2012 May 07 « nuclear-news

New and cheaper concentrated solar power

Breakthrough in concentrated solar power from partnership between 3M and Gossamer Space Frames THE FUEL OF TOMORROW REPORTED TODAY BY ANGIE BERGENSON– MAY 6, 2012 New solar collector could unlock great potential for solar energy

Solar thermal energy has taken a large step forward due to a new partnership between 3M’s Renewable Energy Division and Gossamer Space Frames, a developer of solar energy technologies. This week, the two companies revealed a new solar energy collection system that is designed specifically to reduce the cost of concentrated solar power (CSP) systems. CSP is a type of solar energy system in which sunlight is concentrated and directed at solar panels. These systems create a large amount of heat, which can be converted into electricity, thus making them powerful energy generation systems……. the companies believe that CSP systems may soon enter into a veritable “golden age,” bringing the rest of the solar energy industry with them. http://www.hydrogenfuelnews.com/breakthrough-in-concentrated-solar-power-from-partnership-between-3m-and-gossamer-space-frames/853465/

May 7, 2012 Posted by Christina Macpherson | 2 WORLD, renewable | Leave a comment

The difference between a uranium nuclear weapon and a plutonium one

Uranium or plutonium? , The Korea Times, By Andrei Lankov”….. It makes a big difference whether they test a plutonium device, as they have done twice before, or if this time we will see the first test of a uranium one. There is a major difference between the two.

Plutonium occurs naturally only in tiny quantities and hence has to be produced artificially in a nuclear reactor where it is a normal byproduct of nuclear fission. However, a nuclear reactor is a large machine which cannot possibly be hidden by the prying eyes of satellites.

If the outside world knows the technical details of the reactor, it is possible to guess its total plutonium output, from when the reactor became operational. Analysts believe that North Korea’s nuclear reactors have produced between 30 and 50 kilograms of weapons-grade plutonium (enough for five to 10 nuclear bombs).

Uranium is different. Highly-enriched uranium (HEU), which is used in nuclear weapons, is produced by enriching uranium ore. There are different technologies but most of the time a cascade of centrifuges is used, with each centrifuge in the cascade producing a more concentrated product.

Unlike unwieldy reactors, such cascades are relatively easy to hide from satellites and reconnaissance planes. There is no way to be sure that all the centrifuge cascades have been located. Therefore it is difficult to estimate the size of stockpiles of HEU in a given country, and this means that HEU is remarkably more dangerous when it comes to proliferation….. http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2012/05/304_110408.html

May 7, 2012 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Reference, Uranium, weapons and war | Leave a comment

Thorium nuclear reactors are no solution to energy problems

It doesn’t solve the proliferation problem. It doesn’t solve the waste problem, either. So every nuclear reactor, no matter what type, creates fission products, which are highly radioactive materials, some short-lived, some long-lived

This is highly radioactive waste. If you look at Oak Ridge’s current evaluation, they say you have to condition this waste, you have to convert the fluorides, and then you have to have a deep geologic repository.

What’s in this waste? Cesium-137 and strontium-190, hundreds of years, just like today’s reactors. Cesium-135 and iodine-129, millions of years half-life. Technetium-99, 200,000 years.

Is Thorium A Magic Bullet For Our Energy Problems? NPR May 4 2012, “……..With me is Dr. Arjun Makhijani. He is president of the Institute for Energy and Environmental Research. He’s here in our D.C. studios. Do you agree with Richard Martin that we missed out on thorium? If we had started out with thorium, would be in better shape now?

ARJUN MAKHIJANI: I don’t think so. I think the problems of nuclear power, fundamentally, would remain. The safety problems would be different. I mean, Mr. Martin and proponents of thorium are right in the sense that the liquid fuel reactor has a number of safety advantages, but it also has a number of disadvantages. Continue reading →

May 7, 2012 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Reference, Uranium, wastes | Leave a comment

Climate change causing groundwater problems, as sea levels rise

Why Groundwater is Another Sea Level Rise Concern, Climate Central by Andrew Freedman, 4 May 12 Sea level rise brings to mind the threat of coastal flooding from menacing storm surges, with growing risks to shore-based infrastructure — but a new study indicates there’s another sea level rise-related threat that has so far slipped under the radar. Continue reading →