American engineers have developed a microreactor for a nuclear power plant, in which all hazardous waste
Nuclear elements can radiate heat orradioactive radiation for hundreds of thousands of years as they slowly cool down. That is why they are so dangerous, in traditional nuclear reactors a stream of water constantly passes through the rods, which protects them from overheating. But, stopping the cooling system can lead to disruption of the reactor and an explosion similar to what happened in Chernobyl.
In the new system, all waste is stored inmolten salt. It has an extremely high melting point of around 550°C, the scientists explain. In such an environment, radioactive elements cool very quickly. At the same time, as soon as the salt crystallizes, the radiated heat is absorbed, which negates the risk of a nuclear power plant meltdown.
Professor Matthew Memmott is working on technology for the safe production of nuclear power in the laboratory. Image: BYU
Another advantage of the reactor design formolten salt is that it can eliminate hazardous nuclear waste. The reaction products are contained in the salt and there is no need to store them elsewhere. Moreover, many of these products are valuable and can be separated from the salt and sold.
For example, molybdenum-99 can be obtained from saltis an expensive element that is used in medical imaging and scanning procedures. In addition, during the operation of the reactor, cobalt-60, gold, platinum, neodymium and many other elements accumulate in the waste.
A typical nuclear power plant occupiesgigantic areas, most of which are needed to reduce radiation risk. The reactor, created by scientists, can be placed on an area of 1.2 m by 2.1 m, while it will be enough to provide electricity to about a thousand homes.
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