Information Sustainable Technology An alternative nuclear fuel ~ Thorium ~ | TED talk by Kirk Sorensen
| An alternative nuclear fuel ~ Thorium ~ | TED talk by Kirk Sorensen |
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| Written by Conservation Department |
| Saturday, 31 December 2011 12:34 |
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Follow Eco Preservation Society on FaceBook and Twitter Special thanks to Kevin Meyerson for providing a contrarian view:
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| Last Updated on Sunday, 15 January 2012 13:46 |
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Comments
http://energyfromthorium.com/ieer-rebuttal/
http://nucleargreen.blogspot.com/2011/07/d-ryan-msrlftr-critique-not-ready-for.html
THIS is what Kirk speaks about:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liquid_fluoride_thorium_reactor
If you read his article, you will find that it deals ONLY with solid fueled thorium reactors, and accelerator driven systems. But Kirks TED talk is specifically only about liquid fueled thorium reactors (LFTR), which is a very different technology (he recognises that thorium offers little benefits with solid fueled reactors). Thus, while Kevings article is valid criticism of solid fueled thorium reactors, it is not a valid criticism of Kirk Sorensens TED talk. In fact, its off-topic here.
(EPS Note: We will put the information out and let the reader decided for themselves. Thanks to all for their contributions to the discussion.)
Thorium advocates tend to exaggerate the benefits of thorium, especially when one considers that there are *zero* viable thorium reactors today. The earliest we could hope to see the first viable production units is sometime several decades from now.
By the time thorium is ready for deployment, even 'expensive' solar power will be a far cheaper alternative to any nuclear variant, including any as-yet to be developed molten salt reactor).
Here are some more links overviews of thorium without the positive spin:
Thorium Fuel: No Panacea for Nuclear Power
http://www.ieer.org/fctsheet/thorium2009factsheet.pdf
Thorium Cycle questions and problems
http://daryanenergyblog.wordpress.com/ca/part-8-msr-lftr/8-3-thorium-lftr/
Why Kudankulam Is Untenable
http://www.panjab.org.uk/english/Why%20Kudankulam%20is%20untenable.html
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