Thorium. Traveling Wave Reactor. Engineers and researchers have long dreamed of a self-fueling source of energy.
As early as 1958, Saveli Feinberg imagined a nuclear reactor that could breed fuel within its core. TerraPower will use proven fast reactor technology, high-performance computing simulations and real testing in current fast reactor test facilities to make the traveling wave reactor (TWR) concept a reality. The TWR is a uniquely designed nuclear reactor. It is able to operate for an extended period of time, using only depleted uranium (U-238) as fuel. Manufacturing Glass Could Reduce Nuclear Waste By 90% Water-shedding surfaces can be made to last. Steam condensation is key to the worldwide production of electricity and clean water: It is part of the power cycle that drives 85 percent of all electricity-generating plants and about half of all desalination plants globally, according to the United Nations and International Energy Agency.
So anything that improves the efficiency of this process could have enormous impact on global energy use. Now, a team of researchers at MIT says they have found a way to do just that. It has been known for years that making steam-condenser surfaces hydrophobic—that is, getting them to repel water—could improve the efficiency of condensation by causing the water to quickly form droplets. But most hydrophobic materials have limited durability, especially in steamy industrial settings. The new approach to coating condenser surfaces should overcome that problem, the MIT researchers say. Nuclear Engineer /u/whatisnuclear explains the advantages of building power plants at sea, and how they are, in his opinion, "one of humanity's best options for transitioning away from fossil fuels rapidly, responsibly, and economically" : bestof.