Nuclear Power Plants
www.NuclearPowerPlants.net

What are Molten Salt Reactors?

Molten Salt Reactors or "MSRs" are liquid-fueled reactors that can be used for production of electricity, actinide burning, production of hydrogen, and the production of "fissile fuels."

Electricity production and waste "burn-down" are expected to be the primary missions for the Molten Salt Reactor. 

Fissile, fertile, and fission isotopes are dissolved in a high-temperature molten fluoride salt with a very high boiling point (1,400 C) that is both the reactor fuel and the coolant. The near-atmospheric-pressure molten fuel salt flows through the reactor core.

Traditional Molten Salt Reactor designs have a graphite core that results in a thermal to epithermal neutron spectrum.

In the core of the Molten Salt Reactor is where fission occurs - within the flowing molten salt which is the "fuel" and is heated to approximately 700° C., after which it flows into a primary heat exchanger where the heat is transferred to a secondary molten salt coolant.  The fuel salt then flows back to the reactor core. The clean salt in the secondary heat transport system transfers the heat from the primary heat exchanger to a high-temperature Brayton cycle which converts the heat energy into electricity. The Brayton cycle may use either nitrogen or helium as a working gas.

The picture above from the Department of Energy (www.DOE.gov)

For ad rates, send email to:  info@NuclearPowerPlants.net

info@NuclearPowerPlants.net

Yes Nukes!
www.YesNukes.com
(as long as they are MSR or LFTR!)

Energy Cheaper and Cleaner than Coal Through Liquid Fluoride Reactors

Imagine, energy that is both cheaper than coal and cleaner than coal - and can solve more problems than just global warming.

The Liquid Fluoride Reactor - also known as Liquid Fluoride Thorium Reactor or "LFTR." is an alternative energy source that is not well known to the public. The LFTR uses inexpensive thorium as a fuel, which is transformed to uranium-233 and through nuclear fission, generates heat and power at a cost far less than coal fired power plants.

Environmental Concerns

The rising cost of energy and threat of climate change is a concern to many. The US annually imports over $400 billion of oil from foreign suppliers - many from countries whose governments that are not friendly to the U.S.

Global warming and climate change has been linked to melting glaciers which provides fresh water to millions of people.

Global warming and climate change has been linked to the ice melt in both the Arctic and Antarctic - where much of the ocean's algae is produced and provides the foundation of the ocean's food chain.

Global warming and climate change is linked to deforestation and desertification - causing further losses of fresh water supplies.

Global warming and climate change has been linked to declining food/crop production.

Fisheries are collapsing - some fish such as tuna, cod, swordfish facing extinction.

24,000 people in the US die annually from particulate emissions from coal fired power plants.

Global Population

The global population contributes to demand on finite resources. The world's population of almost 7 billion people is growing and leading to competition for dwindling food, water, and energy resources that may lead to famine, plague and eventually wars and world war.

The US and other industrialized nations' birth rates are stable and even declining - and less than the population replacement rates. Countries that are prosperous are more sustainable.

Global prosperity depends on energy. Carbon Free Energy and Pollution Free Power from Clean Power Generation plants and renewable energy technologies are far superior than any fossil fuel as well as nuclear (fue) better for all living things and a healthy planet. And global prosperity will thrive when Carbon Free Energy is generated from technologies that are "cheaper than coal."

Electrical energy provides power for clean water supplies, sanitation, lighting, refrigeration, cooking, communications, healthcare/hospitals and schools/education. It has been shown that when a country has at least 2,000 kwh per year/per capita, that there is prosperity for the people in that country and the population stabilizes. The U.S. generates approximately
12,000 kWh per year, per household.

Economists study the relationship between the economic damage from carbon taxes (Cap and Trade) against the economic damage done from greenhouse gas emissions and anthropogenic climate change. Raising the carbon tax too fast will damage the economy. Europe’s $50 billion Cap and Trade has not yet reversed emissions growth of greenhouse gas emissions. And, developing nations will not accept carbon taxes that limit their economic growth.

Even global warming contrarians can support the economic benefits of energy that is cheaper than coal.

The Liquid Fluoride Reactor solves many of the problems highlighted above by:

• Generating Carbon Free Energy and Pollution Free Power at costs that are "cheaper than coal."

