as fourth generation, a system must meet or at least be capable of meeting the following criteria:
(1) More fuel efficient than existing plants;
(2) Its design should avoid serious accidents, that is, device failure or external events (such as earthquakes) should not cause the release of radioactive materials to the outside world;
[3] The fuel cycle is designed in such a way that uranium and plutonium never separate (“diverge”), but only exist as a mixture and with other elements. This makes it more difficult to build nuclear weapons.
A new nuclear power plant is under construction in the iconic Tennessee city of Oak Ridge, famous for its importance in World War II's Manhattan Project.
Kairos Power has begun construction of the Hermes Low Power Demonstration Reactor at Oak Ridge, the first Generation IV reactor approved for construction by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The Hermes reactor uses a fluoride salt-cooled high-temperature reactor design, which is different from traditional light water reactors.
Ross Peel, a professor at the Center for Science and Security Studies at King's College London, told Newsweek: “The designs of fourth-generation nuclear power plants are revolutionary because they are planned to use very different technology to the reactors we use today.”
Unfortunately, we lag behind China in construction. Late last year, it started construction of its fourth-generation reactor.
China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC), one of the project developers, said that the Shidaowan Nuclear Power Plant has the world's first fourth-generation reactor and started commercial operation on December 6.
“China's self-developed high-temperature gas-cooled reactor demonstration device has begun commercial operation,” CNNC said in a statement.
“This marks that China has built the world's first commercially operated fourth-generation nuclear technology modular nuclear power plant, and marks the shift of fourth-generation nuclear technology from the experimental stage to the commercial market.”
Interestingly, more and more countries are reconsidering their bans on nuclear energy, possibly taking into account the realities of “green energy” and improvements in fourth-generation systems. Switzerland, for example, lifted its outright nuclear ban.
The Swiss government said on Wednesday it plans to overturn a ban on new power plants to bolster local energy supplies amid rising geopolitical tensions.
Energy Minister Albert Rosti said the government would submit a proposal to amend nuclear legislation by the end of 2024 for debate in parliament next year.
“In the long term, new nuclear power plants are one possible way to make our supplies more secure at a time of geopolitical uncertainty,” Rosti told a news conference.
Rosti believes that not retaining this option could be seen as a betrayal by future generations.
All of these are positive developments for those of us who enjoy the benefits of civilization, such as lights at night and warmth in the winter.
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