France vows to build new nuclear reactors to meet climate goals. Will USA Follow France Lead ?

[j-mac]

The issues aren't exactly as clear cut as they once were.
The mining of uranium is problematic...requiring boric acid....hundreds of thousands of gallons of the stuff that often gets left as unrecovered and waste.
Then there's the economic issues...a lot of uranium is in locations where human rights violation and wars are common. Most of the money is used from mining uranium to promote these things.

Nothing in this world is problem free, not even Solar, or Wind....We have uranium in this country if Obama, and Hillary hadn't sold us out....The bottom line is that nuclear is a more reliable source than either wind or solar, and it's asthetic foot print in our country is far less than other alternatives....

All things considered I still think nuclear wins...

 

[JohnDB]

One other dirty secret is that in many places they still use an old live steam system to heat downtown government buildings.

Here in Nashville TN they used to burn garbage to generate the steam. But EPA regulations from the Clinton Administration cut that off and everyone had to switch entirely to natural gas...which then caused an immediate shortage of natural gas as there weren't enough wells and delivery systems in place yet.

But natural gas and NGLs are also used to create fertilizers for groceries grown... uranium can't do that nor does it create anything of value other than waste too scary to touch.

 

[2aguy]

Nothing in this world is problem free, not even Solar, or Wind....We have uranium in this country if Obama, and Hillary hadn't sold us out....The bottom line is that nuclear is a more reliable source than either wind or solar, and it's asthetic foot print in our country is far less than other alternatives....

All things considered I still think nuclear wins...

I have heard that after you build nuclear it becomes much cheaper over time......is this true?

 

[FA_Q2]

Wind and solar are failures.......ask the British.......

Nuclear is the way to go, or the next tech that achieves the same or better quality for less cost......

No, they are not. There just is no other way to put it.

If they were failures, you would not see investment and growth in the industry. Wind and solar work within the capacity that they are able to deliver. A capacity that is going to increase in the near future as well.

What they are not is a magical concoction that will solve all climate fears or replace fossil fuel energy.

 

[j-mac]

I have heard that after you build nuclear it becomes much cheaper over time......is this true?

Not sure, but I can see how it would....

 

[2aguy]

No, they are not. There just is no other way to put it.

If they were failures, you would not see investment and growth in the industry. Wind and solar work within the capacity that they are able to deliver. A capacity that is going to increase in the near future as well.

What they are not is a magical concoction that will solve all climate fears or replace fossil fuel energy.

They are failures...they failed in Texas...they are failing in Europe...

Electricity prices soared to a record in Britain as a period of still weather is curbing wind power, exposing the U.K.’s reliance on intermittent renewables.

U.K. power for next day exceed 400 pounds ($553) a megawatt-hour at an auction on Monday, an all-time high. Wind generation is currently below normal, accounting for about 11% of all the electricity entering the grid. That’s leaving the market exposed to swings at a time five nuclear units are offline.

The U.K.’s ability to meet peak demand was already set to shrink this winter as coal and nuclear power stations close early. The outlook has worsened as low wind speeds have forced Britain to rely more on fossil fuels to produce power at a time Europe is facing a shortage of gas and coal prices are surging.

U.K. Power Surges to Record 400 Pounds as Wind Fails to Blow

Electricity prices soared to a record in Britain as a period of still weather is curbing wind power, exposing the U.K.’s reliance on intermittent renewables.

www.bloomberg.com

On November 3rd, National Grid, which operates the electrical system in the United Kingdom, issued an “electricity margin notice,” for the afternoon of November 4. What this essentially meant is that the electricity operator was concerned that electricity supplies could become tight, especially at peak hours. Blackouts were not imminent, but the risk was there.

National Grid was forecasting a shortfall of 740 MW (1.5%) in the extra power plant capacity it needs to have available at all times to meet demand or pick of slack in the event a power plant breaks down. It is important to note that this happened at the beginning of November, not in the heat of summer when air conditioning can strain grids or an abnormally long cold snap in the winter. No, this was not caused by overburdening the grid but by overreliance on unreliable alternative energies.
----
The reason for this warning was that a mass of cold, calm air moved over the U.K. The cold prompted electricity use while the lack of wind cut the available power generation from onshore and offshore wind farms. Britain’s wind farms are intended to produce, on average, 16.9 GW of energy but were expected to only generate only 2.5 GW of energy at times on Wednesday. Of that 2.5 GW, “system constraints” prevent the use of 1.2 GW.

