Thorium Power Plants Could Solve The World's Energy Problems

If there is one conspiracy theory that holds its water, it is that the energy industry is not going to allow any cheap, abundant supply other than those they can control, to be set loose on the market. Moreover, those governments of the industrialized world only understand the ramifications of setting humanity free of these energy barons based on what they have been feeding back into the democracies since the mid 1950s: If free or cheap and abundant energy supplies were to suddenly displace conventional sources like oil, coal and natural gas, the result would be economic catastrophe.

Similarly, when the banks warned the US government of riots and martial law if they were allowed to fail, both political parties bellied-up to what we now call the 'bail out'.

So, thorium or cold fusion or tapping Tesla's energy bank in the upper atmosphere may all be possible, but they will not be allowed to be realized. Not yesterday, not today, not tomorrow.

Thorium does sound like a decent option, hope they invest some time into this project

I'm expecting the ITER plant to produce good results; but that's fusion. Thorium nuclear reactors sounds like a great way to keep us running until we can get good fusion systems going.

Can they PLEASE, NOT f' this up...
This entire civilisation is a total screw up...

All we do is bickering and ranting one another..
"Go to your room and stay there untill you realize
whats important"...

0-14 considderd kids here
14-18 young adults
18 and up, Your an adult. Responsible for your own choices

These turds in power behaves like 4year olds...

Originally posted by redoubt

If there is one conspiracy theory that holds its water, it is that the energy industry is not going to allow any cheap, abundant supply other than those they can control, to be set loose on the market. Moreover, those governments of the industrialized world only understand the ramifications of setting humanity free of these energy barons based on what they have been feeding back into the democracies since the mid 1950s: If free or cheap and abundant energy supplies were to suddenly displace conventional sources like oil, coal and natural gas, the result would be economic catastrophe.

Hardly. All that matters is "cheap". US natural gas has gotten much cheaper than it was a few years ago, and there is no conspiracy to suppress it, and its economic benefits have been positive.

After all, wind is free and yet wind power is not free. Why? Has any evil conspiratorial sorts been suppressing windpower? No.

Absolutely nothing in energy generation or use ever happens "suddenly". Even if ETs gave us some plans for a magic free-energy fusion reactor, it would still take at least 30 to 50 years to change over. Who is going to build them? Who is going to build the factories to make them? Who will do the testing? Who will learn about safety? How much do they cost, and how much does that compare to continuing with existing generating plants? Who will fund the capital?

So, thorium or cold fusion or tapping Tesla's energy bank in the upper atmosphere may all be possible, but they will not be allowed to be realized. Not yesterday, not today, not tomorrow.

Well, the second two are either non-existent or nonsensical, and thorium doesn't solve any immediate existing problem. The commercial issues with pursuing nuclear reactors don't change one bit from uranium to thorium, other than increasing the regulatory scrutiny and having less experience manufacturing fuel.

We aren't churning out lots of small modular reactors based on well-tested and known technology now. If there's not much demand for that now, who would buy something which is tested much less well?

Any supposed shortage of uranium plays no part in the barriers to adopting nuclear fission generation and won't for at least 100 to 200 years.

When you grow up and recognize the actual forces in the real world and the practical barriers to success you may see why things are as they are.

Originally posted by mbkennel

Originally posted by redoubt

If there is one conspiracy theory that holds its water, it is that the energy industry is not going to allow any cheap, abundant supply other than those they can control, to be set loose on the market. Moreover, those governments of the industrialized world only understand the ramifications of setting humanity free of these energy barons based on what they have been feeding back into the democracies since the mid 1950s: If free or cheap and abundant energy supplies were to suddenly displace conventional sources like oil, coal and natural gas, the result would be economic catastrophe.

Hardly. All that matters is "cheap". US natural gas has gotten much cheaper than it was a few years ago, and there is no conspiracy to suppress it, and its economic benefits have been positive.

Indeed. I like it when someone lays it out so clearly, and shows that "suppression" is the notion for the paranoid and mentally infirm.

Even if ETs gave us some plans for a magic free-energy fusion reactor, it would still take at least 30 to 50 years to change over. Who is going to build them? Who is going to build the factories to make them? Who will do the testing? Who will learn about safety? How much do they cost, and how much does that compare to continuing with existing generating plants? Who will fund the capital?

Right on. For the latter part, I would wager that venture capitalists would cough up a rather significant amount of money, to build an "extraterrestronium" reactor demonstrator. But going from 0 to 60, in energy production... Doubtful at nest.

So, thorium or cold fusion or tapping Tesla's energy bank in the upper atmosphere may all be possible, but they will not be allowed to be realized. Not yesterday, not today, not tomorrow.

Well, the second two are either non-existent or nonsensical

Yep. Tesla energy bank? Retarded.

and thorium doesn't solve any immediate existing problem

Except that by and large, Thorium fuel mix is not suited as the material for the fission bomb. That's very important.

The commercial issues with pursuing nuclear reactors don't change one bit from uranium to thorium, other than increasing the regulatory scrutiny and having less experience manufacturing fuel.

I don't see how manufacturing Thorium fuel is more complicated or difficult than running centrifuges on Uranium fluoride.

We aren't churning out lots of small modular reactors based on well-tested and known technology now.

I understand that after Chernobyl that may be the case...

Originally posted by mbkennel
...and thorium doesn't solve any immediate existing problem.

Oh, I think it does eliminate the greatest part of probably the worst problem that nuclear reactors face, barring Chernobyl and Fukushima bad PR: the question of waste. At least, the liquid fueled reactors like LFTR can.

They do two things that solid fueled reactors don't: they can use all their fuel, rather than just the small sliver that solids use before their fuel has to be processed, or as we do it today, dumped. Secondly, they can take all the old spent fuel lying in those pools which can be converted to liquid fluorides and burn them for fuel as well.