XYLENE POWER LTD.

NUCLEAR POWER IMPLEMENTATION

By Charles Rhodes, P.Eng., Ph.D.

REACTOR TYPE:
The recommended initial reactor type is CANDU with heavy water as both a moderator and a coolant. The reason for this reactor choice is that heavy water is extremeply neutron efficient which permits fueling a CANDU reactor with either natural uranium or used Light water reactor (LWR) fuel and enables efficient production of TRU. One of the Darlington reactors recently ran at full power non-stop for 1083 days. CANDU reactors can be fueled while running at full power.

CANDU reactors are twice as fuel efficient as LWRs and are 4X as efficient at making TRU feedstock for Fast Neutron Reactors (FNRs). Large scale FNR deployment will be required within the lifetimes of young people now living, and failure to breed sufficient fuel for these reactors now will result in a major nuclear fuel shortage by the year 2070.

CANDU reactors also do not require fuel enrichment and do not require large forgings.

Natural fresh water consists of a mixture of H2O, HDO and D2O. Electrolysis of natural fresh water produces a gas consisting of H2, HD and D2 molecules. That gas should be processed to concentrate and separae the HD and D2 molecules before the H2 is used in another bulk application such as making ammonia or methanol. The HD and D2 can be further processed to make heavy water.
 

NUCLEAR PROGRAM COST CONTROL:
The public is concerned about the cost implementing a nuclear power program. A nuclear power program involves a major investment in employee training by the electricity utility, the general contractor, all the subcontractors, most of their suppliers and the safety regulator.

The most effective cost control measures are sensible safety regulations, sensible NPP siting, sensible NPP construction scheduling and maintenance of employee job satisfaction to minimize employee turnover.

With CANDU reactors public fears about safety have been unwarranted. In more than 50 years of commercial reactor operation the worst case CANDU accident, involving a fuel tube rupture at full power, just resulted in "a puddle on the floor".

Here is a list of things to think about in choosing a NPP site.

This author has a lot of experience both in hiring young engineers and in doing his best to train and retain them over time. An issue that must be faced is that as fast as one trains competent young people other parties will try to steal them. One of the things that will minimize engineering employee turnover is if a competent engineer has a wife with a good stable job that fixes her in place and if they have children in a good school with good after study child care.

If their income is sufficient and their family life outside of work is good, then they will not be tempted by an apparently larger salary offered by another party that has with it unknowns with respect to the impact on their family life and spousal employment.

One of the problems with training single adults at a remote nuclear site is that their social life is bad to non-existent. That problem can have expensive and/or tragic consequences. The best solution that I have found is to employ someone whose full time job description is organizing social, recreational and athletic activities for young adults. The greater the participation, the better.

I cannot emphasize enough that there is no point investing multi-million dollars into someone's education only to have him/her quit because he/she is lonely while in training at a remote nuclear facility.

One of the potential pitfalls in a nuclear program is that some politician gets elected who thinks he/she can cut wage/salary costs without serious consequences. If you have spent a billion dollars training a large team of engineers and technologists it does not make sense to suddenly terminate half of them to meet a short term political objective. That is the kind of foolishness that drives up the cost of a nuclear program. Nuclear engineers and technologistws are smart people who, once employed elsewhere, can seldom be recovered.

Remember that a reactor has a working life of 60+ years whereas politicians think in terms of 4 year increments and political broadcasters are only concerned with their next annual review. Nuclear related employment decisions must be long term.

Ontario Power Generation offers various tours of its reactor refurbishment training facility at Darlington, Ontario. Instead of running nuclear down broadcasters should join one of those tours. One of the Darlington reactors recently ran at full power non-stop for 1083 days. CANDU reactors can be fueled while running at full power.

For persons who prefer to live and work in a rural setting I suggest employment by Bruce Power in Kincardine, ON or by Canadian Nuclear Laboratories in Chalk River, ON. However, that life may not appeal to young single people.
 

This web page last updated October 18, 2024