Nuclear Power Mohamad Al-Sheikhly 1 and John Gutteridge 2 University of Maryland 1 United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) 2 Covering Energy Issues A workshop for the Media University of Delaware April 26, 2010
Jan 21, 2016
Nuclear Power
Mohamad Al-Sheikhly1 and John Gutteridge2
University of Maryland1 United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)2
Covering Energy Issues
A workshop for the MediaUniversity of Delaware
April 26, 2010
Nuclear Power
• Recently there has been a resurgence of interest in Nuclear Power, which has generated a lot of coverage in the media. The topics vary widely but the overarching trend is positive. Common themes are:– Need for Nuclear expertise– Need for Nuclear Power– Former opponents now supporting it– New technology in the field of Nuclear Power
Comparison of Life-Cycle EmissionsTons of Carbon Dioxide
1,041
622
46 39 18 17 15 14
Coal Natural Gas Biomass Solar PV Hydro Nuclear Geothermal Wind
Need for Nuclear Expertise• Alarm over shortage of nuclear experts – Boston
Globe – 3 April 2010– The National Nuclear Security Agency (NNSA) average
age of it’s workforce is 47, with 1/4th reaching retirement age by the end of 2012.
– National Energy Institute (NEI) estimates 35 percent of workforce at nuclear plants will reach retirement age by 2012
– MIT study concluded that even with no new reactors, hundreds of additional nuclear scientists and engineers need to be graduated each year just to pair current loses.
• Quick view
– 104 nuclear plants
– 20% of the nation’s electricity
U.S. Nuclear Energy Facts
– Displaces 680 million metric tons of CO2/yr
– Equivalent to 131 millionpassenger cars/yr
Need for Nuclear Power
• 40 New Nuclear Power Plants Will Need To Be Built by 2035 to Help Meet Anticipated U.S. Electrical Energy Demand While Reducing CO2 Emissions – Fox News – 16 Feb 2010 – 40 new plants will provide for an annual 1% increase
in US electricity consumption– Nuclear power currently represents only 10% of
installed capacity but provides over 20% of electricity, making it highly reliable
– Each plant generates 4000 construction jobs and 400 permanent jobs
Need for Nuclear Power
• Should the U.S. Expand Nuclear Power? – CBS News – 12 Jan 2010– US requires 25-30 plants by 2030 just to maintain
Nuclear as 20% provider of electricity– Only power generator capable of generating
electricity emissions free on a reliable and large scale
– Nuclear power plants, averaged over a year, generate 91% of their capability, the highest uptime of any power source
Former opponents now supporting it
• Jump starting Nuclear energy – Los Angles Times – 5 March 2010– Written by a founding member of Greenpeace who now
supports Nuclear power– Nuclear reactors currently produce 70% of emissions free
energy in the US– It would require $12 Billion and 200,000 acres of wind
farms to match the power of one nuclear plant, assuming the wind turbines spun all the time.
– Despite safety concerns, no member of the public or plant worker has died from a radiation incident from a power plant in the US.
The Power of Words
The Washington Post, April 16, 2006Going NuclearA Green Makes the CaseBy Patrick Moore
– “Look at it this way: More than 600 coal-fired electric plants in the United States produce 36 percent of U.S. emissions -- or nearly 10 percent of global emissions -- of CO2, the primary greenhouse gas responsible for climate change.”
– “Nuclear energy is the only large-scale, cost-effective energy source that can reduce these emissions while continuing to satisfy a growing demand for power. And these days it can do so safely.”
New technology in the field• Bill Gates and Toshiba discuss nuclear power
venture – BBC News – 23 March 2010– Traveling Wave reactor proposed by Bill Gate’s
TerraPower– Has the potential to last up to 100 years without
refueling– A mini-reactor that would be more cost-efficient– Suitable for cities or emerging country markets
New technology in the field
• Initial success from SILEX test loop – World Nuclear News – 12 April 2010– Uses laser enrichment to separate U235 and
U238– The process has a much higher separation ratio
than other methods– Initial tests have proven successful, prompting
expanded tests and support for full scale production
– A commercial license could be issues as early as January 2012
The Power of WordsThe Washington Post, April 16, 2006Going NuclearA Green Makes the CaseBy Patrick Moore
– “Look at it this way: More than 600 coal-fired electric plants in the United States produce 36 percent of U.S. emissions -- or nearly 10 percent of global emissions -- of CO2, the primary greenhouse gas responsible for climate change.”
– “Nuclear energy is the only large-scale, cost-effective energy source that can reduce these emissions while continuing to satisfy a growing demand for power. And these days it can do so safely.”
Elegant Contrast: Nuclear Safety
Newsweek, April 9, 2010 George Will
– “29 people killed [April 5, 2010] in the West Virginia coal-mine explosion will soon be as forgotten by the nation as are the 362 miners who were killed in a 1907 explosion in that state, the worst mining disaster in American history.”
