Coal & Nuclear power generation

[CamaroSkooter]

Originally Posted by mickss

The problem with the US Nuclear Power Industry is that each developer had their own design and put in their own tweaks and much of the equipment was custom built for each plant. This compounded the difficulties of obtaining NRC licensing approval since the NRC had to evaluate each individual design.

In contrast the French Nuclear Power program settled on a standard design which satisfied the French Regulatory Commission.

If the U.S. were to adopt the French standardization model (a one plant design) we wouldn`t have a problem when there is a mishap.

I`m pretty sure regarding the U.S. Navy that they use a one model design in their submarines and surface ships.

As far as I'm aware, the reactor design on the ships depends on who built the ship. I know the Navy probably has a spec sheet written up on what specific features they want, but I'm thinking unless they specify a particular manufacturer of the reactor, the ship builder can use whoever they want as long as it meets the Navy requirements specified...

[heRS]

I'm sure it's quite safe, NOW. I am glad I was raised UPWIND of Hanford because those "rocket scientists" made some HUGE mistakes in the past that "downwinders" suffer from still.

[Steve Dallas]

Nuclear Power and Electric cars are where we are headed eventually. I love my fossil fuel powered car, but we eventually will have to move away from that. The most effecient and cleanest way to make electricity is nuclear power.

I've been a big fan of this company and its efforts to provide power to small communities. Seriously, check out the following link as I believe they are going to be a player in the years to come regarding power generation.

http://www.hyperionpowergeneration.com/

From the site:

The Hyperion Power Module (HPM) is the frontrunner in the SMR industry. The HPM is one of the smallest, safest, and simplest designs. Hyperion Power is deeply concerned about the state of the environment, needless human suffering, and the search for energy independence – vital not just to the U.S., but to every nation on the planet. Hyperion Power believes that these concerns can be met through the safe deployment of SMRs and so is dedicated to realizing the full potential of this small but mighty power module – the HPM. Clean, safe, affordable energy should be available to everyone – even in the most remote locations.

[Sir Nuke]

Originally Posted by Hemlawk

Sir Nuke, what department do you work in? Are you part of IBEW?

I work as an junior RP tech(Aka HP), currently with decon temporarily. I really like working in this industry.

I've been in the mechanical maintenance department for 28 yrs. Operators break it.....we fix it. before that, I operated one of the Navy's biggest plants.

oh, and yes, I am part of the IBEW.

[Hemlawk]

Originally Posted by Sir Nuke

I've been in the mechanical maintenance department for 28 yrs. Operators break it.....we fix it. before that, I operated one of the Navy's biggest plants.

oh, and yes, I am part of the IBEW.

Oh that's excellent. I applied for I&C and MM before I was hired by RP. I was a guard before this and a nuclear weapon specialist in the usaf before that.

So your a dose sponge? Haha jk

[Milk 1027]

Safe maybe.....
Still doesn't stop the fact that it is harder to dispose of than any type of waste.
Nuclear waste will be around for milions of years after we are gone.

[Steve Dallas]

Originally Posted by Milk 1027

Safe maybe.....
Still doesn't stop the fact that it is harder to dispose of than any type of waste.
Nuclear waste will be around for milions of years after we are gone.

I believe science (and science fiction) can play a part here.

We are getting pretty close to having the technology to build a space elevator. Though some people laugh at this as a pipe dream, I believe it's something we should be pursuing as a solution for getting material into orbit without using tons of propellants.

If we were to build such a space elevator, getting nuclear material into orbit would be easy and safe. It would then be a simple matter of giving that material a slight push towards the sun and disposing of it that way.

Then again, without nuclear waste, how will we ever have our Zombie Apocalypse???

[CamaroSkooter]

Here's something I found:

0. Modern nuclear power plants are safe, clean facilities. They are NOT run by idiotic operators like Homer Simpson, nor do they have radioactive waste dripping from the ceiling. The French have had a clean, efficient nuclear power grid for decades, and no Frenchmen have yet been irradiated and grown extra limbs.

1. There have been exactly TWO incidents on record of a meltdown. The infamous Chernobyl and 3-Mile Island. In the case of the latter, the operators DELIBERATELY disregarded safety protocols to run tests, and melted down the reactor as a result. And 3-Mile Island is actually a perfect case FOR nuclear power's safety. How many people do you think died when the 3MI reactor melted down? A hundred? A dozen? 1? Nope. Try ZERO. Not a single death occurred as a result of the meltdown. The radiation level of the surrounding area was less than the radiation from an X-ray.

