5 ms·

Question from a layman: What about "passively safe" reactor designs? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Passive_nuclear_safety https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Passive_

Question from a layman: What about "passively safe" reactor designs? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Passive_nuclear_safety https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Passive_nuclear_safety

altcognito 7y ago
you still have disposal issues
- PaulHoule 7y ago
  where do you dispose of the Co2 from fossil fuels?
- nitrogen 7y ago
  The response to this is always "where are we disposing the fossil fuel waste?"
  - monocasa 7y ago
    For one example: 36 deaths where the court system assigned fault, probably much more. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingston_Fossil_Plant_coal_fly_ash_slurry_spill https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingston_Fossil_Plant_coal_fly...
  - ceejayoz 7y ago
    (and the answer is, in part, "into the air, water, etc., where it kills many, many people each year") https://qz.com/568450/fossil-fuels-kill-more-people-every-year-than-wars-murders-and-traffic-accidents-combined/ https://qz.com/568450/fossil-fuels-kill-more-people-every-ye...
  - gowld 7y ago
    Relevant user name.
  - deleted 7y ago
    [deleted]
- quartzite 7y ago
  In the US at least we have massive tracts of wasteland perfectly suited for this purpose. Beats pumping poison in the air everyone breathes.
- manfredo 7y ago
  The energy density of uranium is such that the amount of waste generated is extremely small. The entirety of the nuclear waste generated by the US nuclear power industry could fit in a football field with a depth of 10 yards [1]. Put it in a concrete casket and bury it underground. Nuclear waste is a tiny sliver of the amount of industrial waste produced every year. 1. https://www.energy.gov/ne/articles/5-fast-facts-about-nuclear-waste https://www.energy.gov/ne/articles/5-fast-facts-about-nuclea...
londons_explore 7y ago
They still aren't safe if someone with an AK-47 pokes bits of TNT down the coolant pipes...
- webkike 7y ago
  Yeah but a person with an AK-47 and TNT isn’t safe regardless of the setting
  - gamegoblin 7y ago
    A person with an AK-47 and TNT can't render vast tracts of land uninhabitable for decades in the way that nuclear waste can. I am very pro-nuclear in the US (and the EU etc.), but I think the concern about nuclear in potentially unstable nations is absolutely valid.
    - gowld 7y ago
      The Chernobyl exclusion zone is 1000sqmi (32mi by 32mi). That's not so vast if it's in low populated area.
      - Ididntdothis 7y ago
        That would be a significant area for most western countries.
      - gpm 7y ago
        It's a mistake to think of Chernobyl as anything near worst case, there were absolutely huge containment efforts that took place after that disaster that might not take place after a similar future disaster.
    - webkike 7y ago
      Sure they can. They are called minefields.
  - bilbo0s 7y ago
    I think the comment's material point is, why put a nuclear plant in arms reach of such groups? It's a good point. I would argue that most people are not talking about putting a nuclear plant in, say, Somalia. I think most people realize there have to be some preconditions met before you can really even think about using nuclear power. For the most part, if you are able as a nation to construct such a plant, you likely have the security infrastructure to secure the place. In fact, you likely have one of the more powerful security infrastructure buildouts in your region.

Question from a layman: What about "passively safe" reactor designs? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Passive_nuclear_safety https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Passive_nuclear_safety

altcognito 7y ago

you still have disposal issues

PaulHoule 7y ago
where do you dispose of the Co2 from fossil fuels?
nitrogen 7y ago
The response to this is always "where are we disposing the fossil fuel waste?"
- monocasa 7y ago
  For one example: 36 deaths where the court system assigned fault, probably much more. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingston_Fossil_Plant_coal_fly_ash_slurry_spill https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingston_Fossil_Plant_coal_fly...
- ceejayoz 7y ago
  (and the answer is, in part, "into the air, water, etc., where it kills many, many people each year") https://qz.com/568450/fossil-fuels-kill-more-people-every-year-than-wars-murders-and-traffic-accidents-combined/ https://qz.com/568450/fossil-fuels-kill-more-people-every-ye...
- gowld 7y ago
  Relevant user name.
- deleted 7y ago
  [deleted]
quartzite 7y ago
In the US at least we have massive tracts of wasteland perfectly suited for this purpose. Beats pumping poison in the air everyone breathes.
manfredo 7y ago
The energy density of uranium is such that the amount of waste generated is extremely small. The entirety of the nuclear waste generated by the US nuclear power industry could fit in a football field with a depth of 10 yards [1]. Put it in a concrete casket and bury it underground. Nuclear waste is a tiny sliver of the amount of industrial waste produced every year. 1. https://www.energy.gov/ne/articles/5-fast-facts-about-nuclear-waste https://www.energy.gov/ne/articles/5-fast-facts-about-nuclea...

londons_explore 7y ago

They still aren't safe if someone with an AK-47 pokes bits of TNT down the coolant pipes...

webkike 7y ago
Yeah but a person with an AK-47 and TNT isn’t safe regardless of the setting
- gamegoblin 7y ago
  A person with an AK-47 and TNT can't render vast tracts of land uninhabitable for decades in the way that nuclear waste can. I am very pro-nuclear in the US (and the EU etc.), but I think the concern about nuclear in potentially unstable nations is absolutely valid.
  - gowld 7y ago
    The Chernobyl exclusion zone is 1000sqmi (32mi by 32mi). That's not so vast if it's in low populated area.
    - Ididntdothis 7y ago
      That would be a significant area for most western countries.
    - gpm 7y ago
      It's a mistake to think of Chernobyl as anything near worst case, there were absolutely huge containment efforts that took place after that disaster that might not take place after a similar future disaster.
  - webkike 7y ago
    Sure they can. They are called minefields.
- bilbo0s 7y ago
  I think the comment's material point is, why put a nuclear plant in arms reach of such groups? It's a good point. I would argue that most people are not talking about putting a nuclear plant in, say, Somalia. I think most people realize there have to be some preconditions met before you can really even think about using nuclear power. For the most part, if you are able as a nation to construct such a plant, you likely have the security infrastructure to secure the place. In fact, you likely have one of the more powerful security infrastructure buildouts in your region.