reactor

China has already won the nuclear energy career to the US and Russia. And he has done it thanks to a avant -garde reactor

by

China’s nuclear program was born in the 50s of the last century. The cold war held by the US and the Soviet Union had incited these two countries to Develop your nuclear arsenal With a shocking speed, and Mao Zedong, the co -founder and leader of the Communist Party of China, decided to ask the Soviet Union for help for launch your own nuclear plan. In 1955 this cooperation allowed China to build its first floor of Uranium-235 and Plutonium productionand also supported the foundation of the National Nuclear Corporation of China (CNC). Only four years later, in 1959, the Soviet Union ended the collaboration with China in nuclear technology. This decision was a very hard setback for the country led by Mao Zedong, who embarked on A career towards self -sufficient in the development of nuclear energy. However, China’s plan prospered very slowly during the next three decades. The first nuclear power plant designed and built entirely by China, the Qinshan plant, was successfully connected to the electricity network on December 15, 1991. At that time China could not rival at all with The development of nuclear technology that had reached the US and the almost extinct Soviet Union. In 2002 China only had two nuclear centrals in operation. Today has no less than 58 nuclear reactors in activity. Only US has more (94). During the last two decades China’s civil and military nuclear program It has advanced with a vertiginous speed, but the most important thing is not the number of reactors that it currently has in operation: the really differential thing is that it has been placed At the forefront in nuclear technology. China leads thanks to its nuclear reactor of molten salts and Torio The TMSR-LF1 reactor officially entered into operation on October 11, 2023. A few months later, on June 17, 2024, he began working at full power. And on October 8 of last year the technicians who operate it detected protacinium-233 (PA-233), a radioactive isotope intermediate derived from the transformation of the thorium into Uranium-233 as part of the fuel cycle of the thorium. This nuclear reactor is in the Minqin industrial complex of the province of Gansu, in northern China. It has a power of 2 thermal megawatts (MWT), and, although it will not be the first Fourth Generation Nuclear Reactor in activity, and neither the first one that Torio will use as fuel, yes It will be the first of molten salts that will use this chemical element. However, the ambition of this Asian country does not end here; It is already planning to build a molten salts and torium reactor of more capacity for 2030, although China is not the only country that bets on this technology. China plans to build a molten salts and torio reactor of more capacity for 2030 The US, France or India are some of those who have also invested in research programs that pursue the development of nuclear reactors capable of generating electricity from the thorium. India’s in particular is interesting because it aims to demonstrate the viability of fuel cycles based on thorium in the context of its advanced heavy water reactor project. This technology is still far from being adopted in a generalized way, but its advantages closely link it to the future of nuclear energy. Our planet brings together approximately 12 million tons of thorium, so this chemical element is three times more abundant In the earth’s cortex that Uranium used as fuel in the current nuclear centrals. The largest deposits reside in China, Brazil, Canada, Australia, USA, Greenland, Russia, Norway, South Africa and Venezuela, although prospects reflect that the country that Torio has is precisely one of the ones that is investing most in the development of reactors capable of using it: India. Another point in your favor is that it is as easy to extract as uranium, but it has the inconvenience that it is not directly physable. It is necessary to introduce it into a reactor that manufactures uranium from Torio, and what it produces is not uranium-235, it is Uranium-233, but the important thing is that it is physable. Once this uranium has occurred, it can be introduced into a conventional reactor like those we have in Spain, which could not work with Torio, but with a derivative of that element. In addition, experts say that molten salts nuclear reactors are safer than reactors installed in the nuclear power plants that are currently in operation. Experts say that molten salts nuclear reactors are safer than reactors installed in the nuclear power plants that are currently in operation Two of the reasons are that they use as a refrigerant lithium fluoride and beryllium at a very low pressure, and the fuel remains dissolved in the form of salt, so it is very unlikely that an accident could trigger the fusion of the reactor’s core. Another quality of these reactors that are worth not overlooking is that Its architecture allows them to be installed undergroundwhich, again, increases your safety. But this is not all. Another peculiar and positive feature of these reactors is that they allow to recharge the fuel while remaining in operation. And, in addition, the fact that they do not need water to maintain the refrigerated nucleus allows them to be installed in regions in which water is scarce, or, simply, in areas where there is no river and are not close to the sea. This is one of the reasons why China is investing in the development of this technology as a means to build fourth generation nuclear power plants in the most remote and arid regions of the country. It is also worth not overlooking that Radioactive waste They generate have a much shorter semi -grid period than that of the residues of the reactors that use uranium, which logically facilitates their management. And, in addition, the folk salts reactors They use less fuel Because the efficiency of the thorium is much higher than … Read more

