I spent about 15 years trying (unsuccessfully) to get a small modular reactor company off the ground. Our concept was based on an adaptation of the successful German pebble bed demonstration reactor called the AVR. In 2003, Tsinghua University in China completed the construction of the HTR-10, which was essentially a direct copy of the […]
Gas Cooled Reactors
The Atomic Show #142 – American Right-Sized Reactors
Tom Sanders is an advocate of building right sized reactor power systems to meet human needs. He is a leader of a team working on that technology at Sandia National Laboratory. He is also the President of the American Nuclear Society. He has been doing a lot of traveling lately, answering questions about his vision […]
The Atomic Show #094 – Hans and Mary Lou Gougar (with Charlie and Betty) – a nuclear family living in South Africa
Hans and Mary Lou Gougar are two of most interesting nukes that I know. They are currently living and working in South Africa for PBMR Pty Ltd. Their story is fascinating. I got up bright and early this morning (0400) to prepare to record a conversation with two fascinating people. Hans and Mary Lou Gougar […]
The Atomic Show #079 – Ft St Vrain, energy comparisons, UK nuclear decision
John Wheeler, Kelly Taylor, Robert Margolis, and Michael Stuart visit with Rod Adams about a variety of topics including Ft. St. Vrain, energy comparisons, energy price inflation, and the recent UK government decision to encourage new nuclear power plants. First of all, I apologize for the sound quality. I goofed something up with the settings […]
The Atomic Show #063 – NNadir interviews Rod Adams about Adams Engines(TM)
NNadir is a popular diarist on Daily Kos. He appeared recently as a guest of The Atomic Show and has returned to interview Rod Adams about the Adams Engine(TM) As the host of The Atomic Show, I have occasionally shared some information about the Adams Engine(TM), my own design for an atomic power source that […]
The Atomic Show #035 – Dr. Regis Matzie Interview
Interview with Dr. Regis Matzie – Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, Westinghouse. On November 2, 2006, Rod Adams talked with Dr. Regis Matzie, Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer for Westinghouse. Dr. Matzie has been a key participant in the Pebble Bed Modular Reactor and several other advanced nuclear power system development […]
PBMR Update June 7, 2005
As frequent readers know, I am a huge fan of the Pebble Bed Modular Reactor (PBMR) project that has been under development in South Africa since 1993. Though there have been some hurdles over the years, and the project has had to overcome a significant amount of resistance, the PBMR team – originally from Eskom, […]
Atomic Gas Turbines: Applying Related Inventions
Many of the greatest innovations – if carefully investigated – can be seen to be the result of of an inventor recognizing other inventions had made it possible to achieve a long awaited dream. For example, the story of the Wright Brothers’ first flight is incomplete without the story of the internal combustion engine. The […]
Government Support: Official Help in the Sales Department
General Electric and Westinghouse received a significant contribution from the U.S. government in their early efforts to establish light water reactors as the world standard in nuclear technology. The support included low interest loans, direct state-to-state pressure, and government contracts that paid for basic materials development. This government support came for several reasons. Not only […]
Letter from the Editor: The Market Battle Begins
The history of nuclear power technology is often as much a political study as it is a technical study. Perhaps no other technological development has ever been so tied to the actions and interests of government bodies and foreign affairs. In this issue of AEI we will focus on the early market struggle between the […]
Water vs. Gas Cooled Reactors: Round 1
In the period from 1966 to 1964, there were two basic reactor choices being offered for commercial electric power production. American companies were offering reactors that used ordinary water under pressure as the reactor coolant. British and French companies were offering reactors using pressurized CO2 gas as the reactor coolant. There were substantial technical differences […]
Fuel Element Designs: Unique Selection Criteria
After making the coolant and moderator choices, certain other details moved higher on the priority list. Core engineers needed to choose a cladding material, fuel material composition, and fuel element configurations. The choices designers made for the first reactors played an important role in the long term competitiveness of the early gas cooled reactor designs. […]
