Difference between revisions of "Nuclear"

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Micro nuclear plants, like this one from Toshiba:  [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toshiba_4S  Toshiba 10MW nuclear plant]
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== Fission ==
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Micro nuclear plants, like this one from Toshiba:  [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toshiba_4S  Toshiba 10MW nuclear plant]  
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[http://www.hyperionpowergeneration.com/ Hyperion Power Generation] 25 MW mini plant.
  
 
[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pebble_bed_reactor Pebble Bed Reactor], safer, simpler and more efficient type of fission reactor. At least one prototype currently operating.
 
[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pebble_bed_reactor Pebble Bed Reactor], safer, simpler and more efficient type of fission reactor. At least one prototype currently operating.
  
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== Disadvantages ==
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[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_floating_nuclear_power_station Russian Floating Nuclear Reactors] "...On April 15, 2007 the construction of the first floating Nuclear Power Station, Academician Lomonosov, started at the Sevmash Submarine-Building Plant in Severodvinsk..."  The Lomonosov will carry 2 modified KLT-40S nuclear reactors (ice breaker type).  The vessel could provide up to 70 MW of electrical or 300 MW of heat energy, enough for a city with population of 200,000 people. It could also be modified as a desalination plant producing 240,000 cubic meters of fresh water a day.
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Although nuclear power has a lot of advantages, we need to keep in mind that Seastead will have to be near existing countries, at least in the beginning. Countries probably don't mind a cruise ship kind of operation in their vincinity, but both governments and the public will mind a vessel carrying "scary stuff" and take appropriate action. Although nuclear options may be very cheap and eco-friendly, it is probably better suited for spaceships instead of humble seasteads.
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[http://nextbigfuture.com/2008/08/how-long-can-uranium-last-for-nuclear.html Uranium extracted from seawater]
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"...It now seems quite certain that uranium can be extracted from the ocean at well below $1000 per pound ($100-800/lb in recent analysis of Japan's extraction process) and there is even some optimism that it can become competitive at current market prices ($65/lb). It is clear, then, that uranium from seawater must be considered as a completely acceptable fuel for breeder reactors, contributing less than 1% to the cost of electricity. In terms of fuel cost per million BTU, even at $400/lb the uranium cost is only 1.1 cents.
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Seawater contains 3.3×10–9 (3.3 parts per billion) of uranium, whence the 1.4×10**18 tonne2 of water in the oceans contains 4.6×10**9 tonne of uranium. The energy content of uranium burned in a breeder reactor is 1 MW day/g, or 1000 GW day/tonne; at 37% efficiency, readily achievable in a breeder reactor, this is 1.0 GWe yr/tonne (GWe = GW of electricity). All of the world’s present electrical usage, 2325 GWe [372 GWe of nuclear make up 16% of world electrical supply] , could therefore be supplied by the uranium in seawater for (4.6×10**9/2325) = 1.98 million years.
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At ten times the power level, it would last 198,000 years and at one hundred times it would be 19,800 years.
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Rivers bring 3.2×10**13 tonne/yr of water into the oceans, and their uranium content averages 1.0×10–9 (one part per billion), whence a total of 3.2×10**4 tonne/yr of uranium enter the oceans from this source.
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We can withdraw 16 000 tonne/yr of uranium from seawater continuously for hundreds of millions of years. This is enough to produce 16 000 GWe or 480 quadrillion BTU per year, which is 6 times the world’s present electricity usage, and almost the world’s present total energy consumption..."
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== Fusion ==
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A couple of interesting Google Tech Talk videos of proposed ways of producing fusion power.
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[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inertial_electrostatic_confinement Electrostatic Inertial Confinement], Robert Bussard:
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http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1996321846673788606
  
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There are many more ways to get energy, and Seastead is an extremely good place to experiment with alternative energy sources like [[Growing algae|algae]] since "land" can be made easy. To get things going, focussing on technology that is easy to obtain and to use is probably the best and only way to go.
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[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dense_plasma_focus Dense Plasma Focus], Eric Lerner:
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http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1518007279479871760
  
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-I don´t think anyone is seriously suggesting that we fire up a nuclear reactor in the San Fransisco Bay or close to any other countries. I strongly think it´s a realistic alternative for full size seasteads on the high seas however. After all, there are nuclear powerplants all over the world today, even in large vessels. It´s a proven technology that compares favorably against pretty much anything else. The biggest obstacle is political, and seeing as the whole point of seasteading is to get rid of political obstacles I´d say nuclear power fits like a glove.
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{{Energy}}
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By the way this kind of discussion probably belongs on the talk page.
 
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-vtoldude
 

Latest revision as of 18:40, 13 November 2008

Fission

Micro nuclear plants, like this one from Toshiba: Toshiba 10MW nuclear plant

Hyperion Power Generation 25 MW mini plant.

Pebble Bed Reactor, safer, simpler and more efficient type of fission reactor. At least one prototype currently operating.

Russian Floating Nuclear Reactors "...On April 15, 2007 the construction of the first floating Nuclear Power Station, Academician Lomonosov, started at the Sevmash Submarine-Building Plant in Severodvinsk..." The Lomonosov will carry 2 modified KLT-40S nuclear reactors (ice breaker type). The vessel could provide up to 70 MW of electrical or 300 MW of heat energy, enough for a city with population of 200,000 people. It could also be modified as a desalination plant producing 240,000 cubic meters of fresh water a day.


Uranium extracted from seawater

"...It now seems quite certain that uranium can be extracted from the ocean at well below $1000 per pound ($100-800/lb in recent analysis of Japan's extraction process) and there is even some optimism that it can become competitive at current market prices ($65/lb). It is clear, then, that uranium from seawater must be considered as a completely acceptable fuel for breeder reactors, contributing less than 1% to the cost of electricity. In terms of fuel cost per million BTU, even at $400/lb the uranium cost is only 1.1 cents.

Seawater contains 3.3×10–9 (3.3 parts per billion) of uranium, whence the 1.4×10**18 tonne2 of water in the oceans contains 4.6×10**9 tonne of uranium. The energy content of uranium burned in a breeder reactor is 1 MW day/g, or 1000 GW day/tonne; at 37% efficiency, readily achievable in a breeder reactor, this is 1.0 GWe yr/tonne (GWe = GW of electricity). All of the world’s present electrical usage, 2325 GWe [372 GWe of nuclear make up 16% of world electrical supply] , could therefore be supplied by the uranium in seawater for (4.6×10**9/2325) = 1.98 million years.

At ten times the power level, it would last 198,000 years and at one hundred times it would be 19,800 years.

Rivers bring 3.2×10**13 tonne/yr of water into the oceans, and their uranium content averages 1.0×10–9 (one part per billion), whence a total of 3.2×10**4 tonne/yr of uranium enter the oceans from this source.

We can withdraw 16 000 tonne/yr of uranium from seawater continuously for hundreds of millions of years. This is enough to produce 16 000 GWe or 480 quadrillion BTU per year, which is 6 times the world’s present electricity usage, and almost the world’s present total energy consumption..."

Fusion

A couple of interesting Google Tech Talk videos of proposed ways of producing fusion power.

Electrostatic Inertial Confinement, Robert Bussard: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1996321846673788606

Dense Plasma Focus, Eric Lerner: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1518007279479871760


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