EBR I

I recently took a trip to the Idaho National Lab to tour EBR-I, (Experimental Breeder Reactor I).  It was like a trip back into the lives of my grandparents, since the reactor was built in the early 50s.

This, of course, brings up questions of the failed promises of nuclear power.  Why didn't it live up to its promise to provide abundant, clean and cheap power for the planet.  I would like to discuss this more in a future post, but for now I will just share the pictures from the National Historic Site.  (Spoiler alert: The reasons are not technological, they are sociological and political.)

 Me standing on top of the reactor. All of the fuel was removed  long ago, but I am still alive after this.  The radiation didn't get me and no, the fuel wasn't removed 10,000 years ago, and yes I am making fun of the radiophobes.

Leftovers of the misguided attempt to make a nuclear powered airplane - technically cool but cold war stupid.

Bee in My Bonnet

When you have an idea that just seems so delicious that you can't forget about it and you find yourself daydreaming about it you have a "bee in your bonnet".  Mine is nuclear energy.  Maybe it is an obsession?  Who knows?  But read this and think about buying a car with all the fuel it will every use included in the price ($8.50!!!! for the fuel) and more importantly, contained in the car itself! (I stole this in its entirety from "Energy from Thorium" FB page.  My apologies to Mr. Steinhaus.)

Bob Steinhaus NRC still permits garage tinkering and innovation in the fusion area including tolerating fusion reactor projects by talented high school senior fusion physicists like Taylor Wilson. It is possible to purchase high purity fusion fuels, like deuterium, on eBay.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/2-grams-pure-deuterium-oxide-D2O-heavy-water-in-glass-ampule-/280789792314?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item416060363a
(2 grams of 99.999% pure D2O heavy water for $8.50)

A question for the quantitatively inclined nuclear advocate -
Q: So how much energy could 2 grams (volume about 2 milli-liters) of D2O (heavy water) produce if fully consumed in a D-D fusion reactor?
A: 2 grams of D2O (heavy water), fully and efficiently consumed in a D-D fusion reactor would produce 4.6 x 10^5 MJ of energy. (D2O heavy water would need to be separated by electrolysis into [by molecule] two atoms of Deuterium + one atom of Oxygen - only the Deuterium is actually useful for fusion)
Fully burning a gallon of gasoline produces 136 MJ of energy.
Burning 2 grams of Deuterium, costing $8.50 on eBay, produces the same amount of energy as would be produced by efficiently burning 3,380 gallons of gasoline.

NRC's attitude regarding amateur access to fissile materials like U-233 or U-235 is markedly different than their attitude toward fusion fuel and if Taylor Wilson wants to innovate fission reactors, he will encounter much higher legal and regulatory obstacles.

Follow up question -
Q: If you had a Ford Fusion car that ran on Deuterium via the D-D fusion reaction instead of gasoline, and you poured all 2 grams of D2O purchased on eBay (for $8.50) into the Deuterium tank, how far could you drive, assuming the Deuterium in the heavy water was completely consumed?

A: Since 2 grams of D2O (heavy water) would produce 4.6 x 10^5 MJ of energy via D-D fusion
and that this amount of energy is equivalent to the energy produced by burning 3,380 gallons of gas
and that the average mileage of a Ford Fusion is 30 mpg
then
the Deuterium Ford Fusion automobile should be able to drive about 101,400 miles on 2 grams ($8.50 worth) of heavy water (which is about 4 times around the earth).
http://goo.gl/lvSYX

Note: 2 grams of Deuterium for $8.50 on eBay which is capable of producing the same amount of energy from D-D fusion as burning 3,800 gallons of gasoline could be a true energy bargain.
Disclosure - I have no financial interest whatsoever in the sale of Deuterium on eBay.

The Post Office and TSA will see you now!

Every once in a while, there is someone that comes along and says something so true and profound, I just have to repost it.  After all, isn't this really what Obama-care boils down to?

Valentine's Day

My daughter send this to me and it made me laugh:

Of course, it's the juxtaposition of dictators and mass muderers being full of love that strikes the funny bone.

We've been lied to!!!!!!!!!

What do you call 20,000 metric tons of metallic elements that can produce enough primary energy to meet the needs of the US for nearly a century?  That energy is also worth trillions and trillions of dollars! (A trillion is 1 followed by 12 zeros)

The NRC, Greenpeace, most environmentalists, most Americans and coal, oil and utility execs call it "nuclear WASTE".

How interesting!  Stuff that can be converted into energy and profitably sold is called waste.

My fellow Americans, (all you that believe in nuclear WASTE), please send me all of your gold and silver and platinum jewelry and diamonds too.  It is waste and should be strictly regulated, lest it get into dangerous hands and be used for nefarious purposes! Send your waste to me now!  I will store the stuff for you (in my bank vault)!

Long EZ Ridge Runner

I was out at the airport today doing some maintenance on my airplane, when I ran into a flying buddy.  I hadn't seen him in a while and I asked him what he has been up to.  He explained to me that he mounted a HD camera to his plane and went flying.  

Here is the video he made.

And here another video he made flying around Northern Utah.  It's called a beautiful day. 
 

The Infernal Inversion and "Alternative" Energy

The extended winter inversion that is gripping Utah provides an excellent backdrop to explain why "alternative" energy isn't viable.  It isn't really an alternative to anything.

The State of Utah had an energy summit last week at the Salt Palace Convention Center.  The photo below (from the Salt Lake Tribune) shows some protesters/attendees/alt energy boosters outside the summit.

This alt energy booster has a poster that declares that sunlight is free.  Good for him/her!  How much "free" energy would a solar installation be producing at my location right now, under 18 inches of snow?  By the way, the temperature has not risen above 20°F for a month and overnight temperatures have typically been -10°F. 

What about windmills, you ask?  The inversion is caused by a high pressure system that is parked over the area.  There is very little wind, hence the inversion. So, again, we're out of luck.

Precisely when the demand for energy is the greatest, is when the "alternative" energies produce the least.  This is really just a tautological explanation.  Why is it cold?  Because the sun shines for only a few hours a day at a very low angle in the winter.  Why do we need a lot of energy in the winter? Because it is cold.  Why is it cold?  Because there isn't very much sunlight in the winter.  Get the point?

Next, can you imagine an electric car in the freezing weather that we have had for the last month? I doubt the batteries could even defrost the windows at -15°F.  Do electric cars even have defrosters?

The internal combustion engine isn't very efficient, but the waste heat it produces is an absolute life saver in the evil, cold winters we have in most of North America.

And, how about this? It snowed in Jerusalem last week. Notice the palm tree covered in snow.  This is why the warmers had to change their story to "global climate change", because it hasn't been warming since about 2000.

 

I am not fighting something with nothing.  I am proposing molten salt reactors as the real alternative energy, (the alternative to coal) able to power our industrial society without condemning us to freezing, dark cold winters, like the one currently in progress.