China is building the fusion-fission reactor that the US canceled decades ago. The future of nuclear energy depends on your fate

by

In the newly built Yoohu scientific island, next to the city of Nancheng, China advances discreetly in its plans to materialize a project that the United States explored and abandoned decades ago: the hybrid fusion-fission reactor. Xinghou-1. His name means “spark”, and is inspired by an appointment by Mao Zedong: “A single spark can set the entire meadow.” But it’s no small thing: it has behind An investment of more than 200,000 million yuanthe equivalent of 28,000 million dollars. The objective: build a hybrid central with 100 megawatts of electrical power, 300 megawatts of thermal power and, most importantly, a plasma energy gain factor (Q) greater than 30. An unprecedented achievement that could redefine the future of nuclear fusion nuclear energy. What all this means. To understand the magnitude of this objective, you have to put it in context. The nuclear fusion, the same process that feeds the stars, promises clean energy without the radioactive waste of current nuclear fission. The great challenge is get a fusion reaction to generate more energy of which consumes. The National Ignition Facility of the United States achieved in 2022 a historical milestone with a value q of 1.5demonstrating for the first time a net energy gain. The International Experimental Thermonuclear Reactor (Iter), a gigantic multinational project that is being built in France, aspires to achieve a Q> 10 to demonstrate the viability of large -scale fusion. Xinghuo, however, points to a Q> 30, the threshold that experts consider necessary for a merger plant to be commercially profitable. How does China plan to make this giant leap? The answer is in your hybrid approach. A fusion-fission reactor. That is, a reactor that uses the high energy neutrons generated by a fusion reaction (the “spark”) to bombard a mantle of fistible material such as uranium. This triggers a fission reaction that greatly multiplies energy production. In essence, use the fusion as a catalyst to make the fission much more efficient. The Xinghuo-1 project has already entered into the initial phase, which includes the tender and evaluation of its environmental impact. Its development is in charge of the state company Nuclear China Industry 23 Construction Corporation (CNI-23) and the private company Lianovation Superconductor. The road that the United States abandoned. The concept is not new. During the 1970s and 1980s, the United States Department of Energy investigated hybrid reactors before political priorities changed. Concerns about nuclear proliferation (hybrids can be used to produce plutonium) and a strategic commitment to “pure fusion” such as the definitive and cleaner solution led to the abandonment of this line of research. United States, and with it much of the West, They put all their chips on projects like the iter. China, on the other hand, has seen a shortcut in the hybrid model. While pure fusion follows decades away from its commercialization, a hybrid reactor like Xinghuo could connect a merger plant to the electricity grid much earlier. As soon as in 2030, According to SCMP. A coordinated national commitment. Xinghuo is part of a well -financed fusion ecosystem. China also maintains the East project, a Tokamak fusion reactor that has been able to maintain a 100 million degrees plasma for more than 17 minutes. The Huanliu-3 project, a newer and more powerful tokamak in experimentation phase. And the CFETR project, A large -scale pure fusion reactorconsidered the Chinese equivalent of Iter. The success of Xinghuo not only depends on its own advances, but also on the development of a complex industrial supply chain for key components such as superconductor magnets and the thermal vacuum chamber. If China makes Xinghuo work, either in 2030 or 2035, the implications would be seismic. They would demonstrate the viability of a route to commercial fusion energy that the rest of the world abandoned long ago. He could put Beijing years, if not decades, ahead in the energy race. Image | Xinhua In Xataka | The largest nuclear fusion project fails before the first ignition: Iter delays one of its key milestones at 2033

