Christina Black opines that as a physicist the importance of safe and efficient power generation to energy security, and national security, challenges me to push the boundaries of what is possible.
Nuclear energy is by far the largest source of clean, non-intermittent electricity in the U.S. We have more reactors than any other nation and produce over 25% of the global supply of nuclear power. But nuclear energy is not just important to the U.S., it also plays a critical role in energy markets around the world. As of 2015, 13 countries relied on nuclear energy to provide at least 25% of their electricity.
However, do skeptics have a point when they note that cost and reliability issues impact the nuclear industry. For reactors under construction in the U.S., cost has a particularly large influence. As one example, cost overruns have contributed to the visible and unfortunate bankruptcy filing by Westinghouse.
In seeking to address these challenges, some have focused on smaller and less-expensive conventional light-water reactor designs, with mixed success. Just this month, Generation mPower, a joint venture between BWXT and Bechtel, to develop small modular reactors (SMRs), announced the termination of its partnership.
Yet cost, while significant, is not the only problem facing the industry. In a post-Fukushima world, safety is paramount, and renewables like solar and wind are increasingly attractive, but the way forward for nuclear is through advanced materials and innovative reactor designs that can meet all of the core challenges facing the industry. By leveraging the incredible progress made by the scientific community, we can revolutionize nuclear energy and the larger energy industry.
To give up on nuclear power now is to sacrifice an emissions-free, non-intermittent source of electricity with the potential to provide thousands of years of safe, clean energy... at competitive cost.
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Managed & Built by I2M Consulting, LLC | © 2010-
Managed & Built by I2M Consulting, LLC | © 2010-