Nuclear Imperative (eBook)

The Nuclear Imperative 1
Preface to the Second Edition 7
Preface to the First Edition 9
List of Briefs 17
Abstract 19
Chapter 1: Introduction 21
1.1 Oil Depletion 21
1.2 Global Warming 26
1.3 Preparations for the Impending Out-of-Oil Crisis 30
1.4 Ways and Risks to Overcome the Pending No-Oil Crisis 32
1.4.1 Risks in the Nuclear Millennia Option 35
1.4.1.1 Safety Considerations and Biosphere Effects 35
1.4.1.2 Technical Feasibility, Operability, and Ability to Deliver 39
1.4.1.3 Financial Feasibilty 42
1.4.2 Risks of the Renewables-Only Option 43
1.4.2.1 Safety Considerations and Biosphere Effects 43
1.4.2.2 Technical Feasibility, Operability, and Ability to Deliver 44
1.4.2.3 Financial Feasibilty 45
1.4.3 The Coal-Burning Option 45
1.4.3.1 Safety Considerations and Biosphere Effects 45
1.4.3.2 Technical Feasibility, Operability, and Ability to Deliver 46
1.4.3.3 Financial Feasibilty 46
1.4.4 The Do-Nothing Option 47
1.4.4.1 Safety Considerations and Biosphere Effects 47
1.4.4.2 Technical Feasibility, Operability, and Ability to Deliver 47
1.4.4.3 Financial Feasibility 47
1.4.4.4 Conclusions Based on the Risk Assessment of Options (1), (2), (3), and (4) 47
1.5 Organization of the Book 50
Chapter 2: Nuclear Fables and Facts 52
2.1 Fable (1): “Nuclear Reactors are Like Nuclear Bombs” 52
2.2 Fable (2): “We Don’t Need More Nuclear Power There Is Plenty of Natural Gas, Oil, and Coal”
2.3 Fable (3): “Nuclear Power Plants Create Lots of “Dangerous” Radioactive Waste, Which We Don’t Know How to Transport or St 54
2.4 Fable (4): “Nuclear Power Is Not Needed. “Free” Renewable Solar, Wind, Hydro, and Geothermal Power Will Do. The Utilitie 55
2.5 Fable (5): “We Only Have 50 Years of Uranium Ore to Sustain a World Fueled by Fission Power. Coal Reserves Would Last at 57
2.6 Fable (6): “We Should Wait for Development of Nuclear Fusion Which Produces No Radioactivity” 57
2.7 Fable (7): “Hydrogen-Consuming Fuel-Cell Engines and Electric Energy Storage Batteries Can Replace Petrol-Burning Autom 58
2.8 Fable (8): “Nuclear Reactor Operations Are Unsafe” 61
2.9 Fable (9): “The Longer the Lifetime of a Radioactive Element, the More Dangerous It Is for Man” 62
2.10 Fable (10): “Thousands of People Will Die After a Nuclear Plant Meltdown” 63
2.11 Fable (11): “Exposure to “Radiation” Can Cause Long-Term After-Effects in One’s Body” 63
2.12 Fable (12): “Nuclear Plants Consume Millions of Gallons of Water, Depriving Others of This Commodity” 65
Chapter 3: Energy Consumption and Energy Sources on Planet Earth 66
3.1 Definition of Energy and Units for Energy and Power 66
3.2 Amounts and Forms of Energy Consumed by Man 70
3.3 A Brief History of Energy 74
3.4 Summary of Primary Energy Sources 82
Chapter 4: “Renewable” Energy Sources and Their Limitations 84
4.1 Sunshine-Produced Biomass and Biofuels 85
4.2 Direct Solar Energy Conversion 87
4.3 Wind Energy 90
4.4 Geothermal, Hydro, and Ocean-Wave Power 92
4.5 Economic Comparisons 94
Chapter 5: Portable Energy and Propulsion Technologies 95
5.1 Review of Portable Fuels and Other Energy Carriers 96
5.1.1 Portable Synfuels 96
5.1.2 Electric Storage Batteries 104
5.1.3 Flywheel Energy Storage (Mechanical Batteries) 106
5.2 Vehicle Propulsion Engines 109
5.2.1 Internal Combustion Engines (ICEs) 109
5.2.2 Electrochemical Fuel-Cell Engines (FCEs) 111
5.2.3 Steam Engines 116
Chapter 6: Coal and Nuclear Power Generation 117
6.1 Coal-Burning Power Plants 117
6.2 Nuclear Power Reactors 119
6.2.1 Basic Physics, Design, and Operation of a Reactor 122
6.2.2 Breeders and Mixed Fuel Reactors 129
6.2.3 Nuclear Reactors Versus Nuclear Bombs 133
6.3 The Uranium Fuel Cycle and Its Environmental Impact 135
6.3.1 Uranium Enrichment 139
6.3.2 Fuel Re-processing 142
6.3.3 Final Disposal of Radio-Waste 145
6.4 Nuclear Fusion 149
Chapter 7: Safety Considerations in Nuclear Operations 153
7.1 Nature of Nuclear Radiation 153
7.2 Biological Effects of Nuclear Radiation 155
7.3 Radiation Dose Measurements and Tolerable Exposures 160
7.4 Radiation Protection in Reactor Operations 164
7.5 Mishaps and Malfunctions in Reactor Operations 165
7.6 Nuclear Criticality Accidents 166
Chapter 8: Nuclear Weapon Controls and Non-proliferation 175
8.1 The Nuclear Age and World Realities 175
8.2 Safeguards Against Terrorists 180
8.3 The Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) 183
Chapter 9: Conclusions, Action Items, and Predictions 189
9.1 Synopsis 189
9.2 Action Items 194
9.2.1 Development of Synthetic Fuel (Synfuel) Manufacture, Storage, and Distribution 195
9.2.2 Portable Energy Storage Devices 198
9.2.3 Development of Advanced Automotive and Aircraft Engines 199
9.2.4 Breeder Reactor Development, Testing, Deployment, and Burner-to-Breeder Conversions 199
9.2.5 Reprocessing, Enrichment, and Fabrication of Reactor Fuels 201
9.2.6 Coal Usage Reassignment Programs 201
9.3 Anticipations 202
Abbreviations 206
Chemical Symbols of Selected Elements and Isotopes 208
International MKS Units & Prefixes
Atomic/Molecular Units 209
About the Author 210
Annotated Bibliography 213