The German Wendelstein 7-X reactor has broken all records

by

In the field of nuclear fusion ITER (International Thermonuclear Experctor reactor), The experimental reactor that an international consortium led by Europe is building in the French town of Cadarache, monopolizes all eyes. However, in the old continent we have other fusion energy machines that are also very important. The Wendelstein 7-X experimental reactorwhich is installed in one of the buildings that the Max Planck Institute has for Plasma Physics in Greifswald (Germany), is one of them. Its purpose is to contribute to the development of the technologies involved in the tuning of nuclear fusion reactors through magnetic confinement, but its formula is different from that proposed by Iter or JET. In fact, the Wendelstein 7-X reactor is a type design Stellarator. The most obvious difference between Tokamak and Stellator reactors It resides in its geometry. The former have a toroid form (or donut), and the latter have a more complex geometry that resembles them to a twisted donut on itself. However, the fundamental difference between these two designs is that the reactors Tokamak They require that the magnetic fields that confine the plasma are generated by coils and induced by plasma itself, while in the reactors Stellarator Everything is done with coils. There is no current within the plasma. This means, in short, that the latter are more complex and difficult to build. Fortunately, Wendelstein 7-X experiment is already delivering extraordinarily promising results. Global record in long -term plasma The first tests carried out in this fusion reactor between 2015 and 2018 came out as planned, so in November of this last year there came an important moment in its itinerary: it was necessary to modify it to install a water cooling system that was able to evacuate more effectively the residual thermal energy of the walls of the vacuum chamber, as well as a system that allowed the plasma to reach a higher temperature. The works required by these modifications concluded successfully in August 2022. The electronic cyclotonic resonance heating system delivers more than 1 MW of power to plasma When scientists introduce such important modifications in such a complex experiment they are forced to review everything obsessively before launching the machine again to make sure that everything will go correctly. Fortunately everything went well and in February 2023 the Wendelstein 7-X reactor reached an important milestone: He managed to confine and stabilize plasma for 8 uninterrupted minutes in which the reactor delivered a total energy of 1.3 gigajulios. But it wasn’t enough. Now it was time to submit this machine to a new maintenance and renewal phase with the purpose of going further. A year later the reactor was prepared again to carry out new experiments, and now has significant improvements. The technicians who have worked on it in recent months have optimized the control and data acquisition systems, have improved the plasma heating system and have implemented about 50 additional diagnostic tests. Of all these improvements the most relevant is the heating system because it is now capable of generating more than 1 megavatio of power in the plasma thanks to the microwave application. This technology is known as the electronic cyclotonic resonance heating system (ECRH or Electron Cyclotron Resonance Heating in English). The first results have not taken to arrive. And it is that on May 22 this German reactor registered a world record by sustaining the fusion reaction through a high performance plasma For 43 seconds. To date, no other merger machine has prolonged both the triple product in long -term plasma discharges. Understanding what the triple product is is not difficult (it is also known as Lawson’s criteria). In fact, it is nothing more than a metric that evaluates the density of the plasma particles, its temperature and the time that magnetic confinement lasts with the purpose of measuring the performance of the fusion reaction. This strategy is essential because it allows engineers to determine if the fusion reactor has overcome the threshold that allows it to generate more energy than it has been necessary to use to heat the plasma. Once this point has been reached, the energy balance becomes positive and the fusion reaction can be sustained over time without investing energy in the heating system continuously. This milestone would not have been possible without the intervention of the new frozen hydrogen packages developed by the Oak Ridge (USA) National Laboratory. However, there is something else that is worth not overlooked: during the campaign that the reactor has just finished, he has delivered 1.8 gigajacles of energy, so he has clearly exceeded the 1.3 gigajulios that he reached in February 2023. Image | MPI for Plasma Physics, Jan Hosan More information | Eurofusion In Xataka | “The nuclear fusion is intrinsically safe”: we interview Carlos Alejaldre, general director of Ciemat

prevent plasma at 150 million ºC to destroy the reactor

by

The adjective “titanic” fits as a glove if our intention is to describe the reactor of nuclear fusion experimental ITER (International Thermonuclear Experctor reactor), The machine that an international consortium led by Europe He is building in the French town of Cadarache. This ingenuity is titanic for its dimensions. Also by The size of the challenges that raises. Even for its ambition. Inside His huge vacuum chamber 29 x 29 meters stainless steel, with a weight of 3,850 tons and a volume of 16,000 m³ an extremely powerful magnetic field a gas that is at a temperature of at least 150 million degrees Celsius. It is necessary that this plasma reaches this temperature because in these conditions the deuterium and tritium nuclei that contains acquire the kinetic energy they need to overcome their natural electrical repulsion. Almost without realizing we have repaired in one of the great challenges that the nuclear fusion entails: it is necessary that the plasma reaches that extreme temperature because on the earth we do not have the intense gravitational field that helps the stars to keep on “the nuclear oven”. And less pressure implies more temperature if our purpose is to recreate the necessary conditions so that the fusion reactions between the deuterium and tritium nuclei take place. To monitor the temperature, a lot has needed to develop a lot of technology The most exposed components not only at the extreme temperature of the plasma, but also to the action of high energy neutrons that it is not possible to confine inside the magnetic field are Tungsten shields that cover the inner mantle of the vacuum chamber and the diving. These components must withstand the bombardment of plasma high energy neutrons, transforming their kinetic heat into heat. To release this thermal energy and refrigerate the diving is responsible for the water that circulates inside. The diving is responsible for purifying plasma, allowing the extraction of the ashes and impurities resulting from the nuclear fusion reaction The tungsten has been chosen to put the shields exposed to plasma because this is the metal that has the highest melting point: nothing less than 3,422 degrees Celsius. In addition, the diving is responsible for purifying plasma, allowing The extraction of ashes and impurities resulting from the nuclear fusion reaction and plasma interaction with the most exposed layer of the mantle. In any case during the reactor operation, it is necessary to monitor the temperature that the components most exposed to the plasma action reaches. If the tungsten shields, the diving or any other component of the vacuum chamber exceeds its maximum temperature threshold could be irremediably damaged. And changing one of these pieces in a 23,000 tons machine is not at all pathered bread. Fortunately, engineers who participate in Iter have resolved this challenge. In the cover photography of this article we can see the machine used to carry out the thermal cycles tests to which the prototype of a mirror has been subjected to the National Institute of Aerospace Technique of Spain, which is one of the research institutions that have participated in the project. And is that precisely to measure the temperature of the components most exposed to the plasma, the engineers of Iter will use A great angle vision system which uses several mirrors manufactured with great precision to collect the visible and infrared light from the diversion and the main wall of the camera. This architecture will allow to measure the temperature of all surfaces in real time, so that the reactor operators can identify if a component is overheat and prevent damage in time. This system brings together no less than 15 independent lines of vision that will be housed in four different locations of the vacuum chamber with the purpose of covering 80% of the internal surfaces. Spectacular. Image | Fusion for Energy More information | Fusion for Energy In Xataka | China is unstoppable in nuclear fusion: the construction of its own iter is aimed at beating all records

