First US Nuclear Repository a Distant Dream even as Several Needed

7 Feb, 2012
Nuclear Energy

USA has the largest amount of spent nuclear waste in the world and it does not have a single permanent nuclear waste storage site. It is quite shocking that thousands of tons of dangerous nuclear waste is put in temporary locations waiting to start a new disaster in the Fukushima pattern. Note the greatest danger and fallout from the recent nuclear disaster was due to spent nuclear rods . The first site that was being prepared in Yucata mountains is mired in controversy despite millions of dollars being spent.

The Blue Ribbon Commission has failed to bring the process any closer with Chu saying that several permanent nuclear waste storage sites are needed . However even one looks like a distant dream with tons of nuclear waste being added every day. Note other countries like Japan have not done anything either on this front leading to Fukushima. Half baked ideas like dumping the nuclear waste in Mongolia have also come up a cropper.

Nuclear Waste Storage in USA is a complete Mess

Nuclear Storage Sites in USA – Do Not Exist

The US has 65,192 tonnes of the waste but the nation has no place to permanently store the material, which stays dangerous for tens of thousands of years.Currently, there are no permanent disposal facilities in the United States for high-level nuclear waste; therefore commercial high-level waste (spent fuel) is in temporary storage, mainly at nuclear power plants.A permanent facility was planned in the Yucca Mountains in Nevada by the Congress in 1987.This  project that has long been the subject environmental and political opposition and with the Obama administration cutting funding this project appears to be in limbo after $9 billion was spent.

Currently High-level waste (spent fuel) is in temporary storage, mainly at nuclear power plants while low-level waste, three commercial land disposal facilities are available, but they accept waste only from certain states or accept only limited types of low-level wastes.

Low Level Waste Sites in USA

  1. Hanford, located in Hanford, WA. Hanford accepts waste from the Northwest and Rocky Mountain compacts.
  2. Barnwell, located in Barnwell, SC. Previously, Barnwell accepted waste from all U.S. generators. As of July 2008, Barnwell only accepts waste from the Atlantic Compact States (Connecticut, New Jersey, and South Carolina).
  3. Energy Solutions, located in Clive, UT. Energy Solutions accepts waste from all regions of the United States.

Blue Ribbon Commission

Energy Secretary Steven Chu on Tuesday said that the United States will likely need more than one permanent repository for commercial nuclear fuel waste, even after a decades-long battle killed plans for a single repository site long-planned for Nevada.

The comment came in the wake of a final report last week from the Blue Ribbon Commission on America’s Nuclear Future, which was set up by Chu to examine what to do with spent nuclear fuel now languishing at commercial nuclear power plants around the country.

“You need several, in all probability, you need several repositories,” Chu said during a meeting of the Secretary of Energy Advisory Board. Chu put together the 13-member SEAB in 2010, and it includes scientists, business leaders, university professors and former government officials.

Siting just one nuclear waste repository has been a struggle for the federal government. President Barack Obama terminated the controversial Yucca Mountain repository project in Nevada after more than 25 years in development. Siting it in the state has drawn massive local opposition, notably from Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Nevada Democrat.

Read about Advantages and Disadvantages of Nuclear Energy

Iran Enrichment of Uranium to 20% near Qom shows the dangers of Nuclear Power

9 Jan, 2012
Nuclear Energy

Iran and the West have been in a major tradeoff since the last couple of years with Iran’s enrichment of uranium which can be used to make nuclear weapons. Note the recent tensions were escalated with the EU joining the US in embargoing Iran. This has not gone unnoticed by the Iranian government which has threatened to close the Strait of Hormun which could disrupt a major portion of the global oil supplies.

Note one of the main dangers of nuclear energy is the probability of the fuel getting into the hands of terrorists and rogue nations which can use it to make nuclear weapons. Note the fears of a Taliban like group getting their hands on nuclear arms in Pakistan is all too real.With Iran getting nuclear weapons, this will increase. Nuclear Power is already being phased out in Germany,Japan,Switzerland after the Fukushima nuclear disaster. The dangers of  nuclear energy are too great to make it an option to secure mankind’s energy in the future.Despite the advantages of nuclear power, the risks are too great to be played with.