A Warning From The United Kingdom: Renewable Energy May Not Suffice

Calm, cold air stills Britain's wind farms, exposing the country to power shortages and forcing coal plants back into action.

www.forbes.com

Left wing, government subsidies and Chinese slave labor can't hide the failure of solar and wind...

 

[2aguy]

No, they are not. There just is no other way to put it.

If they were failures, you would not see investment and growth in the industry. Wind and solar work within the capacity that they are able to deliver. A capacity that is going to increase in the near future as well.

What they are not is a magical concoction that will solve all climate fears or replace fossil fuel energy.

More....


But Britain has proved uniquely vulnerable in part because of its poorly thought out approach to decarbonisation. A net importer of energy since 2004, the UK has plunged into green energy. Last year it drew a record 43 per cent of its electricity from renewables. However, that share dropped to 37 per cent this spring, as lower than normal wind speeds and fewer sunny days hit production even while demand grew.

Memo to countries going green: don’t be like the UK

Natural gas crisis highlights the limits of free markets in decarbonisation

www.ft.com

 

[FA_Q2]

Those are failures of government invention demanding that renewables deliver more than they are currently capable. They are central planning and grid problems.

Again, they play a role. it is asinine to ignore the plentiful and completely free energy that simply falls from the sky. It is also asinine to base your energy requirements around something that disappears when it rains.

So, like I said before, they are not failures when used within the capacity that they are able to deliver. The problem is less about wind and solar power or what they have to offer and more about the political bullshit that surrounds them.

 

[Juicin]

One other dirty secret is that in many places they still use an old live steam system to heat downtown government buildings.

Here in Nashville TN they used to burn garbage to generate the steam. But EPA regulations from the Clinton Administration cut that off and everyone had to switch entirely to natural gas...which then caused an immediate shortage of natural gas as there weren't enough wells and delivery systems in place yet.

But natural gas and NGLs are also used to create fertilizers for groceries grown... uranium can't do that nor does it create anything of value other than waste too scary to touch.

LOL the nuclear fear mongering

They shoudl have never agreed to put that shit under a mountain. So uneccessary. We know how the tech to make it basically inert we just don't use the right type of reactor to do it. Easier to just dump the waste. Because again it's not a big deal you're not going to make godzilla or give people cancer with the tiny amount of radioactive material world nuclear power plants produce.

 

[FA_Q2]

LOL the nuclear fear mongering

They shoudl have never agreed to put that shit under a mountain. So uneccessary. We know how the tech to make it basically inert we just don't use the right type of reactor to do it. Easier to just dump the waste. Because again it's not a big deal you're not going to make godzilla or give people cancer with the tiny amount of radioactive material world nuclear power plants produce.

Nuclear processes and radiation in general is something the general public is utterly ignorant about. The dangers are universally overstated.

 

[kyzr]

Very informative. There is a right way to do nuclear power, the problem is that there are too many "wrong ways".

TMI-2 was not designed properly, but TMI-1 was, "bad cost-cutting" can bite you on the ass, Chernobyl was moronic with no "containment building", Fukushima was bad design, should have been sited well above a small tidal wave, and designed for a big one.

If there is a "next generaton" nuke plant design there needs to be major design and safety improvements and redundancy of safety systems.

Thanks for that video, I hope the new nuke design works well for the Fins.

 

[Likkmee]

France has vowed to build more nuclear reactors in order to be carbon neutral by 2050.

President Emmanuel Macron, making the announcement in a nationwide address on Tuesday, said it would also help the country achieve "energy independence".

Unlike many of its European neighbours, which are moving away from nuclear, France will build its first new reactors in decades....France already has 56 operational reactors and derives about 70% of its electricity from nuclear energy,

France vows to build new nuclear reactors to meet climate goals

France already has 56 operational reactors and derives about 70% of its electricity from nuclear energy.

www.euronews.com

Putin pushes gas prices.​

Putin pressar gaspriset | SvD

Gaspriset faller markant. En orsak är att ryssarna släppt på kranarna till EU-marknaden via Polen, Belarus och Ukraina. Gasflödet västerut är nu det största på flera veckor, men fortfarande lägre än i september, innan den mer oroande energikrisen tog fart med rejält stigande gas- och elpriser i...

www-svd-se.translate.goog

Great News for our Liberal order , the terrible news for oriental despots ! Will USA Follow France Lead ?