Chernobil reactor sarcophagus

by

It happened on February 14 of this year. An explosive drone Shahed 136 Iranian manufacturing and possibly launched by Russia left a Huge “scar” In the confinement structure of the Chernobil reactor, considered one of the greatest features of modern engineering and designed to contain the radiation of the worst nuclear disaster in history. That steel dome seemed impenetrable, but nobody warned of A possible war conflict. Two months later, the “wound” is still open. The hole. As we said, the drone loaded with explosives hit the steel structure that covers the number four reactor of the Chernobil nuclear power plant, the same as exploded in 1986 unleashing the worst nuclear disaster in history. Although the attack did not cause radioactive leaks, it left a visible mark on the huge steel dome known as New Safe Confinementraising fears about the possibility that Russia will be willing to bring its war to one of the most dangerous places on the planet. The Ukrainian authorities attributed the attack To Moscowwhich denied any responsibility, while in the area a large group of technicians who still They worked two months later To try to repair the damage. The aggression not only represented a direct threat to the environment, but also a geopolitical ghost: Chernobyl, a symbol of Soviet negligence, is once again placed in the center of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. The urgency of restoring. The task before him is delicate. In fact, this was stated by the Minister of Environment, Svitlana Hrynchuk, who confirmed that the government works along with experts to return full functionality to this critical structure. Hrynchuk stressed that the priority is Preserve security nuclear and radiological “under any circumstance.” The original catastrophe. In the background, something that “touches” the nation deeply. Chernobil was, and it remains, a open wound. On April 26, 1986, a failed test caused a Explosion in the reactor which released more than 100 radioactive isotopes on Europe. The city of Pripyat, which then housed almost 50,000 people, was evacuated the next day. The surrounding area, today known as The exclusion zonebecame a ghost territory of enormous extension. The original sarcophagus, built with releasing after the accident, was sealed by the structure multinational of steel in 2016 with a cost of 2.2 billion dollarsa titanic effort destined to last at least a century. The shield, so far impenetrable, is now injured because of The modern war. The New Safe Confinement perforated Russian invasion and occupation. On February 24, 2022, when Russia launched its large -scale invasion, its troops entered Ukraine from Belarus and they took Chernobil control The same day. The scene was immediate chaos: The employees evacuated the central while the director of the radioactive control agency, Sergey Kireev, was the last to leave the place. Kireev himself told these days to the insider environment. Some of their subordinates stayed, and from areas with a telephone signal they helped the Ukrainian forces transmitting data on the invaders movement. At first, the Russians left staff alone, but they soon began to Confiscar Telephoneto prohibit meetings and loot offices, bedrooms and laboratories. Their behavior in the place, According to Kireevcompletely ignored the danger of the environment, traveling through high radiation areas and damaging critical monitoring facilities. The radioactive legacy that does not end. The radioactive chernobil remains (iodine, strontium and cesium) are still present in the air and the ground, with average lives that extend for decades. As We have countedFlora and Fauna mutations persist as a silent reminder of the disaster. After the occupation, when Kireev returned in April 2022, he found The fortified zonewith Ukrainian barricades, destroyed vehicles and dismantled offices. A laboratory, occupied by Russian troops, had been object of vandalism: destroyed computers, wondered cabinets, bullets on the walls. It was discovered that about 70 people They had been captured by the Russians and taken to Russia, where some still remain in captivity. Challenging nuclear logic. The drone attack of February 14, 2024 occurred days before the third anniversary of the Russian invasion. Ukrainian President Volodimir Zelensky He published images of the impact. In them it was appreciated how a fireball and visible damage was generated in the protective structure. Despite It was not recorded An increase in radiation levels, the fact that a nuclear site can become a military objective exposes the fragility of international agreements and the recklessness of a nuclear power. For Ukraine, Chernobil is not only a symbol of the past, but A living front. The attacked installation was built with the joint effort of dozens of countries, and its integrity was created a global responsibility. The threat of Zaporiyia. Also We count these days. Hundreds of kilometers south, the Zaporiyia nuclear power plant (the largest in Europe) remains under Russian occupation. The accusations between Kyiv and Moscow for attacks on the plant have become frequent, while increasing concern for their safety (the United States also “claims”). Meanwhile, Zelensky He spared no words After the attack on Chernobil: “Russia is the only country in the world that attacks, occupies and uses nuclear centrals such as weapons of war. It is a terrorist threat to everyone.” If you want also, the facts show that the modern war has reached the thresholds of the unthinkable. And in Chernobil, where history has already taught the consequences of human negligence, today it is feared that a single error can turn on another tragedy, this time, in the middle of crossfire. Image | State Emergency Service of Ukraine, Adam Jones In Xataka | A Russian drone has opened one of the greatest engineering works. The problem: it was the sarcophagus of Chernobil reactor 4 In Xataka | Chernobil is full of radioactive dogs. It has nothing to do with the nuclear accident, according to a study