• Generating power with zero greenhouse gas emissions.

• Enabling populations of developing nations to afford the energy they need for sustainable growth and smaller, sustainable populations.

The History of the Liquid Fluoride Reactor

The Liquid Fluoride Reactor uses inexpensive and abundant thorium as its fuel. Thorium is transformed into uranium-233 which generates heat and power via nuclear fission.

The thorium and uranium are dissolved in molten salt which simplifies fueling and waste removal when compared to today's nuclear power plants.

Environmental LFTR Advantages

1. Liquid Fluoride Reactor generate Carbon Free Energy and Pollution Free Power at costs that are cheaper than coal.

This would cause the closings of coal fired power plants and the end of their dumping of millions of tons of greenhouse gas emissions into our atmosphere every year..... not to mention their hundreds of thousands of tons of mercury emissions they are dumping into our environment that is poisoning our planet and all living things.

2. Liquid Fluoride Reactor produce less hazardous waste than coal or other forms of nuclear energy and the radioactive waste from Liquid Fluoride Reactor lasts 1/100th the time of nuclear waste from today's nuclear power plants.

3. Ending the pollution from coal fired power plants and associated coal particulates would save 24,000 lives annually in the US and thousands of people in China and the rest of the world.

4. The fuel used in Liquid Fluoride Reactor is inexhaustible and inexpensive. 

One ton of thorium costs $100,000 and is enough to generate 1 GW electricity per year - which would be all the power a city the size of San Francisco needs.


Technical Advantages of Liquid Fluoride Reactors:

1. have no refueling outages, with continuous automated refueling and continuous automated waste fission product removal.

2. can change power output to satisfy electric demand, for both baseload coal fired power plants and nuclear power plants and replace entirely expensive natural gas "peaker" plants.

3. operate at high temperature for 50% thermal/electrical conversion efficiency, thus needing only half of the cooling required by today's coal fired power plants and nuclear power plants cooling towers.

4. are air cooled, critical for the West and Southwest U.S. as well as many developing countries where water is scarce.

5. have low capital costs because they do not need massive pressure vessels or containment domes. 

Because Liquid Fluoride Reactor have compact heat exchangers and utilize Brayton Cycle turbines, their cooling requirements are halved and safety is increased, when compared with today's nuclear power plants.

6. A new Liquid Fluoride Reactor will cost $200 million for a 100 MW power plant which means they are affordable.

7. Liquid Fluoride Reactor can also make hydrogen fuel for helping develop the hydrogen economy.

8. Liquid Fluoride Reactor is intrinsically safe because overheating expands the fuel salt past criticality. 

Because Liquid Fluoride Reactor fuel is not pressurized and because total loss of power or control will allow a freeze-plug to melt, gravitationally draining all fuel salt into a dump tray, where it cools convectively.

9. 100% of Liquid Fluoride Reactor thorium fuel is burned, compared to 0.7% of uranium burned in today's nuclear reactors.

10. are proliferation resistant, because their U-233 fuel also contains U-232 decay products that emit strong gamma radiation, hazardous to any bomb builders who might somehow seize control of the power plant for the many months necessary needed to extract uranium.

11.  plutonium and other actinides remain in the salt until it is fissioned - unlike today's solid fuel reactors, which must refuel long before these long-lived radiotoxic elements are consumed, because of radiation and thermal stress damage to the zirconium-encased solid fuel rods.

12. No plutonium or other fissionable material is ever isolated or transported to or from the Liquid Fluoride Reactor 

Liquid Fluoride Reactor Challenges

There is almost no political awareness of the thorium/uranium fuel cycle.

James Hansen, the well-known climate scientist from NASA and Columbia professor, recommends and supports the deployment of Liquid Fluoride Reactor technology for generating "carbon free energy."

At present, there is no R&D support or funding for Liquid Fluoride Reactor.

R&D is needed now for supporting Liquid Fluoride Reactor technology.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission would need to learn Liquid Fluoride Reactor technology in order to license and regulate it.

______________________________________________________

The Business Model of "Central Power Plants" is a failed model due to the following failures of Central Power Plants and the electric utilities and other companies that own or operate them.

Central Power Plants are:

• Highly inefficient

• Highly polluting - generating hazardous air pollutants, mercury and greenhouse gas emissions, all of which are now regulated, and are now, or will be heavily taxed.

