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Our memories impact imagining and planning for the future : Comments
By Eric Claus, published 5/9/2018All these issues have been worsened by population pressures, but we've always had increased population and life has always gotten better, so why worry?
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We can address climate change while massively turbocharging the economy. By transitioning to (carbon-free) MSR thorium.
MSR is both unpressurised and has passive safety built in that made the trialled concept. Oak Ridge Tennessee, 1950-70s) walkway safe.
Thorium is the most energy dense material in the world and MSR thorium can be used to very-very safely burn other folks nuclear waste while earning annual billions for providing the service. Burned until the remaining waste is reduced to less than 1%.
Far less toxic and eminently suitable for long life space batteries. Which after powering our communications satellites, whatever.
Burned up on re-entry.
Comparing a traditional 350 MW light water reactor with a thorium-powered MSR equivalent.
The traditional 350 MW uranium reactor will require over a 30 year lifetime, 2551 tons of enriched fuel, where less than 1% is available as actual fuel, the rest 2550 tons becomes part of the nuclear waste stockpile.
Whereas, the thorium MSR requires just one ton of fuel. (As refined metallic thorium.) From which we get U233. Which is reprocessed in the adjacent chemical plant, so it can go back again and again until just 1% or less is left to dispose of as LLSB.
Thorium > U233 > miracle cancer cure, bismuth 213.
And created while creating copious, affordable, reliable, clean, safe, cheaper than coal, carbon-free energy.
Why would we embrace this concept?
Because of energy prices below 2 cents per KwH!?
Reactors, their manufacture and assembly paid for by other folks as annual billions we'd earn disposing of their stockpiled waste as costless energy.
Until we had reduced it to just 1% waste with a half-life of just 300 years and as LLSB. That'll power the new generations of satellites or even a practical warp drive.
My granddaddy allus drove a horse and cart, and remarked when he saw his first motor car, they'll never catch on!
Neither will MSR/thorium? Or reliable carbon-free power that costs less than 2 cents per KwH!?
Alan B.