THE FUTURE OFNUCLEAR POWER

GREG RAABERGNOVEMBER 24, 2008

The University of Texas at Austin

Department of Chemical EngineeringChE 359

OUTLINE

WHY USE NUCLEAR POWER? FUTURE ENERGY CONSUMPTION NUCLEAR POWER USE CURRENT REACTOR TECHNOLOGY FUTURE REACTOR DESIGNS CONCLUSIONS

WHY USE NUCLEAR POWER?

Potential for greenhouse gas emission restrictions

Zero emissions(NOx, CO2, SOx)

Increasingly safe designs

Economically competitive

Future energy demand

Image courtesy of TIME Magazine

FUTURE ENERGY CONSUMPTION

Figure courtesy of the International Energy Agency’s World Energy Outlook 2008

NUCLEAR POWER USE

Nuclear power supplies ≈20% of U.S. electricity

≈17% of world electricity

440 reactors worldwide

104 commercially licensed reactors in the U.S.

Image courtesy of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission

CURRENT REACTOR TECHNOLOGY Boiling water reactors and pressurized water

reactors (only 2 commercial designs in the U.S.)

Use the thermal energy from nuclear fission to generate steam, power a turbine, and produce electricity

Only use Uranium-235 as a fuel source

Single pass systems generate large amounts of radioactive wastes

CURRENT PROBLEMS

Nuclear material proliferation

Radioactive waste storage

Finite amount of Uranium for fuel

Operational safety

Image courtesy of LIFE Magazine

FUTURE REACTOR DESIGNS

Breeder Reactors Create more fissile material than consumed

Does not create an infinite amount of energy, only converts non-fissile atoms into fissionable fuel

Fast breeder reactors or thermal breeder reactors extend uranium supplies

Reduction of nuclear waste with reprocessing

FUTURE REACTOR DESIGNS

Figures courtesy of U.S. Department of Energy and the Generation IV International

Forum

EVOLUTION OF REACTOR DESIGN

Figure courtesy of U.S. Department of Energy and the Generation IV International

Forum

GENERATION IV REACTORS

Increased thermal efficiency through the Brayton cycle and exotic coolants (liquid sodium, helium, lead-bismuth)

Improved overall efficiency through breeder reactor technology

More fail-safe systems diminish risk of core failure Sealed cores reduce proliferation risk Lack of robust materials to survive new designs Current breeder process are complex and

uneconomical

CONCLUSIONS

Emission free energy sources are a necessity

Operational safety is the priority alongside minimizing proliferation risk

Reducing waste and reprocessing spent fuel ensures proper environmental stewardship

Images courtesy ofNeatorama.com and

Globalwarmingart.com

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REFERENCES

“Advanced Nuclear Power Reactors.” World Nuclear Association. Nov. 2008. 19 Nov. 2008 <http://www.world-nuclear.org/ info/ inf08.html>.

Ansolabehere, Stephen, et al. “The Future of Nuclear Power, an Interdisciplinary MIT Study.” Massachusetts Institute of Technology. 29 July 2003. 20 Nov. 2008 <http://web.mit.edu/ nuclearpower/ pdf/ nuclearpower-full.pdf>.

“Basic Nuclear Fission.” Think Quest. 1998. 18 Nov. 2008 <http://library.thinkquest.org/ 17940/ texts/ fission/ fission.html>.

“The Economics of Nuclear Power.” World Nuclear Association. Nov. 2008. 19 Nov. 2008 <http://www.world-nuclear.org/ info/ inf02.html>.

Edgar, Thomas F. Coal Processing and Pollution Control. Houston, TX: Gulf Publishing Company, 1983.“Electric Power Generation.” Nuclear Energy Institute. 2008. 18 Nov. 2008 <http://www.nei.org/

howitworks/ electricpowergeneration/>.Marks, Alan. “Some Physics of Uranium.” World Nuclear Association. June 2007. 18 Nov. 2008

<http://world-nuclear.org/ education/ phys.htm>.“Nuclear Energy, Energy from Atoms.” Energy Information Administration. Nov. 2007. 17 Nov. 2008

<http://www.eia.doe.gov/ kids/ energyfacts/ sources/ non-renewable/ nuclear.html#NuclearGeneration>.“Nuclear Power in the World Today.” World Nuclear Association. June 2007. 16 Nov. 2008

<http://www.world-nuclear.org/ info/ inf01.html>.“Overview of Generation IV Technology Roadmap.” Nuclear Energy Institute. 17 Sept. 2002. 18 Nov. 2008

<http://www.nei.org/ filefolder/ doe_gen_iv_diagrams.pdf>.“Science or Fiction- Is there a Future for Nuclear?” Austrian Institute of Ecology. Oct. 2007. 18 Nov. 2008

<http://www.ecology.at/ ecology/ files/ pr577_1.pdf>.