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Tag Archives: nuclear
Wind, solar, and natural gas are driving nuclear power out of business
Preface. I’m no fan of nuclear power because we may already be at peak uranium, there’s nowhere to store nuclear waste, and a spent nuclear pool fire could harm millions of people. But renewable wind and solar and natural gas … Continue reading
Decommissioning a nuclear reactor
Preface. Below are excerpts of articles about the costs and challenges of dismantling nuclear power plants. This is at the top of my “Energy Descent To Do List” given the consequences for future generations for up to a million years, … Continue reading
Posted in Nuclear Waste
Tagged decommission, nuclear
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ITER fusion: How’s it coming along?
Preface. Fusion is the only possible energy resource that could replace fossil fuels according to Martin Hoffert, et al in the 2002 Advanced Technology Paths to Global Climate Stability: Energy for a Greenhouse Planet, Science. I’m not so sure fusion … Continue reading
Posted in EROEI Energy Returned on Energy Invested, Fusion
Tagged delay, EROI, fusion, ITER, nuclear
2 Comments
New Yorker review of Eric Schlosser’s “Command and Control”
Preface. This book has been on my reading list for several years now, but I have to admit I am lazy, lazy – the 656 pages is twice the length of most books. And it would be hard to write … Continue reading
Book review of Vaclav Smil’s “Energy Transitions: History, Requirements, Prospects”
Preface. In my extract of the 178 pages in the book below, Smil explains why renewables can’t possibly replace fossil fuels, and appears to be exasperated that people believe this can be done when he writes “Common expectations of energy … Continue reading
Posted in Alternative Energy, Energy Books, Vaclav Smil
Tagged biofuels, coal, energy, geothermal, hydropower, kinetic, LNG, muscle power, nuclear, solar, vaclav smil, wind
13 Comments
Nuclear Regulatory Commission accused of putting millions of lives and trillions of dollars at risk
[ Edwin Lyman and his co-authors in Science magazine have accused the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) of putting millions of American lives at risk, due to “pressure from the nuclear utilities and a Congress sympathetic to the utilities’ complaints of … Continue reading
Posted in EMP Electromagnetic Pulse, Nuclear spent fuel fire
Tagged NRC, nuclear, nuclear regulation, nuclear safety, spent pool fire
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The electromagnetic pulse EMP Threat: House of Representatives hearing 2005
[ Related articles: Russian hackers suspected in attack that blacked out parts of Ukraine How the weapon works (pdf): CRASHOVERRIDE Analyzing the Threat to Electric Grid Operations The EMP Commission estimates a nationwide blackout lasting one year could kill up … Continue reading
Posted in Blackouts, EMP Electromagnetic Pulse, Nuclear spent fuel fire
Tagged electromagnetic pulse, EMP, geomagnetic storm, nuclear, spent pool
1 Comment
Why Nuclear Power can’t replace fossil fuels
Last updated August 2022. Preface. Economic reasons are the main hurdle to new nuclear plants now, with capital costs so high it’s almost impossible to get a loan, especially when natural gas is so much cheaper and less risky. But … Continue reading
Posted in Alternative Energy, Energy, Nuclear Power Energy, Renewable Integration
Tagged breeder, nuclear
14 Comments