This nuclear reactor is different from everyone else. It has been expressly designed for data centers

by

The proliferation of large data centers for artificial intelligence (AI) raises a very serious energy problem. Both, in fact, that the US Department of Energy is considering the possibility that companies that have large data centers Dedicated to the training of AI models install in their vicinity A small nuclear power plant that is able to meet your energy needs. This strategy would also reinforce the US bet for energy sources that do not emit greenhouse gases. What is not clear is yet what investment the technology companies and what subsidies will contribute the government will assume. At the moment some of the great technology firms have already invested in nuclear energy, although not necessarily in fission. Microsoft, for example, It has an agreement with Helion Energy to obtain in the future energy from its reactors of nuclear fusion. An extra modular reactor adapted to the needs of data centers The image we have published on the cover of this article is a recreation made by the American company Aalo Atomics of its extra modular reactor Aal Pod. This machine has a lot in common with SMR reactors (Small Modular Reactro compact modular reactor) of which We have spoken to you in other articlesbut, according to its creators, they uncheck of the latter in something very important: its modularity is even greater. This peculiarity is precisely the According to them It makes it suitable for data centers. However, the reactor of Fourth Generation Nuclear Fission Aalo POD has another quality that, on paper, is very attractive: its enormous flexibility. And, again according to his designers, he can work in a completely independent way of the electricity grid, coupled to it, and even, hybrid. In this way, the owners of the data centers can use the strategy that better solves their needs by balancing the electricity produced by the reactor and the one that is capable of giving them the existing electrical infrastructure. Sounds good. Each Aalo POD incorporates five aal-1 micro-recruitors matched with a single electricity generating turbine The prototype that Aal Atomics has made known is capable of delivering 50 MWE (electric megawatts), but its modularity allows you to climb this machine to be able to deliver several hundred MWE, and even thousands of MWE. The image we have is a recreation, but it allows us to intuit what the architecture of this reactor is. Interestingly, it looks more like a linear particle accelerator than a conventional nuclear fission reactor. An interesting note: Each Aal POD incorporates five micro-recruitors Aal-1 paired with a single electricity generating turbine. However, this is not all. The heart of the Aalo Atomics strategy consists in developing a production technology that allows to manufacture the modules of each Aal Pod Industrial and chain. As if they were cars. Or reaction turbines for airplanes. According to this company, this approach will allow them to install their reactor with the data centers in less time, occupying less space and for less money than a conventional SMR reactor would cost. In addition, again according to Aalo Atomics, each micro -reactor can be resumed at any time without the need to stop others with which it is matched and refrigerated by sodium, so it is not necessary to have a water source close. The promises of this company on paper paint well. Now the important thing is to materialize everything you have announced in a final product that lives up to expectations. Data centers continue to proliferate. And they don’t rest. Image | Aalo Atomics More information | Aalo Atomics In Xataka | Nuclear fission has been waiting for a type of fuel to take off. And he already caresses it with the tip of the fingers

