Thursday, August 12, 2021

Next nuclear 2

 (cont'd from yesterday's post)

When and if China's Molten Salt Reactor power plant goes online in 2030, it will be located in the desert city of Wuwei. Additional plants will follow in arid places within China, and then in foreign countries. 

Yes, China plans to build them in other countries.  It's part of their Belt and Road Initiative, a  strategy to build infrastructure among 70 countries in Asia and Europe for trade and "connectivity." 

Thorium (named after the Norse god of thunder) as a nuclear plant fuel is more desirable than Uranium-235 which is used as fuel in existing plants. China's first MSR will be 10 feet by 8 feet. Small, but it will produce enough power for 100,000 people.

As the biggest national contributor to global carbon emissions (more than the entire developed world combined), China is far from "carbon neutral by 2060," the expressed goal of its president. This project will help because nuclear power produces no CO2 emissions.

from Live Science

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