[IH8Rice]

My brother was a Nuclear Engineer. Interesting bit of trivia though, turns out nuclear energy isn't all that great and self-sustaining. The actual cost to engineer the plants, build them, secure them, perform maintenance on them, exceeds the potential cost-benefit of nuclear power in the first place. This is one big reason why we haven't made any new plants in a long time. It's not because of hippies or satan, in the long term cost it just doesn't really work out.

there is a huge cost with getting them up and running but the amount of red tape to get approval is unreal and it probably the biggest issue. there have been 40 plants that have been canceled in as many years stateside due to a mix of costs, fear and of course government regulations changing (most of the canceled projects happened after TMI-2.) the US's newest plant took nearly 43 years to start producing power and cost nearly $6b. our last plant to open before that was 20 years ago (at the same location too.)

 

[johnbryanpeters]

there is a huge cost with getting them up and running but the amount of red tape to get approval is unreal and it probably the biggest issue. there have been 40 plants that have been canceled in as many years stateside due to a mix of costs, fear and of course government regulations changing (most of the canceled projects happened after TMI-2.) the US's newest plant took nearly 43 years to start producing power and cost nearly $6b. our last plant to open before that was 20 years ago (at the same location too.)

The biggest issue has been demonstrated by Three Mile Island, Chernobyl, and Fukushima. I was in the industry and listening in when TMI failed.

 

[IH8Rice]

The biggest issue has been demonstrated by Three Mile Island, Chernobyl, and Fukushima. I was in the industry and listening in when TMI failed.

obviously in retrospect, all of those accidents were preventable and much newer and safer reactors have come online compared to those no?
my father in law has worked at tmi since tmi2 was still online

 

[johnbryanpeters]

obviously in retrospect, all of those accidents were preventable and much newer and safer reactors have come online compared to those no?
my father in law has worked at tmi since tmi2 was still online

I'm not really qualified to speak as to whether the newer stuff is really safer. I will, however, observe

• We have not even started to meaningfully address the waste storage and disposal problem.
• Humans, including engineers, game systems, especially when people are measured on, let's say, profit, rather than safety. The penalty clause when it comes time to pay the devil's due is much higher for us all with a nuclear power system than it is with something like VW diesel NOx emissions.

In my opinion nuclear power is a foolish tool.

 

[StiHacka]

http://www.nextbigfuture.com/2016/10/update-on-liquid-fluoride-thorium.html

The owner of the next gen power source will eventually become the next world superpower. Fusion it ain't, though.

 

[Pesqueeb]

Hey @boostindoubles,

Maybe don't eat any fish out of the river for a while?

 

[boostindoubles]

Hey @boostindoubles,

Maybe don't eat any fish out of the river for a while?

What's comical is this story hit the international news several hours before the local news picked it up. Luckily I'm upstream and upwind from that oasis.

 

[MikeD]

We have not even started to meaningfully address the waste storage and disposal problem.

"Beanstalk" space elevator to orbit, then launch via railgun into the Sun?

 

[Jm_]

"Beanstalk" space elevator to orbit, then launch via railgun into the Sun?

Or Texas.

 

[eric strt6]

"Beanstalk" space elevator to orbit, then launch via railgun into the Sun?

or a certain Cheeto owned golf course in Florida

 

[DaveW]

"Beanstalk" space elevator to orbit, then launch via railgun into the Sun?

Cheetojesus! Freaking jarheads..... Everything has to involve "gun's we need bigger gunz!!"

 

[jimmydean]

We were talking at work the other day and a high ranking person here was once an inspector at Trojan. We were talking about the cost over runs on these projects and he was talking about the cut corners at Trojan that led to the downfall. He said 10k reactors are a pipedream but there are some smaller projects in Europe that are 1k to 4k range with little waste and require a lot less effort.

But has also had some interesting takes on solar and wind power, too (I work at an energy company).

 

[stevew]

something like VW diesel NOx emissions.

mercedes has said no new diesels in the states for the time being....

 

[MikeD]

Cheetojesus! Freaking jarheads..... Everything has to involve "gun's we need bigger gunz!!"

You could volunteer to go out and give it a gentle push instead...

 

[DaveW]

Nuh uhh! You take your own godamn trash out pal.

 

[syadasti]

http://mentalfloss.com/article/71026/kyshtym-disaster-largest-nuclear-disaster-youve-never-heard

 

[syadasti]

https://www.technologyreview.com/the-download/608712/a-thorium-salt-reactor-has-fired-up-for-the-first-time-in-four-decades/

 

[syadasti]

Indeed, at £57.50/MWh the offshore wind strikes prices are far cheaper than BEIS estimated only in November last year and, as RenewableUK has been quick to point out, cheaper than both the levelised cost of electricity given for gas generation and the infamously expensive £92.50 agreed for EDF’s Hinkley Point C reactor.

Hugh McNeal, chief executive at RenewableUK, said the prices were “astounding”.

https://www.cleanenergynews.co.uk/news/solar/offshore-wind-celebrates-astounding-price-reductions-in-3.2gw-cfd-win

 

[Jm_]

One day, when the right realizes that saving oil means more for the military to go and kill brown people with, we'll see a huge effort for renewable sources...

 

[stevew]

https://www.cleanenergynews.co.uk/news/solar/offshore-wind-celebrates-astounding-price-reductions-in-3.2gw-cfd-win

i do not see that ever happening off the coast of any rich persons house in the states....no matter their party affiliation...

 

[syadasti]

i do not see that ever happening off the coast of any rich persons house in the states....no matter their party affiliation...

It's already happened:

GE and Deepwater Wind, a developer of offshore turbines, have partnered to build five massive wind turbines and install them in the Atlantic Ocean. They make up the first offshore wind farm in North America, called the Block Island Wind Farm. The turbines started delivering power to the New England grid on May 5, and effectively helped shut down a diesel plant that previously provided electricity to Block Island.

The team began installing the turbines 30 miles off the coast of Rhode Island over the summer, and construction was completed in late August 2016. The farm's four-month testing phase, which produced more than one gigawatt-hour of electricity, ended on December 2, 2016.


http://www.businessinsider.com/ge-wind-farm-block-island-2017-5

 

[stevew]

It's already happened:



The team began installing the turbines 30 miles off the coast of Rhode Island over the summer, and construction was completed in late August 2016. The farm's four-month testing phase, which produced more than one gigawatt-hour of electricity, ended on December 2, 2016.


http://www.businessinsider.com/ge-wind-farm-block-island-2017-5

shocked.

 

[syadasti]

shocked.

Even without the offshore, the US has been near the top for wind. China is the only country with more wind generation than US.

US Wind Total: 82,183 MW (as of 2016)

Top US States (early 2017)
Texas (20,321 MW)
Iowa (6,917 MW)
Oklahoma (6,645 MW)
California (5,662 MW)
Kansas (4,451 MW)

Others (as of 2016):
China 168,690 MW
EU Total 153,730 MW
Germany 50,019 MW
Indian 28,665 MW
Spain 23,075 MW