It was the sarcophagus of Chernobil reactor 4

by

April 26, 1986 was Saturday. The day will always be remembered for what happened at a nuclear power plant located in northern Ukraine (then belonging to the Soviet Union). The explosion of reactor 4 in Chernobil produced the worse nuclear accident of history, and the Soviets built in a hurry A sarcophagus to try to stop the impact. Subsequently, an impenetrable shield was raised to contain radiation, but nobody thought the war was going to pass there. An unforeseen drone. It happened just over a month ago. On February 14, an explosive drone Shahed 136of Iranian manufacture and launched by Russia, pierced the structure of confinement of the reactor 4 of Chernobil, considered one of the greatest feats of modern engineering and designed to contain the radiation of the worst nuclear disaster in history. This steel dome, known as the New Safe Confinementwas installed in 2016 with a cost of 1.7 billion dollars and the participation of more than 45 countries. The work was conceived to resist natural disasters, but not war actions. The drone, whose estimated cost Round the $ 20,000caused an internal fire that lasted For almost three weeksseverely affecting the northern part of the structure, and also leaving damage in the south, as confirmed the Ukrainian authorities and the International Atomic Energy Agency (Oiea). Immediate consequences. Apparently, although the initial fire He extinguished Quickly, an impermeable membrane within the isolation burned and kept smoking for days. To combat the fire, emergency equipment, equipped as mountaineers, had to open holes in the dome outer layer and introduce pressure at pressure, something, a priori, “vetoed”, since it contravenes the principle of keeping the interior dry to avoid corrosion. The problem? The intervention raised significantly Moisture levels Within the enclosure, which now represents a serious risk to the stability of the structure and its insulation capacity. By March 7, Ukraine declared the fire officially extinguishedbut the damages were already extensive, seriously compromising the original functionality of the dome. Although external measurements indicate normal radiation levels, system integrity It is in questionwhich forces to reconsider the dismantling plan of the reactor and the treatment of radioactive waste, planned to begin in the next five years. Implications for nuclear safety. He New York Times counted That experts like Shaun Burnie and Jan Vande Putte, from Greenpeace, have explained that the impact of the attack was not only physical, but also symbolic: It demonstrated the vulnerability of a structure built to last a century and protect Europe and the world from the radioactive content of the reactor. Both specialists, together with Ukrainian authorities Like Artem SiryiThey argue that the structure no longer fulfills its confinement function and may require being completely dismantled and replacedan operation of millionaire costs and extreme technical difficulty. The immediate alternative (according to Eric Schmieman suggestsone of the main engineers of the original project) could consist of provisional measures to reduce moisture and avoid corrosion. Here are possibilities such as temporary seals and the reactivation of the ventilation system. However, repair or rebuild the structure in its current location It is almost impossible due to high radiation levels. Plus: Move it also presents severe risks, especially by the deteriorated state of the original Soviet sarcophagus still contained inside. Features of the New Safe Confinement perforated Historical context. We said it at the beginning and We have spoken in several occasions of the tragedy. The damaged shield represents the result of decades of efforts To contain a catastrophe that in 1986 caused the evacuation of an exclusion zone of 2,600 km², left an official balance of 31 immediate dead and contributed to a Sustained increase in cancersparticularly thyroid. He original sarcophagusbuilt of emergency by the Soviet Union, was slowly collapsing, and its replacement took years in planning and executing. The current structure was built at a distance of half a kilometer to minimize the exposure and then slid over the reactor. Apparently, it is composed of two layers of steel and humidity control systems to prevent oxidation and collapse. Its function is clear: contain the radioactive dust and allow the controlled dismantling of the reactor by means of cranes installed inside. Now, this whole process is suspended indefinitely. Drones, war and vulnerability. The attackcarried out within the framework of Russia’s invasion in Ukraine, marks a new milestone in the vulnerability of critical infrastructure against cheap and difficult to intercept weapons Like drones. Let us think that until now both parties have avoided directing active nuclear plants, and that the growing use of drones for strategic attacks on energy facilities has generated global alarm. In this regard, Trump even suggested, as part of the negotiations for a ceasefire, that the United States assume control of Ukrainian electrical and nuclear facilities to avoid this type of threats. According to Soryiresponsible for the operation of the Domo, many drones survive Chernobil almost every night, most in the direction of Kyiv, which reinforces the need to rethink the protection of nuclear sites before a new type of constant, silent and accessible air threat. Future. It is the most difficult to foresee. Explained in the Times That the total restoration of the damaged structure is emerging as an almost impossible company. Experts suggest starting with urgent mitigation solutions while the feasibility of a reconstruction is evaluated. Ironically, the drones, the same type of technology that pierced the dome, could now become allies: small devices developed by Ukraine They could be used to evaluate internal damage and attend remote repairs, minimizing human exposure to radiation. However, the cost, the scale of the damage and the risks involved propose a technical and financial dilemma to the international community. The doubt will now be to decide whether to undertake a new titanic work or risk a future catastrophe for insufficient protection. Image | TimelessState Emergency Service of Ukraine, Berria In Xataka | Chernobil is full of radioactive dogs. It has nothing to do with the nuclear accident, according to a study In Xataka | The place where … Read more