DISADVANTAGES OF NUCLEAR POWER

  1. Nuclear and Radiation Accidents - This is the biggest con for Nuclear Energy and has been repeated 3 times in the last 30 years in Japan,Russia and USA.The fear of a repeat is so great that despite all the safety arrangements touted by the nuclear equipment operators and suppliers,Nuclear Energy faces an uncertain future
  2. Nuclear Waste Disposal – Again a massive problem as the spent Nuclear Rods of Nuclear Reactors are prohibitively costly and difficult to dispose of.Spent nuclear fuel is initially very highly radioactive and so must be handled with great care and forethought.There is no foolproof way to dispose nuclear waste fuel after it is used in the Nuclear Reactors.The area around Nuclear Waste Sites can be dangerous to humans for hundreds of year as complex nuclear elements have half lives running into many years.the United States had accumulated more than 50,000 metric tons of spent nuclear fuel from nuclear reactors.Permanent storage underground in U.S. had been proposed at the Yucca but that project has now been effectively cancelled.Presently, waste is mainly stored at individual reactor sites and there are over 430 locations around the world where radioactive material continues to accumulate.
  3. Low level of Radioactivity from Normal Operations - The nuclear industry also produces a large volume of low-level radioactive waste in the form of contaminated items like clothing, hand tools, water purifier resins, and (upon decommissioning) the materials of which the reactor itself is built
  4. Nuclear proliferation – Many countries have used the ruse of nuclear energy programs to generate fuel for developing nuclear weapons.Currently there is a major international controversy with regards to the Iranian Nuclear Energy Program.Nuclear Reactors are targets for rogue state actors who can steal the fuel for creating radiation weapons
  5. High Capital Investment,Cost Overruns and Long Gestation Time - The time to construct a large Nuclear power project can take between 5-10 years which leads to time and cost overruns.The Nuclear Plant being built in Finland has been one of the biggest failures in Project Finance.The reactor has been delayed by many year and has led to a massive cost overrun.Areva the main nuclear equipment supplier has endured huge losses.In fact the safety regulations and the long time of construction has brought the Nuclear Energy in the Developed World to almost a halt.
  6. Regulations – The Regulations for Nuclear Energy Power Plants are many and cumbersome due to the massive risks of a failure of a nuclear reactor.This greatly increases the costs of generating nuclear power.It also leads to a long time in the actual start to the completion of a Nuclear Plant .
  7. Fuel Danger - Uranium which is the main fuel used in Nuclear Fission Power Plants is limited to a few countries and suppliers.Its use and transport is regulated by international treaties and groups.India which came under sanctions because of testing of nuclear weapons had to shut many of its nuclear plants because of embargoes.

Iran has started enriching uranium to more than 20% which has surprised the West at a plant near the holy city of Qom

The existence of the Fordo plant, built into the side of a mountain near the Muslim holy city of Qom, south of Tehran, was disclosed in September 2009, heightening concern among the U.S. and its allies who say Iran’s activities may be a cover for the development of atomic weapons. The Persian Gulf country has rejected the allegation, saying it needs nuclear technology to secure energy for its growing population.Jan. 8 (Bloomberg) — Iran has started to enrich uranium at its Fordo production facility, the official Kayhan newspaper reported without saying where it got the information.

Also Read more about the other Uses of Nuclear Power

Japan may Nationalize Nuclear Industry as TEPCO gets a massive bailout

7 Jan, 2012
Nuclear Energy

Japan which has faced two of the worst nuclear accidents in history,the atomic bombing in WW2 and the Fukushima disaster, is thinking of nationalization of the nuclear industry.This comes after the fallout of the Fukushima,where the utility TEPCO needed a massive bailout. To pay compensation and repair the disaster would have bankrupted TEPCO and still left a massive hole. The Japanese government had to step in with a big money package so that TEPCO could meet its liabilities. Note the biggest disadvantage of nuclear power is the catastrophic tail risk of a nuclear meltdown.

Japan has already joined countries like Germany, Switzerland in deciding to shut down the nuclear power plants in the future. The advantages of nuclear energy are not good enough to compensate the potential of a new Chernobyl in the future. Other countries like India too are facing massive opposition against construction of new nuclear power plants.

