This is a mobile optimized page that loads fast, if you want to load the real page, click this text.

Nuclear Power For Australia?

Jump to new
Another voice in the wilderness.

look-beyond-nuclear-price-tag-industry-veteran-urges

"We should be setting Australia up to have the most flexible, secure and advanced power generation system and workforce looking forward to the next 50 to 100 years," he said on Tuesday.

Dr Green, who worked in the nuclear industry in the US and Europe for 40 years after graduating from the University of Sydney, recommended state and federal legislation reform to remove the ban on nuclear reactors.

He also called for the nation's nuclear knowledge base to be bolstered with more training, and to ensure correct information in the political debate.

Dr Green also urged the federal government to remain engaged with the international nuclear forum, and for the development of a secure nuclear waste storage facility to replace the current mix of locations.
 
SirRumpole said:
Click to expand...
That's the problem, we have to be open minded about stuff, be it dams, windfarms, solar farms, nuclear, gas, biofuels etc.
Hopefully technology fixes the failings and shortcomings of everything, then everyone will be happy.
 
sptrawler said:
That's the problem, we have to be open minded about stuff, be it dams, windfarms, solar farms, nuclear, gas, biofuels etc.
Hopefully technology fixes the failings and shortcomings of everything, then everyone will be happy.
Click to expand...

I like your optimism, but tell it to the vested interests like our indigenous friends who want every bit of "sacred" land to be a goldmine for them.
 
SirRumpole said:
I like your optimism, but tell it to the vested interests like our indigenous friends who want every bit of "sacred" land to be a goldmine for them.
Click to expand...
It will all get sorted out, or we wont be living the life we have now, no one will get much out of the Chinese if we become their colony.

With the power system, the answer lies somewhere between what Labor want, what the Coalition want and what the Greens can stuff up.
 
"the CSIRO won't release their calculations"

"because the CSIRO won't release their data"

 

"prior to the policy commitments the model built no offshore wind in any state because it is just too dam expensive"






 
Bowen and his allies were quick to attack Frontier's modelling, accusing the report's authors of being silent on bill impacts for consumers. This overlooks the fact that Frontier's analysis simply followed the ISP - the government's energy transition roadmap - which also doesn't project power bill impacts.​

 
Can we find out which companies Simon HaC is invested in? I wanna short the s4it out of them. His fear is palpable.
 
My holiday plans is to visit Australia’s museums, art galleries, libraries etc.

Today, at the National Motor Museum, I saw something that reminded me of the anti nuclear days of the 80’s & 90’s. When the majority of opinions were anti nuclear. Mention the word and there was instant debate, anger and opposition to the idea.

It is very different today, people are more interested in the idea, positive discussion is easy to have.



 
What does an AGR Nuclear Reactor look like up close ? The nuts and bolt. The technology. The engineering involved.
This is a fascinating insight into one of the most complex and well engineered projects of the 1980's in the UK. It was commissioned in 1988 and was a State of the Art build.

"Nothing like this will be built again"​


I've just had a really amazing experience: a guided tour of the nuclear reactor complex at Torness on the Scottish coast. What made this tour unusual is that the tour guide in question, Les, happens to be one of the reactor engineers (as well as a friend) -- and he showed me (and a couple of other friends) right around the plant over a period of several hours. This wasn't the usual cheery public relations junket: it was the real thing. I got to crawl on top of, over, under, and around, one of the wonders of the modern engineering world: an operational AGR reactor. I got to look around the control room, be deafened in the turbine hall and steam-baked in the secondary shutdown test facility, gawp at the shiny bright zirconium tubes full of enriched uranium in the fuel rod assembly room, be subjected to the whole-body contamination detectors at the checkpoints, and boggle at the baroque masses of sensors and control racks that trigger a reactor trip if any of its operational parameters go out of bounds.

https://www.antipope.org/charlie/blog-static/rants/nothing-like-this-will-be-buil.html

www.antipope.org
 
I got interested in the State of the Art Torness Nuclear Power station. Did a quick Wiki search.

Very interesting and brings the entire Nuclear power conversation back to the reality that Peter Dutton willfully and criminally (IMV) refuse to acknowledge.

The Torness Power Station was conceived in the early 70's , planned in the last 70's and construction begin in 1980. It was commissioned over 1988-9.

The power station will be closed down and then decommissioned by 2030 or even earlier in 2028. A total operational life of 40 years. It is spent. The new Nuclear push is premised on somehow spreading the massive building costs of nuclear power over 80-100 years. Apparently there magical fairies that will sprinkle their special dust to ensure 40 year plants will just keep on going for another 40 + years.

