Business The Tiny, Simple Nuclear Reactor That Could Change Energy

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

An Oregon energy startup has a modular nuclear power reactor 1/100th the size of a traditional reactor and is supposedly far safer.

The reactors can be installed in multiples to scale up or down to a location’s power needs.

Traditional U.S. nuclear plants are reaching end of life, and the technology is simply outdated.

An energy startup in Oregon wants us to rethink our reluctance to embrace nuclear energy, Wired reports. NuScale Power studies new reactor technology from a lab on the Oregon State University campus—the same university where the 2019 climate crisis petition began. Their cutting-edge reactor is tiny and, its proponents insist, much safer than our existing notions of nuclear energy lead us to believe.

https://frontier.yahoo.com/news/tiny-simple-nuclear-reactor-could-225100257.html

[applegrove]

1. They are thinking of putting smaller reactors in three canadian provinces. Practical

for rural use. What could go wring with nuclear reactors dotted all over the place???

[greyl]

2. If that illustration is to scale, these tiny reactors are at least

65 feet tall.

Edit: including the concrete and steel walls.

[Cicada]

3. I have opposed nuclear. But we face disaster so now we need it despite its flaws.

We can use nuclear to replace green house gasses. We can make almost all transportation clean electric. We can do it within 20 years. We face disaster so I will accept the flaws.

[defacto7]

5. I agree.

It's the best choice we have on all fronts, footprint, power availability, waste, human resources, and it's the only source that can actually have a positive effect on climate overall.

[mitch96]

4. Did I miss it in the article but did they say what nuclear fuel it would use?

Present fuels can " run away" with out cooliing. From what I've read, Thorium cycle is a better choice than Uranium cycle to produce power...... and more expensive but safer..
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thorium-based_nuclear_power
m

[hunter]

6. It's a light water reactor using oxide fuels enriched at less than 5 percent...

... with a 24 month refuel cycle.

In other words, a conservative design that's unlikely to suffer any serious glitches when built.

https://www.nuscalepower.com/technology/technology-overview

I think thorium reactors are interesting, but unnecessary. Humanity has already accumulated large reserves of uranium and plutonium, in the form of nuclear weapons, lightly used nuclear fuel, depleted uranium, and existing mine tailings.

The advantage of small reactors is that they can be built in factories and shipped to site for assembly.

[mitch96]

7. "that's unlikely to suffer any serious glitches"

Pardon my cynicism and if it ever did screw up, what would happen?
Hopefully not a Chernobyl or Fukushima incident..
From the vid it looks like there are still fuel rods being moved and needing to be cooled.
I believe that was the problem with Cher/Fuku reactors as the core could not be cooled when the rods got stuck and the pumps did not work... It looks like there isn't too much radioactive water with this system..
m

[hunter]

8. I only meant conservative in the engineering sense.

It's a Toyota Corolla, not a Tesla.

I don't worry much about nuclear power, and I don't use Fukushima or Chernobyl as scare words.

Fossil fuels are the much greater danger, especially natural gas which is somehow seen as a benign alternative to coal or nuclear power.

[mitch96]

9. "Fossil fuels are the much greater danger,"

Totally agree.. we have to come up with alternates that are safe and efficient..
m