ANS Nuclear Cafe

The ANS Nuclear Cafe is a blog owned and edited by the American Nuclear Society. Information contained on the ANS Nuclear Cafe has been provided by numerous sources. Therefore, the American Nuclear Society assumes no responsibility or liability for the accuracy of information contained herein. DISCLAIMER: The views expressed in posted articles do not necessarily reflect the views of the American Nuclear Society. The views expressed here are those of the individual authors. ANS takes no ownership of their views. The American Nuclear Society assumes no responsibility or liability for any use or operation of any methods, products, instructions, or ideas contained on this site.


A Poll to Revisit LWR's and a Plan

November 28, 2017, 5:35PMANS Nuclear CafeWill Davis

A short while back in early November, I decided to conduct a poll on Twitter - that oft-maligned, mostly misunderstood, microblogging site on which instantaneous outreach is seriously tempered by a roughly 19-minute-post-visibility lifetime. Even with the limitations, I thought my first-ever use of the polling tool would produce a pretty predictable result. I was off the mark.

Friday Matinee: 3Q 2017 Vogtle Update

November 17, 2017, 2:00PMANS Nuclear Cafe

FriNukeMatinee

When you hear the friendly voice of Joe Washington, you know that it's time for another in the excellent series of "Vogtle Timeline" videos presented by Georgia Power.  This most recent update covers some important ground - namely, the change in construction arrangements following Westinghouse's bankruptcy and how the project goes on from that point.  Not only is physical progress at the plant site displayed, but community outreach and impact are also shown in this well produced video.

Seawolf Tries Sodium

November 14, 2017, 5:43PMANS Nuclear CafeWill Davis

The story of America's first successful marine nuclear power plant as used on the submarine USS Nautilus is well known.  What is less known today is the real story behind the competing, and in the end losing, design - an "advanced" design using sodium cooling that in some quarters was first thought to be the better choice.

Used Nuclear Fuel Transport, Disposal - Where to Now?

October 31, 2017, 4:40PMANS Nuclear CafeWill Davis

A packed room was on hand for this morning's panel session on Used Nuclear Fuel Management, and following the interesting presentations by several speakers the crowd took part in an energetic and, at some times, lively discussion on where we are as a nation and as an industry on the issues of storage of used fuel and the potential for creation of storage or even, possibly, a repository.  Given the present political environment, there's motion on the latter, which led to some of the liveliness of the discussion.  We'll give just some of the remarks made by presenters below.

ANS President Hopeful for Future of Nuclear Energy

October 30, 2017, 7:31PMANS Nuclear Cafe

"There's no one I'd rather go into battle with," said ANS President Bob Coward to a packed Opening Plenary audience this morning, "than nuclear professionals," in reference to the stated purpose of ANS in advancing nuclear technologies.  Coward's very first remarks set the tone for a speech that was remarkably hopeful and bright given the recent blows that nuclear energy has suffered here in the United States.

The Young Professionals Congress and Why You Should Attend!

October 11, 2017, 7:05PMANS Nuclear CafeBrett Rampal and Jitesh Kuntawala

The Young Professionals Congress (YPC), the only joint American Nuclear Society (ANS) and North American Young Generation in Nuclear (NAYGN) meeting held anywhere, is a once every two years event held in Washington D.C. in conjunction with the ANS Winter Meeting.  For both of us, 2015 was our first opportunity to attend a YPC and after first hearing about it, we both immediately recognized the value and importance of the meeting.  As attendees and planners for 2015 and 2017, we are eager to share some of the great content associated with YPC 2017 and encourage you to attend. Remember, while YPC is a young professionals-run event, geared toward those early in their careers, there is plenty of content for the established professional to gain from attending.

National Clean Energy Week and Nuclear Energy

September 26, 2017, 5:55PMANS Nuclear Cafe

Perry Nuclear Plant in Ohio.  Nuclear plants create no emissions of their own; the cooling towers emit only water vapor.  Press photo in Will Davis collection.

Perry Nuclear Plant in Ohio. Nuclear plants create no emissions of their own; the cooling towers emit only water vapor. Press photo in Will Davis collection.

One of the things that's important to consider this week - National Clean Energy Week - is whether or not energy sources we depend upon are actually clean.  While we think of solar and wind energy as being pretty clean, we are also reminded that they are not reliable, and they do experience periods of time when they just don't work.  What we use to fill in that power gap is from sources we can control, independent of weather or time of day. These are sources we call "dispatchable" generating sources, because we can dispatch them and expect they'll answer the call to provide power.

Florida's Nuclear Plants Power Through Hurricane Irma

September 12, 2017, 4:04PMANS Nuclear Cafe

Florida Power and Light's St. Lucie nuclear plant; photo courtesy FPL

Hurricane Irma shocked the country this week with images of wind and water that haven't been seen in some time along the hurricane-wary coastlines of the United States. Although people in those regions always have preparation for these storms somewhere in their minds, the two Florida Power & Light (FPL) nuclear plants-both of which powered through the hurricane-had both a background of design and preparedness to stand on as well as some recent, last-minute preparations.

Nuclear Desalination and the Economics of Nuclear Power

September 2, 2017, 6:00AMANS Nuclear CafeAndrew Reimers and Brittany Speetles

Concerns about global warming and water scarcity have motivated many researchers to consider the potential for nuclear desalination, i.e., integrating a desalination plant with a nuclear power plant, as a means of producing drinkable water. There are numerous benefits to integrating a desalination plant with a nuclear power plant such as carbon-free electricity, low-marginal cost of generating electricity compared to fossil fuels, and a consistent power supply, unlike intermittent renewable electricity sources like wind and solar. Nearly 46 percent of the world's nuclear power capacity is within fifty miles of a coast according to data from the World Nuclear Association. In the U.S., several nuclear power plants are located near the coasts in states such as California and Florida where large-scale desalination plants have been constructed in the last decade. Thus, for locales with existing nuclear power plants and sufficient demand for desalinated water, nuclear desalination is an attractive option.

RadioNuclear.org: An Everything Nuclear Podcast

September 1, 2017, 4:31PMANS Nuclear Cafe

RadioNuclear.org

In a world fraught with loud, anti-nuclear voices, including a recent satirical news show that had a bit on nuclear waste, I've been pondering ideas that would provide a media platform to help counter the attacks on nuclear. While I am still a penniless grad student who lacks the budget of a weekly HBO nightly show, I believe I may have found a compromise. Starting today, Friday, September 1, 2017, I will be launching the bi-weekly podcast RadioNuclear.