Switzerland has voted to not build any new nuclear reactors and not to extend the life of the existing nuclear plants once their expected life ends. The oldest nuclear reactor will be shut down by 2019 and the newest by 2034 which means that Switzerland will become nuclear free by 2034.Switzerland saw huge protests with 20,000 people rallying against nuclear power which was the biggest in the last 30 years.Germany too has seen hundreds of thousands protesting nuclear power. Note Japan too had earlier decided not to build new nuclear reactors which would have increased nuclear power capacity to 50% by 2030 of the total electricity capacity up from 30% at present. The Fukushima nuclear accident has forced a major rethink in major world capitals as it follows the Three Mile and Chernobyl accidents in the last 50 years. Nuclear Energy forms a substantial chunk of the world’s power capacity but the catastrophic tails risks of nuclear power is the biggest con of nuclear energy.

The situation is akin to the bailing out of large banks by USA and Europe where the profits are private but the losses are socialized. Japan too would face enormous pressure not do nationalize its nuclear plants by vested private interests but common sense would advise for it to go ahead. Japan has one of the largest nuclear electricity capacities in the world.

Top 15 Countries with Highest Nuclear Electricity Generation Capacities

  1. USA 101 GW
  2. France 63 GW
  3. Japan 45GW
  4. Russia 23 GW
  5. Germany 21 GW
  6. South Korea 19 GW
  7. Canada 13 GW
  8. Ukraine 13 GW
  9. UK 11 GW
  10. Sweden 10 GW
  11. China 10 GW
  12. Spain 7 GW
  13. Belgium 6 GW
  14. Czech 5 GW
  15. India 4 GW

Nuclear Energy Companies,Stocks to Invest In Complete List (Utility,Reactor,Waste,Uranium)

10 Jul, 2011
Nuclear Energy

Nuclear Energy as an Investment

Nuclear Power has come under assault in the aftermath of the Fukushima Nuclear Accident with Nuclear becoming a four letter word.However Nuclear Energy cannot be ignored because its nuclear energy uses  are unique in some applications and cannot be substituted by any other means.Nuclear Energy is responsible for generating almost 1/6th of the global production of electricity with Developed Countries like Japan,Europe and USA having 20% or more of their electricity being generated by Nuclear Fission.Currently 31 countries in the world have nuclear reactors producing electricity.The total installed nuclear generating capacity in the world is around 375 GW (WNA) with another 170 GW in planning g state and another 170 GW being proposed.Despite the massive opposition that nuclear power has run into,nuclear companies and nuclear power stocks are not going away soon.This is because of the massive installed base and the nuclear plans of emerging countries.For example Middle Eastern countries like Saudi Arabia,UAE are going ahead with their nuclear power plans as are countries like India and Vietnam.

Types of Nuclear Energy Stocks

Note the Nuclear Industry is a massive industry and can be roughly be divided into 3 main cateogries.The biggest nuclear energy stocks are utility stocks which have lots of nuclear power capacity installed.These are like renewable energy utility stocks which have large amounts of renewable power capacity.Then there are nuclear equipment providers or nuclear reactors stocks just like wind turbine or solar panel companies.There are also nuclear material providers which provide uranium and other materials for nuclear power plants.The last is a niche category nuclear waste stocks but they can be highly rewarding as well.This is because top nuclear countries which have vast amounts of nuclear waste which will be have to ultimately disposed of.Currently there are lying in temporary facilities but they will have to be disposed of and then these stocks will make huge profits.