its folk salts and thorium reactor

by

China has deservedly consolidated as the country to which all the nations that bet on nuclear energy look. On the one hand, it already has The same number of nuclear reactors that France in operation: 56. only US surpasses them both with their 94 active nuclear reactors. However, ambition in this area of ​​the country led by Xi Jinping is much greater than that of France. And is that China is building 30 more reactors and plans to point another 37. However, the best asset of this Asian country is its commitment to innovation. And the reactor of Molten Sales and Torio TMSR-LF1 is a very valuable letter of presentation. This machine received the approval of the Chinese Nuclear Safety Administration in mid -June 2023 after having successfully completed the initial testing phase that started in 2021. and since then the itinerary that had set the Institute of Applied Physics of Shanghai, which is the institution responsible for its tuning. As explained by the American nuclear engineer Nick Touran In your tweetthe TMSR-LF1 reactor officially entered into operation on October 11, 2023. A few months later, on June 17, 2024, he began working at full power. And on October 8 of last year the technicians who operate it detected protacinium-233 (PA-233), a radioactive isotope intermediate derived from the transformation of the thorium into Uranium-233 as part of the fuel cycle of the thorium. The TMSR-LF1 reactor marks the way to the countries that are committed to nuclear energy This nuclear reactor is in the Minqin industrial complex of the province of Gansu, in northern China. It has a power of 2 thermal megawatts (MWT), and, although it will not be the first Fourth Generation Nuclear Reactor In activity, and not the first one that Torio will use as fuel, it will be the first of molten salts that will use this chemical element. However, the ambition of this Asian country does not end here; It is already planning to build a molten salts and more capacity sales reactor for 2030. China is not the only country that bets on this technology. USA, France or India are some of those who have also invested in research programs that pursue the development of nuclear reactors capable of Generate electricity from the thorium. India’s in particular is interesting because it aims to demonstrate the viability of fuel cycles based on thorium in the context of its advanced heavy water reactor project. This technology is still far from being adopted in a generalized way, but its advantages closely link it to the future of nuclear energy. The thorium has in its favor that it is as easy to extract as uranium, but it has the inconvenience that it is not directly physable Nuclear forum It estimates that our planet brings together approximately 12 million tons of thorium, so this chemical element is three times more abundant in the earth’s cortex than Uranium used as fuel in the current nuclear centrals. The largest deposits reside in China, Brazil, Canada, Australia, USA, Greenland, Russia, Norway, South Africa and Venezuela, although prospects reflect that the country that Torio has is precisely one of the ones that is investing most in the development of reactors capable of using it: India. Another point in your favor is that it is as easy to extract as uranium, but it has the inconvenience that it is not directly physable. It is necessary to introduce it into a reactor that manufactures uranium from Torio, and what it produces is not uranium-235, it is uranium-233, But the important thing is that it is fisible. Once this uranium has occurred, it can be introduced into a conventional reactor like those we have in Spain, which could not work with Torio, but with a derivative of that element. In addition, experts say that molten salts nuclear reactors are safer than reactors installed in the nuclear power plants that are currently in operation. Two of the reasons are that they use as a refrigerant lithium fluoride and beryllium at a very low pressure, and the fuel remains dissolved in the form of salt, so it is very unlikely that an accident could trigger the fusion of the reactor’s core. Another quality of these reactors that are worth not overlooking is that their architecture allows them to be installed underground, which, again, increases their safety. But this is not all. Another peculiar and positive feature of these reactors is that they allow to recharge the fuel while remaining in operation. China is investing in the development of this technology as a means to build fourth -generation nuclear power plants in the most remote and arid regions of the country And, in addition, the fact that they do not need water to maintain the refrigerated nucleus allows them to be installed in regions in which water is scarce, or, simply, in areas where there is no river and are not close to the sea. This is one of the reasons why, precisely, China is investing in the development of this technology as a means to build fourth generation nuclear centrals in the most remote and arid regions in the country. It is also worth not overlooking that the radioactive waste they generate has a much shorter semi -grid period than that of the residues of the reactors that use uranium, which logically facilitates their management. And, in addition, molten salts reactors use less fuel because thorium efficiency is much higher than uranium. Virtually all fuel is involved in nuclear fission, so its use, in theory, is maximum. In Xataka | The largest nuclear power plant in the planet is a beast with seven reactors. Is ready to return after Fukushima

Its scientists have detected a design failure in NASA’s reactor

by

United States and China are measuring their spatial capabilities In a race to build the first lunar base. Although NASA was victorious from the previous race to the moon against the Soviet Union, It is not so clear that it takes the lead On this occasion. For now, Chinese scientists They have found failures In a crucial element of NASA’s lunar program: its energy source. NASA’s lunar reactor. NASA leads US efforts to inhabit the moon with its partners of Artemisa agreements. The Chinese Space Agency CNSA and the Russian Roscosmos advancetogether with a small group of allies, in the development of the International Lunar Research Station (Ilrs), which It will start working in 2036 and Wait to house thousands of scientists. On the moon, one night lasts 14 terrestrial days, so more than solar panels will be needed to maintain the energy supply of the facilities. NASA He has been developing for years A small nuclear energy plant specially designed to function on the surface of the moon. This little fission reactor is called Fission Surface Power (FSP) and can generate 40 kW of power. China has found a failure. The researchers of the National Nuclear Corporation of China (CNNC) examined NASA’s proposal and discovered improveable aspects in their design. A study published by the Chinese scientific journal Atomic Energy Science and Technology Review these weaknesses focusing on the composition of nuclear fuel, the cooling system and the security control of the US reactor. Chinese scientists highlight the FSP reactor compact designbut they see a clear mistake in the choice of fuel. According to his study, the use of very enriched uranium cylindrical bars will require thick beryl layers as a armor to control intense radiation. In addition, it will limit the useful life of the reactor to about eight years due to the “fuel swelling” (fuel expansion), a phenomenon that makes the material increase in volume gradually due to radiation. To this we must add that the reactor has a simple control mechanism, less safe in critical situations. Remove, NASA, we do it. In addition to pointing out US design problems, CNNC scientists presented an improved version of the lunar nuclear reactor taking as reference both NASA design and an old Soviet space reactor called Topaz-II. The main improvements introduced by the Chinese lunar reactor are: Ring -shaped fuel bars: instead of solid cylinders, the bars have an annular shape, such as a hollow ring. Inside they have small uranium dioxide pills covered by stainless steel, allowing the heat generated by the nuclear reaction to dissipate better, using the interior and exterior of the refrigeration ring Double cooling system: The Chinese reactor has a cooling system based on a liquid metal (NAK-78) that flows through internal and external channels of annular fuel bars. This design allows the reactor temperature to be maintained below 600 ° C, which improves the safety and stability of the reactor Most efficient neutron moderator: Chinese design uses a material called ititrio hydride (YH1.8) as a moderator, the material responsible for slowing down neutrons, improving nuclear reaction and making it more efficient. Ititrium hydride is more stable than traditional nuclear moderators (such as zirconium hydride), which avoids dangerous hydrogen leaks and increases the safety and life of the reactor Less nuclear fuel necessary: ​​Thanks to its design and the use of Ititrium hydride as a moderator, the Chinese reactor needs only 18.5 kg of Uranium-235 in front of the NASA FSP reactor, which requires approximately 70 kg of U-235, almost four times more. Weight reduction is essential in space missions, not only due to cost savings, but because nuclear materials are being launched through the Earth’s atmosphere Your turn, United States. The Chinese reactor is up to 75% more efficient than that of NASA, and promises a useful life of 10 years, compared to the eight of the American reactor. This advance would potentially position China ahead of the United States in the objective of establishing a sustained and self -sufficient presence on the moon, since the constant energy that a nuclear reactor allows will be essential to be able to hold inhabited bases in the long term. But NASA design is not monolithic or closed. The expected thing is that, as China has done, the agency takes advantage of its opponent’s investigations to improve its own technology. What could also end up with companies that develop small modular reactors (SMR) for the supply of electricity on Earth. If something has space careers, they improve, based on research, technologies that end up moving to other industries. Images | POT In Xataka | We are building nuclear spacecraft again. NASA believes we will need them

