preview

Nuclear Energy, Reactors and Thorium

Open Document
Nuclear technology has advanced with new technology being developed, but also due to a strong emphasis on policy playing a role in a more efficient and safer way to utilize this energy source. After the Fukushima meltdown in 2011, the United States is being urged to make a push for a smaller scaled down nuclear reactor referred to as small modular reactor, or a SMR. Small modular reactors offer a number of advantages to a traditional nuclear reactor in being economically cheaper and safer. Being a smaller nuclear reactor, this may come as a shock due to more reactors needing to be built in order for the same amount of energy to be produced as the current nuclear reactors. “The average U.S. nuclear reactor has an operating capacity of 1,000 megawatts or more; SMRs, by contrast, have a generating capacity of less than 300 megawatts” (Foran, 2013). Theoretically, it would take over three small modular reactors in order to replace one of the current nuclear reactors already in place. The economic impact these reactors bring is substantial however. Due to the smaller size, small modular reactors have the ability to be constructed in factories where the parts and construction can be produced at a more efficient and quicker scale. Utility companies who are also interested in reaping the benefits of nuclear technology would be able to invest, because of the fact less capital would need to be raised. The factories that would be building these parts too would provide new jobs, as more countries want to adapt to small modular reactors without building the infrastructure. At the factory parts would be “cookie-cut” meaning they could be produced in an assembly line fashion and have the full reactor be completed by the end, ready to ship. Safe...

... middle of paper ...

... it also saving costs of trying to locate some.

Works Cited

Energy for the World - Why Uranium?. (2012, December 1). world-nuclear.org. Retrieved May 7, 2014, from http://www.world-nuclear.org/info/Nuclear- Fuel-Cycle/Introduction/Energy-for-the-World---Why-Uranium-/

Foran, Clare. "Small Reactors May Be Nuclear Power's Future." Nationaljournal.com. National Journal Group Inc, 01 Oct. 2013. Web. 17 Mar. 2014.

"Is Thorium the Future of Nuclear?" Discovery News. Discovery Communications, 07 Oct. 2011. Web. 18 Mar. 2014.

Small Reactor Designs. (n.d.). Nuclear Energy Institute. Retrieved May 5, 2014, from http://www.nei.org/Issues-Policy/New-Nuclear-Energy-Facilities/Small- Reactor-Designs

Uranium. (2014, January 21). Uranium Investing News. Retrieved May 2, 2014, from http://uraniuminvestingnews.com/17236/thorium-an-alternative-for- Unuclear-energy.html
Get Access
Related

  • History of Thorium

    1017 Words  | 5 Pages

    04 Dec. 2013. http://www.world-nuclear.org/info/Current-and-Future-Generation/Thorium/ --. "Thorium and the Liquid-Fluoride Reactor: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle." The Energy From Thorium Foundation. N.p., n.d. Web.

    Read More

  • Nuclear Energy Disasters

    1469 Words  | 6 Pages

    (HowStuffWorks) "Outline History of Nuclear Energy." History of Nuclear Energy. World Nuclear Association, 1 Mar. 2014. Web.

    Read More

  • The Risks from Nuclear Power Outweighs the Gains

    1799 Words  | 8 Pages

    Radioactive Waste Management. World Nuclear Association, Nov. 2013. Web. 14 May 2014. Uranium: Its Uses and Hazards.

    Read More

  • Nuclear Power

    3304 Words  | 14 Pages

    http://www.nei.org/story/fuel_main.html. (25 Oct 2014). Nuclear Energy Institute. (2014). NEI: The nuclear energy story: Safety.

    Read More

  • Nuclear Energy and Hydroelectric Energy: Pros and Cons

    1842 Words  | 8 Pages

    Academic Search Premier. Web. 6 Dec. 2013. Stanculescu, Alexander. "Overview Of Nuclear Energy: Present And Projected Use."

    Read More

  • Sould Nuclear Power be Used as the Main Source of Energy

    1615 Words  | 7 Pages

    Moniz, Ernest J. "MIT Energy Initiative." Why We Still Need Nuclear Power. MIT.edu, 2 Nov. 2011. Web.

    Read More

  • Nuclear Energy: The Only Way To Meet Our Electrical Energy Needs

    1774 Words  | 8 Pages

    Those expiration dates initiate the discussions if the licenses should be renewed for the plants to continue running, or if they should be shut down forever and, therefore, exclude nuclear power from the U.S. energy sources. Especially the most recent disaster in Fukushima, Japan, has resulted in even more objections towards nuclear energy. However, despite the controversies and the recent nuclear disaster in Japan, the United States should continue investing in nuclear plants to support nuclear energy as an alternative energy source. Nuclear power has more economical and ecological benefits than other alternative energy sources, such as solar, wind, hydro, geothermal power. Therefore, the United States should invest in my research on the maintenance of existing power plants to extend their licenses and on the plan of building more nuclear plants to turn nuclear power into the primary energy source for the United States.

    Read More

  • International Atomic Energy Agency

    1918 Words  | 8 Pages

    N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Jan. 2014. "Nuclear Power in the World Today." Nuclear Power Today.

    Read More

  • The Viability of Nuclear Energy

    1210 Words  | 5 Pages

    These fuel rods or enriched uranium that would otherwise be stored for long periods of time after being exhausted could now be reused to make more energy. Henceforth, the improvements towards nuclear reactors contribute creating more power for an inexpensive price. Additionally, energy that is created from a nuclear reactor is the result of uranium atoms splitting or nuclear fission. This process in a CANDU reactor requires numerous fuel bundles each containing 25 kilograms of uranium. Each fuel bundle can sustain 100 homes for a year.

    Read More

  • Nuclear Fusion

    534 Words  | 3 Pages

    World Nuclear Association, n.d. Web. 9 Dec. 2013. "ORNL Research Areas." Fusion Energy Division.

    Read More

More about Nuclear Energy, Reactors and Thorium

Get Access