• Consume inordinate amounts of fuel.

• Waste inordinate amounts of useful heat energy.

• Require as many as 5-10 years to begin construction of new central power plants.

• Typically owned by highly inefficient, heavily regulated electric utility companies that are massive bureaucracies requiring significant amounts of capital that are passed on to customers

• Located as far as 50 miles, to 150 miles from the load center, or market

The alternative to Central Power Plants are "Dispersed Generation" power and energy systems.  

Dispersed Generation power and energy systems are;

• At approximately 90% system efficiency, Dispersed Generation power and energy systems are about 250% more efficient than Central Power Plants.

• Highly efficient

• Generate 50% to 100% fewer emissions

• Consume 50% to 90% less fuel 

• Located at the load center, i.e. customer's location, where the "waste heat" energy can be recovered and used by the client.

• Can be permitted and built in less than 12-18 months

NOTE:  The above can be affected by a number of variables can affect the above.  We can provide the turnkey solution and installation for clients in the 500 kW to 10 MW range.  Our front-end engineering design and economic analysis determines the optimum solution for our clients, that takes into account the client's location, operation/business and how the client uses power and energy and their existing electric and natural gas rates. All of which play an important role regarding the client's return on investment.

______________________________________________________

What is "Dispersed Generation"?

Dispersed Generation is similar to Decentralized Energy - which is the opposite of "centralized energy."  Dispersed Generation is defined as the efficient deployment of clean, efficient and renewable power, which are located near a "load center" and are in the 10 MW to 150 MW to as much as 300 MW range. 

Our new company is  focused in solving power problems in the 1 MW to 30 MW range as well as providing solutions for the "demand side management" market opportunities.

 
The Problems and Opportunities with USA's Present Electrical Grid, Power Supply, Power Generation, "Central Power Plants" and "Centralized Energy."

• Central power plants are extremely inefficient, costly and generate significant amounts of pollution, including mercury, hazardous air pollutants, nitrogen oxides and greenhouse gas emissions. 
  

• Siting of new central power plants require as many as 10 years to receive approvals and permits.  Our company's Founder and Chairman has developed or consulted in new power generation assets, wherein our/their highly-efficient "Dispersed Generation" assets received permits in well under 12 months.
  

• Building new central power plants are expensive - as much as $4500/kW.
  

• Central power plants are not as "integrated" or connected to the electric grid of a load center, as a Dispersed Generation power plant is.  In addition, due to their size, high power output and "profile," central power plants are more likely to be a target of criminal activity than Dispersed Generation plants.
  

• The "electric utility" business model based on generating power - and then re-selling it - from highly inefficient central power plants - is a failed business model. Highly efficient, integrated and locally-sited Dispersed Generation plants are the future of power generation.
  

• Even new, "highly-efficient" central power plants - with efficiencies of 60% - are still "highly inefficient" when compared with our 90% to 92% efficient Dispersed Generation plants.
  

• According to the EIA (Department of Energy), America's power and energy sector contributes about 1/2 trillion dollars every year to the U.S. gross domestic product (GDP).
  

• Demand for new electric electric generation is expected be more than > 40% by 2025.

Dispersed Generation power plant's multiple advantages over Central Power Plants:

• Operating at approximately 90%, Dispersed Generation plants are about 200% to almost 300% more efficient than central power plants. This results in significant economic and environmental savings, as well as reduction or elimination of pollution, including mercury, hazardous air pollutants, nitrogen oxides and greenhouse gas emissions. 
  

• Dispersed Generation plants located at or near the load center.  Even more opportunities develop when a customer or host is available for utilizing the "waste heat" of the Dispersed Generation plant.
  

• Blackouts are practically eliminated when load centers have Dispersed Generation power plants.
  

• Problems relating to electric grid's "transmission congestion" are reduced or eliminated.
  

• Problems relating to high prices of power transmission at/in major load centers (cities) are reduced or eliminated.
  

• Dispersed Generation power plants cost - on a $/MW - is less than 1/2 of the cost for new central power plants.

Our Dispersed Generation power plants provide clean, renewable power for cities and other load centers that eases the congestion of the grid and prevents blackouts and brownouts. Our company plans to develop Dispersed Generation assets located near load centers - where we design, build, own, operate and maintain natural gas fueled CHP systems.