Nuclear Utility Stocks

  1. Southern Nuclear Operating Company, Inc., also known as Southern Nuclear, is a nuclear power company headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama. The company operates six nuclear power units at three plants
  2. Exelon (EXC) is one of the largest nuclear utilities in the USA with more than nuclear power plants including the infamous Three Mile Island.
  3. Electricité de France S.A. (EDF; English: Electricity of France) is the world’s largest utility company. It also has the large nuclear power capacity in the world.It has 58 active nuclear reactors (in France) spread out over 20 sites (nuclear power plants).
  4. Vattenfall is a Swedish power company and  is wholly owned by the Swedish government.The company gets 25% of its power from nuclear souces
  5. Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) is a government-owned corporation of India based and exclusively  generates  nuclear power for electricity.
  6. Entergy (ETR)
  7. Dominion Resources (D) is a power and energy company headquartered in Richmond, Virginia and has more than 41% of its power being generated from nuclear resournces
  8. Constellation Energy (CEG)
  9. NRG Energy’s (NRG)
  10. Edison International (EXI)
  11. Horizon Nuclear Power is a British energy company expecting to build new nuclear power stations in the United Kingdom. It is an E.ON UK and RWE npower joint venture, established in 2009, with its head office in Gloucester.
  12. China Guangdong Nuclear Power Holding Co., Ltd. (CGNPC) was established in September 1994 with a registered capital of RMB 10.2 billion with nuclear power as its core business. With CGNPC as its core enterprise, China Guangdong Nuclear Power Group (CGNPG) comprises more than twenty wholly owned or controlling subsidiaries.
  13. Nuclearelectrica is a Romanian state-owned company with installed capacity of 1,400 MW and an annual average power production of 5.613 GWh meaning 18 % of the total national output of Romania
  14. Korea Electric Power Corporation, better known as KEPCO, (??????: Hanguk Jeollyeok Gongsa) is the largest electric utility in South Korea

Nuclear Reactors Stocks

The Nuclear Energy Equipment market which is supposed to grow to a Trillion Dollar Market by 2030 is dominated by Three Companies/Joint Ventures.French Energy Giant Areva,Toshiba-Westinghouse and General Electric-Hitachi are the three Combines ruling over the Nuclear Energy Reactor Market currently.There are also two smaller players Russia’s ZAO Atomstroyexport and Korea Electric Power Corp.Toshiba has been an aggressive player in this market buying  US based Westinghouse in a Billion Dollar deal earlier.

1) Toshiba
2) General Electric
3) Areva
4) Korea Electric Power
5) Mitsubishi
6) ZAO Atomstroyexport7) Babcock & Wilcox (B&W)has supplied the nuclear industry with 1,300 large, heavy-walled components worldwide. With dedicated manufacturing operations in the U.S. and Canada, B&W suppliesfabricating pressure vessels, reactors, steam generators, heat exchangers, valves and other auxiliary equipment.

Mini Nuclear Reactor Companies

  1. Hyperion Power Generation, Inc. is a privately held corporation formed to construct and sell several designs of relatively small (70 MW thermal, 25 MW electric) nuclear reactors, which they claim will be modular, inexpensive, inherently safe, and proliferation-resistant.
  2. NuScale Power, Inc. is a corporation formed to construct and sell dedicated design of relatively small (160 MW thermal, 45 MW electric, hence 28% efficient) nuclear reactors, which they claim will be modular, inexpensive, inherently safe, and proliferation-resistant.
  3. TerraPower is a nuclear reactor design spin-off company of Intellectual Ventures that is headquartered in Bellevue, Washington in the United States. TerraPower is investigating a class of nuclear fast reactors called the traveling wave reactor (TWR). One of TerraPower’s primary investors is Bill Gates
  4. Flibe Energy is a company that intends to develop small modular reactors based on liquid fluoride thorium reactor (LFTR) technology. It was founded on April 6, 2011

Nuclear Fuel and Nuclear Material Companies

  1. Nuclear Fuel Services Inc. is an American company that has been a major supplier of fuel for the United States Navy’s fleet of nuclear-powered vessels since the 1960s. In recent years it has also processed weapons-grade uranium into nuclear reactor fuel. It operates a 65-acre (260,000 m2) gated complex in Erwin, Tennessee
  2. Nukem GmbH, together with its subsidiary Nukem Inc., markets nuclear (reprocessed) fuel components and speciality products utilities worldwide. Since the 1970s, Nukem has transitioned from playing a modest role in uranium brokerage to becoming one of the world’s largest intermediaries in the international nuclear fuel marke
  3. Korea Nuclear Fuel or KNF is a South Korean public enterprise e to provide high quality nuclear fuel. It provides nuclear fuels to 20 nuclear power plants in South Korea
  4. Japan Nuclear Fuel Ltd. (JNFL) is a nuclear energy company involved in the production of nuclear fuel, as well as the reprocessing, storage and disposal of nuclear waste.
  5. Kazatomprom is a state-owned nuclear holding company in Kazakhstan, which operates in the field of Uranium and nuclear fuel cycle services
  6. Tekhsnabexport  (TENEX) is a state owned Russian company founded in 1963 which trades uranium fuel and fuel processing services abroad

Uranium Companies and Stocks

Note most of the uranium companies are based in Canada and the others are state owned uranium companies which are not publicly traded.

