Finding the right salt combination for a fluoride reactor isn’t too difficult. If you want a salt that has a relatively low melting temperature, low neutron absorption, and good temperature performance then you use lithium-fluoride/beryllium-fluoride, being careful to use the lithium-7 isotope instead of just the natural stuff. But when looking for a moderator, things […]
Here’s a question I have often wondered, as I’ve tried to understand the point of view of those who oppose nuclear power–how much of their opposition is driven by the longevity of nuclear waste? If long-lived nuclear wastes are the main issue they have against nuclear power, then thorium could go a long way towards […]
I’ve taken a little time to do another comparison slide between the waste generated in a typical light-water reactor compared to a liquid-fluoride thorium reactor. For the light-water reactor waste calculations, I used the WISE Uranium Nuclear Fuel Energy Balance Calculator and used a baseline value of 1 GW*yr of electricity production. I accepted all […]
Even with an initial engineering background, and a mechanical engineering background at that, I was really surprised how important formal education in nuclear engineering is. I had thought, when I first began learning about thorium and fluoride reactors several years ago, that doing some overall reactor design calculations would be as simple as getting a […]
For those of you who’ve tried to use my “Brayton Cycle Simulation” in the past, I apologize for the lack of explanation of how to use it. In an attempt to remedy that, I’ve written an HTML page where I’ve described how to use the controls, along with a major update to the code itself. […]
A big thanks to Professor Chris Rhodes, who wrote an excellent letter to the Independent, a paper in the UK, about the feasibility and desireability of using a fluoride reactor to make energy from thorium rather than an accelerator-driven reactor. Good job, Chris! Chris blogs at Energy Balance and always has excellent posts about energy-related […]
In the latest news from ORNL, the project to downblend and “dispose” of uranium-233 manufactured over the last 50 years appears to have hit another snag. Now the price tag is up to $380 million, and the timetable for disposition has been delayed to 2012. In one sense, I am very glad for that. 2012 […]
Some of you might have noticed a new link on the right-hand-side of the blog. I’ve gotten the “bulletin board” feature activated on my website, and now we have a discussion forum where we can talk about energy-related matters, especially those relating to the use of thorium. Please register and participate in the discussion.
I don’t think I’ve ever seen an article in the “popular media” on the topic of fluoride reactors, beyond the occasional one I’ve seen about MSRE remediation. Occasionally, there’s one about thorium and the promise that it shows as a nuclear fuel, but these articles practically never mention fluoride reactors. Even articles about the DOE […]
IEA warns current energy system ‘doomed to failure’ “On current trends, we are on course for an expensive and dirty energy system that will go from crisis to crisis. It can mean more supply disruptions, meteorological disasters or both. This energy future is not only unsustainable, but it is doomed to failure. “Governments can either […]