Nuclear
[Due to the increasing size of the archives, each topic page now contains only the prior 365 days of content. Access to older stories is now solely through the Monthly Archive pages or the site search function.]
Entergy Submits Application for Louisiana Nuclear Plant; Third NRC Application This Month with GE Hitachi ESBWR Reactor
September 27, 2008
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| The GE Hitachi ESBWR Reactor. Click to enlarge. |
New Orleans-based Entergy Corp. has submitted a combined construction and operating license (COL) application to the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), selecting GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy’s (GEH) next-generation ESBWR (Economic Simplified Boiling-Water Reactor) reactor design.
The nation’s second-largest nuclear plant operator, Entergy is seeking to reserve the option to build a potential new reactor at its River Bend Nuclear Generating Station in Louisiana, located along the Mississippi River in St. Francisville, about 30 miles north of Baton Rouge.
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US DOE Awards $7.3 million for “Deep-Burn” Nuclear Technology Research & Development
July 27, 2008
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| One of the unique features of the high temperature gas-cooled reactor is the TRISO fuel used for the fission reaction. Click to enlarge. |
The US Department of Energy (DOE) has selected teams led by Idaho National Laboratory and Argonne National Laboratory to advance the technology of nuclear fuel “Deep-Burn” in which plutonium and higher transuranics recycled from spent nuclear fuel are destroyed while generating energy. This technology advances nuclear power production and reduces the amount of radioactive waste produced in the end.
These R&D activities are aimed at establishing the technological foundations that will support the role of the Very-High-Temperature, gas-cooled Reactor (VHTR) in the nuclear fuel cycle, one of the prototype reactors being researched under the DOE’s Generation IV Nuclear power program. (Earlier post.) The work will be carried out in two parts: Advanced Modeling and Simulation Capability for VHTR Development and Design at a cost of $1 million led by Argonne National Laboratory; and Transuranic Management Capabilities of the Deep-Burn VHTR at a cost of $6.3 million led by Idaho National Laboratory.
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AREVA and China Guangdong Nuclear Power Sign Largest Nuclear Contract Ever
November 26, 2007
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| Cutaway of an EPR. (1) reactor vessel, (2) the steam generators,(3) the pressurizer, (4) reactor coolant pumps, (5) inner prestressed concrete housing, (6) metallic liner and outer reinforced concrete shell, (7) special area for collection and cooling of escaping molten core, (8, 9) backup diesel generators, (10) turbine building. Click to enlarge. Larger detailed cutaway here. |
AREVA and China Guangdong Nuclear Power COrporation (CGNPC) signed a record contract worth €8 billion (US$11.9 billion)—the biggest ever in the history of nuclear power—and entered into a long-term commitment.
Through a series of agreements, AREVA, in conjunction with CGNPC, will build two new generation EPR reactors and will provide all the materials and services required to operate them. Following Finland and France, China will be home to the third and fourth EPR to be built in the world. The EPR will be built in Taishan in Guangdong province.
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Penn State Leading DOE Consortium Focused on Nuclear Thermochemical Production of Hydrogen
November 22, 2007
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| The consortium research will develop technologies to improve the performance of a number of alternative cycles for the thermochemical production of hydrogen. Click to enlarge. Source: NREL |
Under a $2.4 million research grant designated from the US Department of Energy’s (DOE) Nuclear Energy Research Initiative (NERI), Penn State is leading a consortium in a three-year project to establish the most efficient technologies for hydrogen production that are compatible with nuclear-generated heat sources.
One of the scopes of NERI is to develop a number of thermochemical cycles for producing hydrogen on a commercial scale through advanced nuclear energy systems. In a thermochemical cycle water and heat are the input, hydrogen and oxygen are the only products, and all other chemicals are recycled.
