Do we have a practicing Nuclear Eng. in the house?
PeakOil is You
Article: Are We Having a Natural Gas Crisis?
Re: Are We Having a Natural Gas Crisis?
by gt1370a » Sat 27 Aug 2005, 11:21:25
$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('shakespear1', 'U')h, from what I recall from my Nuc. Eng. education days, those little neutrons and gammas do a bad number on the metal parts of the reactor. I do not know the retrofitting schedules or what they do, but I think that this would be a big issue with an old reactor plant.
Do we have a practicing Nuclear Eng. in the house?
Do we have a practicing Nuclear Eng. in the house?
Yeah, I'm a nuclear engineer for a US utility.
Decommissioning is basically an economic decision. Most of the plant equipment, even "lifetime" components like steam generators can be replaced in order to maintain safety. Only if it is not economic to do so would they actually decommission the plant. An interesting example is Trojan nuclear plant. For example, the reactor vessel becomes activated by neutrons, but they were still able to remove it and ship it up to Hanford for disposal.
Replacement of major parts like steam generators and even the head is fairly commonplace now.
Anyway, my point originally is that nuclear is baseload power and gas plants are for meeting daily peak demand. Nobody runs gas plants 24/7. They are basically just like a backyard generator to make up the difference. If nuke plants are decommissioned, the only real viable alternative is another nuke plant or coal.
-
gt1370a - Coal
- Posts: 422
- Joined: Sat 02 Apr 2005, 04:00:00
21 posts
• Page 2 of 2 • 1, 2
Who is online
Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 2 guests