Thorium Energy Alliance Conference

Jul 1, 2024

Thorium Energy Alliance Conference Lecture Notes

Overview

  • Focus on Thorium's potential vs. Uranium.
  • Critique of traditional nuclear energy conferences focusing on Uranium.

Why Thorium?

Unique Properties

  • Thorium offers unique and special characteristics over Uranium.
  • More abundant than Uranium-235.
  • Easier to mine; extracted as a by-product during mining for rare earth elements, gold, and copper.
  • Current thorium supply from such mining could power the entire planet.

Challenges and Opportunities

Energy Potential

  • A small amount of Thorium (size of a golf ball, costing under $100) can supply a person's lifetime energy needs.
  • Key issue: Developing efficient reactors to harness this potential energy.

Uranium Limitations

  • Uranium-235 is rare and requires enrichment.
  • Existing reactors are outdated and expensive to build & maintain.

Addressing Common Concerns About Nuclear Energy

Cost & Construction Time

  • Traditional nuclear energy is expensive and slow to deploy.
  • New approaches needed to reduce costs and speed up construction.

Safety Concerns

  • Misconceptions about nuclear danger; actual risks are lower compared to coal power.
  • Nuclear accidents like Fukushima and Chernobyl fatalities were largely due to human error in response.

Waste Management

  • Existing nuclear waste issues need new approaches for better management.
  • Possibility of using spent fuel more efficiently.

Copenhagen Atomics’ Approach

Reactor Design and Economics

  • 50-year lifetime with thorium reactors; costs anticipated to be significantly lower.
  • Goal: Deploying reactors quickly and efficiently (1 reactor/day).
  • Modular reactors vs. traditional on-site builds.

The Onion Core

  • Highly efficient design reducing neutron loss to about 2%.
  • Uses thorium blanket to breed Uranium-233 efficiently.

Mass Production and Deployment

  • Plan to mass manufacture and deploy reactors cost-effectively.
  • Aim for fully automated, remote-controlled power plants.

Safety & Radiation

  • Proposes understanding radiation in a context similar to electrical voltage (manageable at low levels).

Development Plan and Goals

Milestones

  • Non-fission prototypes operational for testing.
  • Aiming for 1 MW test reactor by 2026, full use of thorium as fuel.
  • Mass manufacturing envisioned to start by early 2030s.
  • Ultimate goal to develop thorium breeder reactors by 2035.

Commercial Model

  • Plan for the commercial, not government-funded, deployment of reactors.
  • Focus on commodity industries like ammonia and aluminum production.
  • Long-term heat sales contracts to fund operations.

Waste Utilization

  • Future goal to use spent nuclear fuel in reactors.
  • Enhanced energy extraction efficiency from spent fuel.

Conclusion

  • Lower energy cost with thorium reactors compared to other energy sources.
  • Advocates for commercial, self-sufficient nuclear industry.
  • Promises a more manageable approach to nuclear waste management.