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Modern SMRs (small nuclear reactors) can literally use spent fuel rods from legacy nuclear reactors as their primary fuel. This isn’t conjecture but simple fact
by SEJeff 1y ago
Modern SMRs (small nuclear reactors) can literally use spent fuel rods from legacy nuclear reactors as their primary fuel. This isn’t conjecture but simple fact. The engineering has dramatically improved even if public sentiment hasn’t. Modern nuclear reactors can not melt down in same way the reactor at Chernobyl did.
The new “fast reactors” are explicitly designed to take spent fuel rods as fuel to lessen the requirement of creating more enriched uranium.
- SEJeff 1y agoI love the part where you all are downvoting factual replies because they don’t fit your narrative. Stay salty friends :)
- philipkglass 1y agoI downvoted it because only a couple of small modular reactors have been constructed so far, and neither of them use spent fuel rods from older reactors as fuel: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HTR-PM https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HTR-PM https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akademik_Lomonosov https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akademik_Lomonosov If you were referring to a theoretical SMR design, I will believe it after a demonstration unit is built and operating. Most reactor designs never enter industrial use, just like most designs for new kinds of batteries or solar cells.