2. Nuclear reactors are NOT ticking time bombs just waiting to go off. A nuclear reaction takes work to maintain. In other words, it can be stopped very easily. You're not working to CONTAIN it; you're working to keep it GOING. As soon as you stop working, the reaction dies.

3. We are more than capable of building nuclear power plants that operate perfectly well, without melting down, under extremely harsh conditions, like under massive structural pressures and extremely low temperatures. They're called nuclear submarines, and they've been in service for decades. If we routinely put sailors within a few METERS of a nuclear reactor for MONTHS at a time and none of them come down with radiation poisoning, then why are people so damn worried about living within a few MILES of a plant that operates under far more hospitable conditions than a submarine?

4. If a meltdown does occur, modern nuclear plants are designed in such a way that the impact on the surrounding environment is completely negligible. See Three-Mile Island.

5. Nuclear power plants generate orders of magnitude LESS waste by volume than coal power plants, which pump gigantic amounts of carcinogens into the air you breathe every day as a part of their NORMAL operation.

6. People often complain that nuclear waste has a half-life of hundreds of thousands of years, so we can't safely dispose of it. Are these people familiar with the basic principles of nuclear physics? I didn't think so. If something has an extremely long half-life, it's NOT VERY RADIOACTIVE. Radioactivity is the rate at which a substance undergoes radioactive decay (for example, by emitting an alpha particle). If the half-life is extremely long, then it doesn't emit particles very often, now does it? That means it's not very radioactive. The concentrations in the coal we burn release far more radioactive uranium into the air than an entirely-nuclear grid would be virtue of sheer VOLUME. Uranium is, after all, a naturally-occurring substance, and there are deposits of it in the coal we burn.

7. The danger of terrorists taking over a nuclear power plant and spontaneously converting it into a nuclear bomb is non-existent. Nuclear reactors are NOT like nuclear bombs. Further, the sheer distance between the outer perimeter and the control room of a typical plant will virtually guarantee that the operators have plenty of time to initiate an emergency shut-down, which cannot be stopped, and which will keep the plant offline for several days before it can be started back up.

8. To expand, nuclear reactors are more heavily reinforced than a military bunker. They can take a direct hit from a locomotive traveling at 60 mph without breaking down. So even if terrorists got inside, they'd need a gigantic quantity of explosives to breach the reactor's 6 feet of steel-reinforced concrete shielding.

[CamaroSkooter]

Also, for those of y'all mentioning nuclear waste, try this on for size.

Nuclear waste can be reprocessed and reused. Look it up.

[KJSmith84]

I used to work at Palo Verde nuclear plant for a while as an APS intern.
Looking to maybe go back here soon- getting tired of this loan deal i have going now.

Learned at while i was out there and how safe that plant really is.

[Steve Dallas]

Oh, and no comments on the Hyperion reactor yet? They look to be selling those starting 2013-2014.

[Hemlawk]

CamaroSkooter Nice post, you are a wise man.

As for the radioactive waste, MOST of it only has a half-life of a few years (Cobalt-60).


Unfortunately, the EPA is forcing my plant to decommission early. Since our plant is a BWR, we have in the past caused a "fish kill". A BWR relies on an external water source to cool the plant. The discharged water is warm, but when the plant is shutdown to fast, the warm water no longer flows. The lack of warm water shocks the fish and they go belly up. If we had COOLING TOWERS, we wouldn't have that issue...

[GTAHVIT]

Originally Posted by CamaroSkooter

If it's good enough for the US Navy, it's good enough for the general population.

Think about it, a vast majority of the Navy's fleet is powered by nuclear reactors. They have not had a single meltdown or leak in the entire history of them running.

There's a group on facebook called, "If you are afraid of nuclear power you are clearly an idiot"

^ This.

Lets see a Nuclear reactor floating at sea .... or safe and sound on land....

The way I see it. Nuclear power is an eventuality. our need for clean power will dictate it as the only choice....

question is... how long before we are ready to "allow" it as a country.

[Hemlawk]

I think the issue with our situation is resources. Its probably cheaper to produce Uranium than to mine coal. BIG money will be lost by fossil/coal companies.

I dunno, maybe Im talking outta my ass on this one...