Nuke Me, Baby

I read a friend’s blog the other day about a Revolution in energy, a new energy source that would do away with our reliance on fossil fuels. Well, it occurred to me that the Revolution is already here, and has arrived and been discarded by many. It’s Nuclear Energy.

Nuclear is the only energy source that is viably workable for the amounts of energy this planet needs, and it’s environmentally clean. People got freaked a few decades ago about a poorly built nuclear reactor, a flawed design no longer in use.

The RBMK-1000 Reactor

The four RBMK-1000 reactors at Chernobyl represented crude technology that was 30 years old at the time of the accident. They are in fact similar to that used by Enrico Fermi at University of Chicago's Stagg Field in 1942 to create world's first chain reaction. The 1000 indicates 1000MW (electrical). About half of soviet reactors use graphite moderators. Edwards says there are 15 RBMKs operating in USSR but that the other 40 reactors are similar to US reactors.
Since the graphite provides the major part of the moderation needed to sustain the chain reaction, the coolant water actually may provide excess moderation. This means that a void in the water coolant could actually increase the reaction rate. "...any increase in reactor power increases coolant boiling, which increases the steam void fraction, which in turn increases core reactivity and causes the power to rise even further." This positive void coefficient for the RBMK exists under most operating conditions and makes them particularly difficult to control at low power levels.
It also has a slow scram system. These soviet reactors are missing such safety features as the 6 to 8 inch steel reactor vessel and the steel and concrete reactor containment dome of the US light water reactors.

However, they have much better designs now days and those kinds of accidents are virtually impossible. A nuclear reactor is as safe as it is designed and engineered to be safe.

Oil has peaked as an energy source, and is on the downhill from now on. This means it is harder to obtain and prices will go up, until it gradually becomes unviable as an energy source. On the other hand, there is a huge burgeoning middle class coming online in China who are demanding appliances and cars and such. A quarter of the world's population. And India is in the same boat right behind them. Demand for energy is just starting on a huge exponential surge.

We need a solution now, or 10 years or so down the road its out with the lights. Both China and India have new nuclear reactors in the works, but its not enough. Only France, who has about 80% power from nuclear sources, is sitting well.

Let me list the benefits of nuclear energy as a source of power:

1. It’s clean. It produces no by products that pollute the air. Disposal of the nuclear waste is not really a problem and does not impinge upon the environment. Even former Green Peace founder Patrick Moore has come out with in favor of nuclear as a Clean, Green approach to energy. There is no need to put huge amount of crap into the atmosphere. Coal-fired electricity produces 960 grams of Carbon Dioxide per Kilowatt/Hour of electricity, for example.
2. Uranium comes from friendly sources. It is found predominantly in the U.S. friendly countries of Canada and Australia.
3. Contrary to oil, there is enough uranium in the ground to last for many centuries, even at the new accelerated rate. No more energy wars, or kissing Arab butt, would be necessary.
4. Another benefit is that a byproduct of nuclear energy production is hydrogen. The hydrogen can be used in fuel cells to provide power to an already existing technology to run our vehicles.

Compared with coal as an energy source I think there is little doubt which is the optimal choice. Nuclear energy is ready for new Revolution, the Second Coming.