Germany gets serious with nuclear fusion. His energy model shouts that this ‘Stellarator’ reactor works

by

The experimental reactors of nuclear fusion of type Stellarator They represent a very solid alternative to Tokamakas ITER either JET. And they are not precisely the result of a recent investigation. In fact, both designs were designed During the 50s of the last century. He Stellarator It was designed by the American physicist Lyman Spitzer and exercised as the foundations on which the Plasma Physics Laboratory of Princeton University (USA) was built. The design TokamakHowever, it was devised by Soviet physicists igor Yevguénievich Tamm and Andréi DMítrievich Sájarov from the ideas proposed a few years before by his colleague Oleg Lavrentiev. Both reactors were conceived with the purpose of confine Stellarator He received great support from the scientific community in the West due to its enormous potential. However, when Soviet and American scientists published their results and compared them, they realized that Tokamak design performance It was one or two orders of magnitude better than that of Stellarator. From that moment on, this last design was largely marginalized. The most obvious difference between one and the other lies in its geometry, but it is enough to investigate both to realize that the reactors Stellarator They still have a lot to say. Proxima Fusion has put a date to its demonstration fusion plant Type reactors Tokamak They have a toroid form (or donut), and Stellarator They have a more complex geometry that resembles them to a twisted donut on itself. However, the fundamental difference between these two designs is that the reactors Tokamak They require that the magnetic fields that confine plasma be generated by coils and induced by plasma itself, while in the reactors Stellarator Everything is done with coils. There is no current within the plasma. This means, in short, that the latter are more complex and difficult to build. In February 2023, the Wendelstein 7-X reactor managed In Europe we have a type fusion reactor Stellarator extraordinarily promising: el Wendelstein 7-X. It is installed in one of the buildings that the Max Planck Institute has for Plasma Physics in Greifswald (Germany), and its construction concluded in 2015. The first tests carried out in this fusion reactor between 2015 and 2018 came out as planned, so in November of this last year An important moment arrived in his itinerary: It was necessary to modify it to install a water cooling system that was able to evacuate more effectively the residual thermal energy of the vacuum chamber walls, as well as a system that allowed the plasma to reach a higher temperature. The works that required these modifications concluded successfully in August 2022. And in February 2023 the Wendelstein 7-X reactor reached an important milestone: it managed to confine and stabilize the plasma for 8 uninterrupted minutes in which it delivered a total energy of 1.3 gigajultos. During the last two years everything learned in the development and the first tests carried out in this machine has been used by the German emerging company Proxima Fusion. In fact, its founders come from the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics. His work is being financed by Germany, the European Union, and also by several private entities of venture capital. And it’s going very well. In fact, fusion physicists and engineers have published a scientific article in Fusion Engineering and Design which has already been reviewed by pairs and in which they detail the design of Stellaris, its reactor prototype Stellarator commercial. Your next step requires Build a demonstration power plant From its design that should be ready in 2031. Yes, in just six years. I hope you get it. If Alpha, which is what this test power plant will be called, the commercial fusion energy will be a reality before the next decade is completed. This is the authentic purpose of next fusion. Image | Proxima Fusion More information | Fusion Engineering and Design In Xataka | In France, an alternative to Iter in Nuclear Fusion is being cooking: a commercial ‘Stellarator’ reactor

Log In

Forgot password?

Forgot password?

Enter your account data and we will send you a link to reset your password.

Your password reset link appears to be invalid or expired.

Log in

Privacy Policy

Add to Collection

No Collections

Here you'll find all collections you've created before.