  1. Denison Mines Corp. (TSX: DML, NYSE: DNN) is a Canadian uranium exploration, development, and production company
  2. Cameco Corporation (TSX: CCO, NYSE: CCJ) is the world’s largest publicly traded pure play uranium company.It is the world’s second largest uranium producer, accounting for 16% of world production
  3. Uranium One (TSX: UUU, JSE: UUU)  is a Canadian based uranium mining company with operations in Australia, Canada, Kazakhstan, South Africa and the United States.
  4. USEC Inc. (USU)  supplies low enriched uranium (LEU) to commercial nuclear power plants in the United States and internationally.  In addition, the company provides nuclear energy solutions and services, including the design, fabrication, and implementation of spent nuclear fuel technologies,transportation and storage systems for spent nuclear fuel; and nuclear and energy consulting services.
  5. China Nuclear International Uranium Corporation  is a Chinese Government owned corporation involved in prospecting, and eventually mining, overseas sources of Uranium.

Nuclear Waste Stocks

Nuclear Waste is one of the most difficult waste products to transport and store because of its dangerous radioactive effects.Given the long life of some of the transuranic elements Nuclear Waste has to be stored in a safe manner for thousands of years which is a tough given that the chances of leakage become enormous in such a long time scale.Storing of Nuclear Waste has to be performed in a extremely complicated manner which is also enormously costly.Also there are problems of NIMBY with Nuclear Waste Storage as nearby residents don’t want such toxic waste stored anywhere close especially as it does not bring any economic or social benefits.Not there is no permanent storage site despite many decades of planning and billions of dollars being spent.While Japan and Europe reprocess the fuel in the hope that they will be used again that remains a dream with thousands of tons of HLW piling up.

  1. COVRA (Centrale Organisatie Voor Radioactief Afval) is a Dutch nuclear waste processing and storage company  which stores the waste produced in the Borssele nuclear power plant after it is reprocessed by Areva NC
  2. The Deutsche Gesellschaft zum Bau und Betrieb von Endlagern für Abfallstoffe mbH (DBE) is responsible for planning, construction and operation of the facilitiesor securing and disposal of radioactive waste on behalf of the Federal Republic of Germany.
  3. The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) is a non-departmental public body of the United Kingdom formed by the Energy Act 2004. It came into existence in late 2004, and took on its main functions on 1 April 2005. Its purpose is to deliver the decommissioning and clean-up of the UK’s civil nuclear legacy in a safe and cost-effective manner, and where possible to accelerate programmes of work that reduce hazard
Note there are other utilities and companies which have substantial nuclear operations as well but the above covers most of the nuclear related companies and stocks in the world.The description of most of the companies has been taken from Wikipedia.

Pros and Cons of Nuclear Weapons – List of Facts and Debate

8 Jul, 2011
Nuclear Energy

Nuclear Weapons are a massively controversial topic with the opposition towards Nuclear Weapons handily beating the supporters of these arms of mass destruction.Nuclear Weapons have been foretold as humankind killers since their development during the Second World War by USA.With the erstwhile USSR developing these nuclear weapons as well,a Cold War developed between the 2 superpowers.The War was Cold as both sides possessed enough nuclear weapons to destroy the world many times over.Despite strong arguments against nuclear weapons,most of the developed nations including the most powerful ones like USA,Russia,UK,France and China have refused to abandon nuclear weapons.There have been many movements for the complete abolition of nuclear weapons which can destroy mankind as we know it.However except for the START reduction of nuclear weapons by USA and Russia nothing much has been achieved.In fact new unofficial nuclear weapon powers like India,Pakistan and Israel have joined the Nuclear Club.South Africa too had developed nuclear weapons before abandoning the idea.Rogue nations such as North Korea are said to have developed nuclear bombs while Iran too is trying to make nuclear weapons to counter USA domination of the Middle East.