We provide generator sales and service, energy and power engineering services and energy master planning services. This includes custom-packaging of engines and generators (Engine Generator Sets) such as the one below, to optimize the return on investment for our customers.

We can design and custom-package an onsite power generation system that is tailored to your facility's specific power and energy previous 12-36 months historical energy use. With our client's input, we also provide projections into future energy use and then custom-package a power and energy solution that:

• increases power reliability

• reduces energy expenses

• increases energy efficiency

• reduces/eliminates emissions

• reduces or eliminates the power supply / blackout problems

• may pay for itself in less than 36 months!

Call/email us if you are seeking an Energy Master Plan or a customized onsite power generation solution for your facility's power and energy requirements - or to tour of one of the facility's where we can design and build a customized Engine Generator Set or CHP system for your business.

_______________________________________________________

Running on "green fuel" such as Biomethane, B100 Biodiesel, Synthesis Gas or natural gas, our CHP Systems are the greenest "clean power generation" systems available.

Our clean power generation systems are a superior "micro-grid" and demand side management solution for data centers, hospitals, universities, municipal utility districts and new real estate developments/subdivisions seeking "net zero energy" solutions. 

We also provide energy independence from the "dirty" power grid with its high unreliability, black-outs and sky-rocketing electric power prices.  

CHP Systems (Cogeneration and Trigeneration) Plants 
Have Very  High Efficiencies, Low Fuel Costs & Low Emissions

The Effective Heat Rate is Approximately 
4100 btu/kW & System Efficiency is 92% Plant.

The CHP System below is Rated at 900 kW and Features:
(2) Natural Gas Engines @ 450 kW each on one Skid with Optional 
Selective Catalytic Reduction system that removes Nitrogen Oxides to "non-detect."

CHP Systems may be the best solution for your company's economic and environmental sustainability as we "upgrade" natural gas to clean power with our clean power generation solutions.

Our Emissions Abatement solutions reduce Nitrogen Oxides to "non-detect" which means our Trigeneration energy systems can be installed and operated in most EPA non-attainment regions!

_______________________________________________________

How we make and distribute electricity is changing!

The electric power generation, transmission and distribution system (the electric "grid") is changing and evolving from the electric grid of the 19th and 20th centuries, which was inefficient, highly-polluting, very expensive and “dumb.”

The "old" way of generating and distributing energy resembles this slide:

Clean Power Generation Solutions for Commercial, Industrial and Utility Clients

CHP Systems  *  Clean Power Generation  *  Cogeneration  *  Demand Side Management  *  EcoGeneration  *  Emissions Abatement 

Energy Master Planning  *  Engineering  *  Net Zero Energy  *  Power Purchase Agreements  *  Rooftop PV  *  Trigeneration  *  Waste Heat Recovery

___________________________________________________

Dispersed Generation plants are an ideal solution for Electric Utilities, Electric Co-ops, 
Electrical Sub-stations, Hospitals, Food Processing, Universities and Data Centers to 
Reduce/Eliminate Blackouts, Electric Grid Supply Problems or other Power Supply Interruptions

Energy Master Planning and Demand Side Management solutions, coupled with 

Clean Power Generation  

will transform your business, operation, facility and bottom-line by updating to a 

"Net Zero Energy" 

operation and simultaneously provide;

* Increased power reliability

* Reduced power and energy expenses

* The option to tell your electric utility "you're fired!" 

* Reduce or eliminate your emissions & environmental risks

We support the Renewable Energy Institute by donating a portion of our profits to the Renewable Energy Institute in their efforts to reduce fossil fuel use through renewable energy and their goals to end fossil fuel pollution by reducing/eliminating Carbon Emissions, Carbon Dioxide Emissions and Greenhouse Gas Emissions.

The Renewable Energy Institute is "Changing The Way The World Makes and Uses Energy by Providing Research & Development, Funding and Resources That Creates Sustainable Energy via 'Carbon Free Energy,' 'Clean Power Generation' and 'Pollution Free Power' Through Expanding the use of Renewable Energy Technologies."

Nuclear Power Plants
www.NuclearPowerPlants.net

info@NuclearPowerPlants.net

Copyright © 2003
All Rights Reserved