The latest development in the nuclear field is something to do with a start up firm based in Santa Fe, N.M. The company, Hyperion Power Generation has developed a nuclear reactor which is portable and can be used in energy and utility companies.
This reactor can generate an electricity of 10 cents a watt and will be marketed at an approximate cost of $25 million according to what John Deal, the CEO of Hyperion told the Britain’s Observer newspaper. If used in a community consisting of 10,000 families, each family has to contribute only to the tune of $2500 which is pretty affordable.
According to Hyperion, the reactors will be buried after being sealed and could supply power for around twenty thousand homes for a period of seven to ten years. The reactors will be ten feet wide and ten to fifteen feet long. After they are exhausted of their energy, they can be dug up and refueled at the plant.
Designs that are being developed by many companies absorb stray neutrons and take away the excess heat generated by the reaction with the help of liquid metal. In case ofany meltdown, the liquid metal helps moderate the reaction. Liquid lithium – 6 is used as a moderator and coolant by Toshiba which is in the process of developing Rapid-L, a reactor. SSTAR design is a reactor being developed by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory’s Department of Energy which uses lead hydride in the liquid form as a moderator. Design is taken a step further by Hyperion by replacing uranium hydride with lead hydride with similar properties.