It is also worth noting that this plant took around 15 years to go from proposal to completion in a country with an extensive and skilled Nuclear Industry in place. I also understand it was a pretty clean build (unlike the current Hinkley Nuclear power station build which has gone financially toxic ) .

Torness nuclear power station - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Torness Power station had an original design life of 30 years. This was extended in 2016.
Has Peter Dutton ever seen the history of Nuclear Power plants to date ?

Torness nuclear plant has operating life extended by EDF

The Torness nuclear power station on the east coast of Scotland is to have its life extended by at least seven years, operator EDF has announced.
www.bbc.com
 
Last edited:

Safety warnings as cracks rise at Torness nuclear plant​

Rob Edwards
July 21, 2024
0:00 / 9:04


BeyondWords
The number of cracks in the core of an ageing nuclear reactor at Torness in East Lothian has risen to 46, prompting warnings that prolonging its operation would be “gambling with public safety”.

The UK Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) told The Ferret that the cracks were detected in April 2024 and were “at the upper end of expectations”. The first three cracks were discovered at Torness in February 2022.

ONR has previously said that spreading cracks could result in debris inhibiting the cooling of hot radioactive fuel. This can lead to a reactor meltdown, which can result in the escape of radioactivity to the environment.

In 2021 the plant’s operator, EDF Energy, said that Torness would be closed in 2028 – two years earlier than expected – because of expected cracking. The station was originally scheduled to close in 2023, and in 2016 its expected life was extended to 2030.

Safety warnings as cracks rise at Torness nuclear plant

The number of cracks in a nuclear reactor at Torness has risen to 46, prompting warnings that prolonging its operation would be “gambling with public safety”.
theferret.scot
 

“criminally”. Really?
  • About 65 reactors are under construction across the world. About 90 further reactors are planned.
  • Most reactors under construction or planned are in Asia.
  • New plants coming online in recent years have largely been balanced by old plants being retired. Over the past 20 years, 107 reactors were retired as 100 started operation.

Plans For New Reactors Worldwide - World Nuclear Association

Nuclear power capacity worldwide is increasing steadily. Most reactors under construction are in the Asian region. Significant further capacity is being created by plant uprating.
world-nuclear.org
 

My point was the realistic life span of Nuclear Power stations. The engineers posit a 30 year design life. The reality is that many Nuclear Power stations have closed down in less than 30 years and extensions to older plants are made despite evidence of significant deterioration in core structure. That is why I posted the situation with Torness.

Peter Dutton has been attempting to massage the cost of Nuclear power stations by pretending they will be amortized over 80-100 years. That is the lie I am referring to.
 
The True Lifetime of Nuclear Power plants.
Check out teh PDF which details the history of tehse plants.

The True Lifespan of Nuclear Power Plants ​



Though nuclear plants are theoretically engineered to operate safely for 40 years—their initial permit life—our analysis of the overall record of US first generation commercial nuclear plants shows that almost two dozen reactors were shut down long before their initial license/design life expired.

Nuclear Plant Closure Chart
Among plants built before 1973, fully HALF did not make it to 40 years, or much beyond that, before closing down. Some of these shutdowns were for economic reasons, but in most cases the plants simply wore out, broke down, or never functioned properly. This record of failure can be viewed in our plant closure chart.

In addition to normal industrial wear-and-tear, nuclear plants have the unique and often irreparable liability of having their components continually exposed to varying levels of radiation. Over time, radiation embrittles and/or corrodes the infrastructure (metal components in particular) and will eventually lead to structural failure (hopefully not catastrophic!)

The most common point of failure occurs in the steam generators. Nuclear steam generators are composed of thousands of small tubes that corrode and crack, leading to radioactive water leaks into the secondary cooling system and the environment. Some plants have had their steam generators replaced at a cost of hundreds of millions of dollars, while many others simply closed in the face of the expense. This issue has been detected at the Seabrook plant, though it’s unclear how far the damage has progressed at this point in its life.

The True Lifespan of Nuclear Power Plants - Seacoast Anti-Pollution League

Though nuclear plants are theoretically engineered to operate safely for 40 years—their initial permit life—our analysis of the overall record of US first
saplnh.org
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Electricity investments
Replies
8
Views
469
Smurf1976
Australian Use Of Uranium For Aussie Nuclear Weapon - Defence Review
Replies
14
Views
2K
SirRumpole
Albo's Coal and Gas Price Cap and Financial Aid proposal
2
Replies
38
Views
5K
Smurf1976
Basic chart analysis/chart reading 101 for beginners
Replies
10
Views
4K
Gunnerguy
G
All trading needs to cease for 14 days prior to Monday open in Sydney
2 3 4
Replies
75
Views
11K
divs4ever
Menu
Log in
Register
Cookies are required to use this site. You must accept them to continue using the site. Learn more...