Most of the arguments against nuclear weapons are too vehement and extremist to get an idea whether nuclear weapons have any advantages if at all.A listing of facts about nuclear weapons is necessary for kids to get an idea about the dangerous cons of nuclear weapons.While there is no doubt that everyone would like to completely remove nuclear weapons from the world,there are benefits which nuclear power see in them so we need to examine them also.Unless we can analyze and correct the pros of nuclear weapons we are unlikely to get a correct solution to the these Armageddon weapons

Pros of Nuclear Weapons

Deterrence – Nuclear Weapons are the ultimate form of deterrence as no enemy can hope to defeat a nuclear weapon power without massive losses to itself.Even a weaker power can hope to deter a larger power from agression with nuclear weapons and credible delivery mechanisms for those nuclear weapons.While opponents can say that it does not really give deterrence as nuclear weapon powers have come very close to wars such as the Cuban Missile Crisis and the Kargil War between India and Pakistan.

Low Cost Insurance against Aggression – Some may look upon Nuclear Weapons as a low cost way to insure against aggression from large power.Building massive army,fighters,armour costs a massive deal of money.Compared to that building a few nuclear bombs is quite cheap.North Korea has used this strategy quite effectively to keep USA at bay despite provoking the larger power numerous times.

Cons of Nuclear Weapons

1) Nuclear and Radiation Accidents - This is the biggest con for Nuclear Weapons as it can accidentally lead to massive radiation disaster.Though no major incidents have been reported,nuclear submarines going down and posing a huge danger to the environment have occurred.Many military personnel have been killed in nuclear weapon accidents .

2) Low level of Radioactivity from Normal Operations - The nuclear weapons industry produces a large volume of low-level radioactive waste in the form of contaminated items like clothing, hand tools, water purifier resins, and (upon decommissioning) the materials of which the reactor itself is built

3) Terrorism – There is danger that nuclear weapons in politically unstable countries like Pakistan or Russia may fall into the hands of rogue terrorist elements.These organizations have little fear of reprisals and can use these nuclear bombs in a cavalier manner against major cities for frivolous reasons.

4) Finishing Mankind off – Nuclear Weapons biggest Con and one that can all debate is that it has the potential to finish off mankind.A Nuclear War between 2 big powers can finish off mankind with hundreds of nuclear weapons being used.The few survivors would die off in the nuclear winter.

5) Disability and Cancers amongst affected Population for Decades – Nuclear Weapons were only used by USA against Japan when 2 low level nuclear bombs were dropped over Nagasaki and Hiroshima.The Bombs not only killed thousands but also caused disability and radiation diseases amongst survivors and helpers.These effects were still being felt even now almost 65 years after the bombs were destroyed in 1945.

6) Environment Disaster – These Nuclear Weapons not only kill humans but also destroy the environment and the wildlife for hundreds of years.The residual radiation kills all plants and animals making it a dead zone for hundreds of years.The Chernobyl site where a nuclear power plant disaster took place is still unusable today

7) Diverts Resources from Productive Uses – Nuclear Weapons are very costly for small countries with limited resources like Pakistan and North Korea.While the majority of the population remains mired in desperate poverty,developing nuclear weapons diverts precious resources to nuclear weapons programs.Nuclear Delivery Mechanisms like Fighters,Missiles and Submarines also cost billions of dollars and are need to build an effective Nuclear Deterrent

8) Nuclear Weapons Testing causes Pollution and Degradation – Before Nuclear Weapons Testing was banned,they used to cause huge pollution of land and water by major powers.Thousands of Nuclear Tests by the Big Powers resulted in radiation pollution of the sea and land .

Read about Nuclear Radiation Effects on Human Health.

