High temp pebble bed reactors, Let a thousand reactors bloom ?

[EVDebs]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pebble_bed_reactor

Let a thousand reactors bloom
http://www.energybulletin.net/1868.html

Is Iran 'threatening' to build one of these type reactors ? China and So. Africa and (gasp !) even the US appear to be attempting to build similar ones...what gives

[benburch]

1. A very good reactor design.

Solves many of the problems with traditional reactor designs.

Safer.

More easily controlled.

More easily refueled.

Cheaper to build.

[ChairmanAgnostic]

2. that's what I have read about this design.

of course, every time we build a plant, we HAVE to design each from scratch. Otherwise Westinghouse and Foster Wheeler wouldn't make the same profit on them.

[benburch]

3. That will change.

I predict a standardized plant will be available soon from the Chinese...

[Oversea Visitor]

4. For 1/5 of the price

:rofl:

[pokercat999]

5. They'll be so cheap everyone will have their own.

Maybe small enough to put in our car. :sarcasm:

[ChairmanAgnostic]

8. available at the Wallmart nearest you

[Oversea Visitor]

12. Hmmm

nuclear power car hmmm sounds good.

[greenman3610]

6. how does this address the proliferation issue?

[HysteryDiagnosis]

7. This would, if it worked, and for some reason, I believe that it

would be put into play if it didn't ruffle so many feathers in the process...


http://www.cheniere.org/patent%20application/claim.htm#nuclear
METHOD, SYSTEM AND APPARATUS FOR CONDITIONING ELECTROMAGNETIC POTENTIALS, FIELDS, AND WAVES
TO TREAT AND ALTER MATTER

Inventor: Name Thomas E. Bearden, Ph.D.

Address correspondence to: Name: Thomas E. Bearden, Ph.D.

Prepared by: Thomas E. Bearden and Marcia Peters
Filed by: Anthony J. Craddock

[benburch]

9. If it worked. It doesn't.

You can patent a wet dream if you like.

[EVDebs]

10. What's wrong with the modular pebble bed reactor ? article

http://www.tmia.com/industry/pebbles.html

""The pebble bed reactor is being touted as nearly "accident proof." It is being hailed as the savior of the nuclear industry. Three Mile Island Alert opposes this reactor design because of its inherent dangerous safety defects.

1. It has no containment building.
2. It uses flammable graphite as a moderator.
3. It produces more high level nuclear wastes than current nuclear reactor designs.
4. It relies heavily on nearly perfect fuel pebbles.
5. It relies heavily upon fuel handling as the pebbles are cycled through the reactor.
6. There's already been an accident at a pebble bed reactor in Germany due to fuel handling problems.""

I guess www.oilendgame.com and the book Plan B 2.0 (both books available FREE online btw) can provide better glimpses into what the future will bring us. Let's hope so.

Finally, where will the radwaste produced ultimately be stored ? If less radwaste is produced, maybe it could be 'practical'.

[benburch]

11. Nothing.

The matter transmutation patent in the posting I replied to is what I referred to!

[Kellanved]

13. AKA the Wankel engine among the nuclear power plants

Sounds great - doesn't work. Only surpassed by the sodium cooled breeder.

The issue is keeping the ducts intact. Also lowering the control rods into the pebble bed destroys many fuel balls. The result is dust inside the reactor, which tends to harm the mechanic parts. The German prototype plant was taken offline, because the whole duct & dust issue was just not working right. Also the power production was lower than planned while "burning" more fuel.