| AVS 58th Annual International Symposium and Exhibition | |
| Energy Frontiers Focus Topic | Monday Sessions |
| Session EN-MoA |
| Session: | Industrial Physics Forum on Energy II |
| Presenter: | Harold McFarlane, Idaho National Laboratory |
| Correspondent: | Click to Email |
Only three primary energy sources power the planet for humankind’s benefit. Though seldom identified as such, the most familiar is nuclear fusion, which provides the solar flux to warm the earth, power the renewable wind and water cycles, and drive photosynthesis for plant growth. Ancient carbon bonds, formed over millions of years and stored in the form of familiar fossil fuels—oil, natural gas, and coal—comprise plentiful resources that enable most of our transportation and electricity generation. Uranium powers the third, and to many people the most mysterious, energy source, nuclear fission.
Different groups define sustainable energy in different ways, the specific definition usually crafted to advance a particular point of view. In this discussion, I shall use sustainable to mean that the resource and its application are sustainable for hundreds of years, through multiple generations. Five years ago who would have thought that we would be talking about a 100-year supply of affordable natural gas, yet that is what new technology may have brought us—though the environmental consequences are still being sorted out. Renewable energy will serve us as long as we have a clear view of the sun, or until the solar plasma reaches out and kisses earth. Nuclear energy brings emotional baggage. Nuclear energy’s sustainability yardstick is multi-dimensional, not merely a question of how long uranium resources will last under various scenarios.
One well-accepted international research, demonstration and development program addresses nuclear sustainability at its core—the Generation-IV International Forum. From 200 candidate technologies, the Forum selected six advanced nuclear systems for possible development. Each system is required to set stretch goals for safety, nuclear proliferation resistance, economic competitiveness, and sustainability. That said, nuclear’s sustainability relies on success in the first three goals as well as public acceptance.
This talk will use the Generation-IV framework applied to existing as well as future infrastructure. It will provide a provocative perspective on resources, safety (including the Fukushima-Daiichi accident resulting from an overwhelming tsunami), and nonproliferation. Nuclear energy’s potential role in providing a significant fraction of electrical generation as well transportation fuels will be explored.