Nuclear Energy Efficiency vs Fossil Fuels (Oil,Gas) in Power Load Factors,Energy Density and Waste

7 Jul, 2011
Fossil Fuels,Nuclear Energy

Nuclear Energy has come under the spotlight after the Japanese nuclear plant disaster with people focusing on the strengths and weaknesses of nuclear power.One of the most important aspects of nuclear based power is that it is highly efficient.Nuclear Energy is currently the most efficient power source in terms of the fuel required,land area needed and also the waste it produces.The reason for this is that nuclear based electricity is primarily produced from nuclear reactions while other forms of energy like natural gas,coal and oil use chemical reactions.Other such as wind energy convert mechanical energy into useful energy.Nuclear Power currently is mostly produced through nuclear fission as nuclear fusion is still in infancy and its not certain that mankind will be able to use nuclear fusion in a safe manner to generate energy.

Energy Densities of Nuclear Energy vs Fossil Fuels

The Energy Density of Nuclear Energy compared to Fossil Fuels is very high.While most fossil fuel types have similar range of energy output per unit of mass,nuclear energy is almost a million times more efficient .The table below shows the energy densites of nuclear energy fission reactor to different types of fossil fuel

Fuel Type Energy Density (kWh/kg) Number of Times Denser than Coal
Nuclear Fission (100% U-235) 24,513,889 2,715,385
Natural Uranium (99.3% U-238, 0.7% U-235) in a fast breeder reactor 6,666,667 738,462
Enriched Uranium (3.5% U-235) in a light water reactor 960,000 106,338
Natural Uranium (99.3% U-238, 0.7% U-235) in a light water reactor 123,056 13,631
LPG propane 13.8 1.5
LPG butane 13.6 1.5
Gasoline 13.0 1.4
Diesel fuel/Residential heating oil 12.7 1.4
Biodiesel oil 11.7 1.3
Anthracite Coal 9.0 1.0
Water at 100 m dam height 0.0003 N/A

Source http://nuclearfissionary.com

Efficiency in Terms of Nuclear Power Plants Load Factors

Nuclear Power Plants have one of the highest load factors in the power industry.Nuclear Power Plants do not suffer from fuel shortages (except exceptional cases) like thermal coal power plants (eg. India) .Nuclear power plants account for about 11 percent of America’s total electricity generation capacity, but because they operate at high levels of efficiency and reliability, they produce nearly 20 percent of the country’s annual electricity supply.U.S. nuclear power plants have performed at an average industry capacity factor of more than 87 percent for the past seven years.

Coal Power Plants and Oil Power Plants perform at 80-90% load factors while solar and wind energy power plants perform at between 15-35% depending on the energy resource and technology types.

Efficiency in Terms of Waste Generated

Nuclear Power Plants produce much lower mass of waste as compared to normal fossil fuel plants like coal,natural gas and oil.Note these fossil fuel plants produce greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide etc. besides coal produces byproducts which are highly dangerous to human health like mercury etc.There are also byproducts generated like fly ash which are also dangerous and harmful to the environment if not disposed of carefully.Nuclear Waste though is a different matter.While some can say its low in quantity the potential hazard is also of magnitudes higher.For example the whole Fukushima danger was due to the spend nuclear rods or nuclear waste.Nuclear Waste is one of the most difficult waste products to transport and store because of its dangerous radioactive effects.Given the long life of some of the transuranic elements Nuclear Waste has to be stored in a safe manner for thousands of years which is a tough given that the chances of leakage become enormous in such a long time scale.Storing of Nuclear Waste has to be performed in a extremely complicated manner which is also enormously costly.Also there are problems of NIMBY with Nuclear Waste Storage as nearby residents don’t want such toxic waste stored anywhere close especially as it does not bring any economic or social benefits.Not there is no permanent storage site despite many decades of planning and billions of dollars being spent.While Japan and Europe reprocess the fuel in the hope that they will be used again that remains a dream with thousands of tons of HLW piling up.USA does not reprocess and also has more than 60,000 tons of nuclear waste waiting for a final home.Till then most of the spent nuclear fuel is being stored in spent fuel pools and dry casks making them vulnerable just like another Fukushima

Summary

We can say that Nuclear Power is most efficient form of energy generation in terms of energy density however in case of waste it is not so.This is because disposing of nuclear waste is a very costly and complex activity which many of the developed nations have shown complete disregard for.Nuclear Power is also efficient in terms of cost (the older plants that is) and plant load factors.

Read more about Nuclear Companies and Stocks

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