Modular Nuclear Plants

[Frank Gentges]

One of the designs they are looking at now is a variant of the breeder 
reactor.  The problem of course, is that it cooks uranium into 
plutonium.  We have lots of fuel from the weapons program and don't need 
to cook plutonium.  Not a good idea.

Better is to use modern microprocessors distributed around the reactor.  
This can avoid the past experience with huge bundles of cables to a 
central computer.  Each processor can have enough sensors to be able to 
shut the reactor down by the things it has control over.

Several years ago, we looked at the i386 process at Intel.  They had 
used a process that made the chip resistant to radiation.  If this were 
true then and is true now, it could simplify the shielding and 
construction of such a reactor.

Also, one design could be studied and tested to a high level as it would 
be reproduced over and over to spread the development costs.

So much for my soapbox.

Frank


On 3/17/2010 11:13 PM, andre kesteloot wrote:
> http://fastflip.googlelabs.com/view?q=view%3Apopular&source=news&type=embed#P1FkcdlAS9PJMM 
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