Chernobyl and 3 mile island are excellent at food storage

 

[2aguy]

Those are failures of government invention demanding that renewables deliver more than they are currently capable. They are central planning and grid problems.

Again, they play a role. it is asinine to ignore the plentiful and completely free energy that simply falls from the sky. It is also asinine to base your energy requirements around something that disappears when it rains.

So, like I said before, they are not failures when used within the capacity that they are able to deliver. The problem is less about wind and solar power or what they have to offer and more about the political bullshit that surrounds them.

Wrong...they are failures when they fail to provide enough energy.......

 

[kyzr]

we never stored the "waste", at yucca mountain.
I dont understand why people call it a problem, spent fuel can be burnt up in a breeder reactor which will turn it into new fuel for another cycle. Sounds like we can reuse the "waste" at least twice. Three cycles of of one fuel bundle. Sounds great.
As far as disposal, we simply need to design a reactor that consumes 100% of the fuel.
Long term storage? Leave it on site, what does that hurt?

Breeder reactors aren't commercially available yet. They are "experimental" at best.
But they would be a form of "renewable energy", if you don't mind all of the Plutonium they produce...

Breeder reactor - Energy Education

energyeducation.ca

"The first experimental breeder reactor (EBR-1) developed was in 1951 in Idaho, U.S.A. Subsequently Russia, Japan, Great Britain and France all developed experimental breeder reactors, however no nation has developed one suitable for high-capacity commercial use. So far, France has made the largest implementation of breeder reactors with their Super-Phenix fast breeder reactor."

 

[FA_Q2]

Wrong...they are failures when they fail to provide enough energy.......

Sure, whatever...

 

[kyzr]

Thank you! I was waiting for someone to mention that modern breeder reactors recycle nuclear waste as fuel. We could operate our entire electric grid for 100 years using existing nuclear "waste."
The anti-nuclear energy people just want to keep repeating the waste argument while ignoring the fact that it's largely been solved.

Very true IN THEORY. No one has designed and built a "commercial" breeder reactor yet.
France is the closest, and they are a long way from viable.

Maybe this "breeder reactor" challenge could be the next one that Elon Musk tackles?

 

[kyzr]

There is no reason to build more light water reactors that run on uranium.

Uranium is expensive because it is about as rare as platinum and no one would burn platinum for fuel.

LWRs need huge concrete and steel containment domes because they have to run at high pressure and they need huge volumes of water for cooling.

Molten salt reactors run at atmosphere and don't need containment domes, they use Thorium salts with are dirt cheap, they don't need huge volumes of water for cooling, can't melt down and can waste from old LWRs in the fuel mix.

True, but they are very small. They can power ships not states, unless they can be "scaled up"?
But it is a very interesting energy source.

Modular Molten Salt Nuclear Power for Maritime Propulsion

Evolving modern modular molten salt nuclear technology incurs comparatively lower cost while using a...

maritime-executive.com

 

[Blues Man]

True, but they are very small. They can power ships not states, unless they can be "scaled up"?
But it is a very interesting energy source.

Modular Molten Salt Nuclear Power for Maritime Propulsion

Evolving modern modular molten salt nuclear technology incurs comparatively lower cost while using a...

maritime-executive.com

View attachment 563602

They can be scaled up.

 

[Litwin]

True, but they are very small. They can power ships not states, unless they can be "scaled up"?
But it is a very interesting energy source.

Modular Molten Salt Nuclear Power for Maritime Propulsion

Evolving modern modular molten salt nuclear technology incurs comparatively lower cost while using a...

maritime-executive.com

View attachment 563602

Rolls-Royce gets funding to develop mini nuclear reactors - BBC​

https://www.bbc.com › news › business-59212983




4 days ago — Currently, about 16% of UK electricity generation comes from nuclear power. Small modular reactors are nuclear fission reactors but are ...