– “… the number of Americans killed by accidents in 55 years of generating electricity by nuclear power is: 0.”
– “That is the same number of Navy submariners and surface sailors injured during six decades of living in very close proximity to reactors.”
The Green Turns Green
The Washington Post, April 16, 2006Going NuclearA Green Makes the CaseBy Patrick Moore
– “In the early 1970s when I helped found Greenpeace, I believed that nuclear energy was synonymous with nuclear holocaust, …”
– “Thirty years on, my views have changed, and the rest of the environmental movement needs to update its views, too, because nuclear energy may just be the energy source that can save our planet from another possible disaster: catastrophic climate change.”
'82 '84 '86 '88 '90 '92 '94 '96 '98 '00 '02 '04
55
60
65
70
75
80
85
90
95
Ca
pa
cit
y F
ac
tor
(%)
Proven Performance
Source: Energy Information Administration/Nuclear Regulatory Commission
92%
U.S. Energy DemandAmerica Is Projected to Need 50% More
Electricity by 2025
Source: U.S. Department of Energy
1980 19901970 2003 2015 2025
5,787BkWh
3,839BkWh
Recycling Used Nuclear Fuel
Converting Used Fuel Into New FuelThrough recycling, the separated uranium would become new fuel for commercial nuclear power plants. The long-lived radioactive elements, including plutonium, become fuel that could be used in advanced reactors that would be developed commercially as part of the research and development program.
Advanced recycling technologies would reduce the volume, heat and toxicity of used nuclear fuel, but not completely eliminate the byproducts. The recycling byproducts would require disposal in a permanent repository
Existing or Expected ESP/COL Applications in the U.S.
Reactor Type Number
AP1000 (Westinghouse) 12
EPR (AREVA) 4
ABWR 2
ESBWR (GE) 6
USAPWR 2
Total 26 (17 Apps.)
Evidence of U.S. Nuclear Revival— License Renewals
24Renewal
Intent
48Granted
17Not
Announced15In NRCReview
RenewalApplication
RenewalApplication
RenewalApplication
RenewalApplication
Source: Nuclear News, March 2008
History of Nuclear Education in the United States
Where We Were
• 1960’s – 1980’s - ~64 University Research Reactors- ~50+ Nuclear Engineering Programs- 1800+ Students - Ordering and Building NPP’s
Problems Arise
• Three Mile Island (1979) and Chernobyl (1986)• Cost of financing
Results In:• Loss of public support for nuclear energy• Cancelation of orders • Decline in NE enrollments• Closing/merging of NE programs• Shuttering of research reactors
Addressing the Problem
• 1992 – Utility approaches DOE – Matching grant program begins
• Mid to late 1990’s – DOE “reinstitutes” several programs
• 2000 – “Nuclear Education and Training: Cause for Concern”
• Post 2000 – retooling NE education
NE Enrollment Trends(2004-2009)
1520 1831 1933 2102 2323
10921110 1153
12391482
0
500
1000
1500
2000
2500
3000
3500
4000
2004-2005 2005-2006 2006-2007 2007-2008 2008-2009
Undergraduate Graduate
26122941
30863341
3805
Nuclear Engineering Enrollments and Graduations - 2008-09
9
10
9
24
12
32
4
28
51
63
25
26
17
52
44
62
22
30
114
82
67
15
55
53
102
69
107
81
113
86
10
12
45
54
70
39
60
57
133
128
46
82
101
158
125
152
116
158
125
166
136
253
4
10
3
3
2
18
4
20
8
4
4
5
20
4
19
34
35
18
11
13
22
26
23
20
29
23
1
3
6
5
19
3
13
17
55
15
14
18
31
32
31
17
30
25
22
30
45
21
18
2
12
36
46
0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 450
Colo S/M
Utah
Nevada – Las Vegas
AF Institute
Cincinnati
Idaho
Maryland
Massachusetts – Lowell
Texas – Austin
South Carolina State
South Carolina
Missouri – Columbia
Ohio State
Kansas State
Idaho State
New Mexico
VA Tech
CAL – Berkeley
RPI
Florida
MIT
Wisconsin – Madison
Illinois
Missouri S&T
Purdue
North Carolina State
Michigan
Georgia Tech
Oregon State
Tennessee
Penn State
Texas A&M
Graduate Undergraduate Graduations - G Graduations - U
Summary
• As can be seen, the nuclear industry and world is expanding for many reasons to include growing energy demand, clean energy demand, and high reliability
• Currently the workforce is undersized to handle this need and is unable to replace future loses due to retirement
• As the demand grows, so will the demand for experts in the field and new technology to support new plants
• All of the above factors translate into an important position for educational programs that develop nuclear experts and support the need to support and expand these programs