Archive for category Nuclear Power

Cheap and Safe Fission Reactor Designed by Teenager

Posted by Mila Luleva in Nuclear Power on May 18, 2013

A teenager designed a cheap and safe modular fission reactor at the impressive age of only nineteen. The reactor is an invention of Taylor Wilson, who worked on it for the past one year. He claims that his design has 30-year fuel life and very low usage cost, making it perfect for developing nations. Instead of [...]

Extracting Uranium from Seawater for Nuclear Power Plants

Posted by Benji Jerew in Nuclear Power on May 16, 2013

Nuclear power is basically a carbon-free energy source but, we have to admit, it has its own special problems. The radioactive fuel that goes into nuclear power plants is typically mined the standard way, but there is a vast untapped reserve trapped in the world’s oceans. Water is the universal solvent, and seawater is much [...]

Cleaning Up Fukushima May Take up to 40 Years, IAEA Panel Says

Posted by Ovidiu Sandru in Nuclear Power on April 25, 2013

It may take 40 more years to decommission the Fukushima power plant, said a team from the International Atomic Energy Agency recently. The damage, they say, is so complex, that it’s not possible to predict how long the cleanup may last, but in either scenario it won’t take less than 30 to 40 years. The [...]

Nuclear Waste Recycled by New Method Developed at OSU

Posted by Mila Luleva in Nuclear Power, Recycling on April 5, 2013

New method to reduce cost of nuclear waste disposal while irradiating medical supplies and food, was developed by a researcher at Oregon State University. Russell Goff, a masters student in the OSU Department of Nuclear Engineering and Radiation Health Physics, estimated that the new technique could produce an annual revenue of as much as $10 million [...]

The US Builds First Nuclear Reactors in 30 Years

Posted by Leigh Kim in Nuclear Power on April 5, 2013

The first new nuclear reactors on US soil in over three decades are currently being built in South Carolina and Georgia. As part of President Barack Obama’s goal of promoting clean sources of energy, he guaranteed $8.3 billion in federal loans for the reactors, which helps cover the costs of the projects. These reactors will [...]

NASA Says Nuclear Power Saved Millions of Lives

Posted by Mila Luleva in Nuclear Power on April 3, 2013

Nuclear power has been found to have saved millions of lives by being an alternative source of energy to fossil fuels, according to a recent study by scientists at the NASA Goddard Institute. Quantifying health damage caused by burning of fossil fuels has always been a challenge to researchers. Nuclear power is often considered as [...]

Small Nuclear Reactors Could Reduce Carbon Emissions In The U.S.

Posted by Mila Luleva in Nuclear Power on March 28, 2013

Small nuclear reactors could lower carbon dioxide emissions in the US, as they are much cheaper, safer and easier to build and operate than their regular-sized ancestors. These small reactors have gained quite a support from the government and the corporate sector, as the US Department of Energy (DoE) launched their program to provide $452 million [...]

Fast-Neutron Reactors May be Key to Quickly Ridding the World of Nuclear Waste

Posted by Leigh Kim in Nuclear Power on March 14, 2013

China, India, and Russia are promoting the use of fast reactors in order to break down stores of nuclear waste. Last week at a global conference sponsored by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), India and Russia discussed large demonstration plants they will operate in 2014 and the plan for future deployments. China is currently [...]

TransAtomic Molten-Salt Nuclear Reactor, Cheaper and Safer?

Posted by Benji Jerew in Nuclear Power on March 13, 2013

Concerns over nuclear energy are at an all-time high, but the TransAtomic molten-salt nuclear reactor design could be safer, as well as cheaper. In the 1960′s Oak Ridge National Laboratory [ORNL] tested molten-salt nuclear reactors, but the technology was never commercialized. TransAtomic is reopening the books on the technology. Since the nuclear disaster at Fukushima [...]

Some of Japan’s Nuclear Power Plants to be Back Online

Posted by Mila Luleva in Nuclear Power on March 1, 2013

Nuclear power plants in Japan are about to resume operation as new guidelines will be implemented later this year. According to Prime Minister Shizo Abe, Nuclear Regulation Authority, a new independent watchdog agency, will make sure that the tougher restrictions are implemented and the stable energy supply will not be a threat to public safety. [...]

Taylor Wilson Designs 15% More Efficient Nuclear Fission Reactor

Posted by Leigh Kim in Nuclear Power on March 1, 2013

At age 14, teenage nuclear scientist Taylor Wilson was the youngest person in history to design and build a working fusion reactor. Now 18, Wilson is planning to construct a modular nuclear power plant. The teenager, who graduates from high school in May, has big plans. After designing the nuclear fusion reactor, Taylor Wilson began [...]

New Chance for NIF to Develop Nuclear Fusion

Posted by Leigh Kim in Nuclear Power on February 26, 2013

A series of lasers built to study nuclear fusion reactions at the US National Ignition Facility (NIF) at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory aims to replace uranium-based nuclear fission with cleaner, safer fusion reactions to provide energy to power plants. Despite the fact the world’s biggest laser did not make a key target date on the [...]

China Wind Power Generation Bigger Than Nuclear

Posted by Leigh Kim in Nuclear Power, Wind Power on February 21, 2013

Nuclear power is no longer the top energy source in China. Wind power has overtaken nuclear power, and in 2012, wind farms generated 2% more electricity than nuclear power plants. This gap will only widen in the years to come. China was in the throes of growing its nuclear energy program when the Fukushima disaster [...]

Nuclear Waste Disposal: An Issue That Won’t Heal by Itself

Posted by Leigh Kim in Nuclear Power on February 19, 2013

Shockingly, of the 437 nuclear power reactors on the globe in 31 countries, none possess high-level nuclear waste disposal facilities. That’s because none exist. Zero. Zilch. Nada. Nuclear waste is dangerous for up to one million years, and countries across the world are producing more nuclear waste, so why is there no way to dispose [...]

Future of Endangered Fish Species Subject to Decision on Nuclear Power Plants

Posted by Leigh Kim in Nuclear Power on February 9, 2013

The Federal Fisheries Service in White Plains, New York has released a statement that concludes continued operation of two suburban New York nuclear plants will have a detrimental effect on two different species of sturgeon, but the sturgeon is not expected to be wiped out entirely. The document was prepared by the National Marine Fisheries [...]