Mini nuclear plants to power 20,000 homes

[Simon]

The Guardian reports:

"Nuclear power plants smaller than a garden shed and able to power 20,000 homes will be on sale within five years, say scientists at Los Alamos, the US government laboratory which developed the first atomic bomb.The miniature reactors will be factory-sealed, contain no weapons-grade material, have no moving parts and will be nearly impossible to steal because they will be encased in concrete and buried underground."

Fallout 3 anyone?

Seriously tho, this is some scary (and stupid) stuff. :o

[mountainhiker]

The Guardian reports:

"Nuclear power plants smaller than a garden shed and able to power 20,000 homes will be on sale within five years, say scientists at Los Alamos, the US government laboratory which developed the first atomic bomb.The miniature reactors will be factory-sealed, contain no weapons-grade material, have no moving parts and will be nearly impossible to steal because they will be encased in concrete and buried underground."

1 per 20,000 homes, take the number of people in your city and divide by 20,000 and you have a very interesting number, just think of the number of jobs that will be created building these things.... :D

[Patrick]

I also think that's very stupid. There's only a small difference between an controlled and an uncontrolled reaction and it would have to be monitored all the time. Plus there are far better ways to power 20k people say by mounting solar panels in the neighborhood.

[Simon]

1 per 20,000 homes, take the number of people in your city and divide by 20,000 and you have a very interesting number, just think of the number of jobs that will be created building these things....

When an accident with one of those mini nukes happens I am sure it will create many jobs. :badtaste:

The green renewable energy sector will create new jobs.

This is yet another foolish gimmick from the nuclear industry.

They have no idea how to deal with the waste etc etc... Its just a big, dangerous and stupid lie.

I also think that's very stupid. There's only a small difference between an controlled and an uncontrolled reaction and it would have to be monitored all the time. Plus there are far better ways to power 20k people say by mounting solar panels in the neighborhood.

I completely agree.

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Fallout 3 base story:

"The background story of Fallout (the first of the series) involves an alternate history scenario in which the history of the United States in the game diverges from reality following World War II. The federal government organizes the states into 13 commonwealths to try and ensure economic stability, but this only divides the U.S. as the commonwealths put their own ambitions before those of the nation as a whole. Tensions rise worldwide over the next century due to an increasing energy crisis caused by the rapid exhausting of petroleum reserves, leading to a war between Europe and the Middle East in 2052 as Middle Eastern countries drastically raise oil prices. The increased competition for resources causes the USA to brutally annex Canada. In 2066, China invades the U.S. at Alaska for resources, and in 2077, the war reaches its climax with a devastating nuclear exchange between the two opposing countries, resulting in the post-apocalyptic world in which the game takes place. The exchange, lasting only hours, became known as the Great War; it is left unknown which side launched the first missile."

[mountainhiker]

However, back to reality, I suspect that the nuke industry was the seed of the strange plant. It is impractical due to several factors, the least of which is the "not in my neighborhood" mindset which would overcome the project. Also managing the numbers would never work with the typical government blunders. On top of that, I doubt that they have truly thought out the safety concerns that would arise from such mass manufacturing of reactors. :info:

Cooling of the reactors is always an issue, so spreading that into crowded neighborhoods that may already have water issues would create problems that would take decades to resolve. Maybe they should spend their time on something that can be accomplished in our life time.... <_<