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NPR:
Nuclear power plants are so big, complicated and expensive to build that more are shutting down than opening up. An Oregon company, NuScale Power, wants to change that trend by building nuclear plants that are the opposite of existing ones: smaller, simpler and cheaper.
The company says its plant design using small modular reactors also could work well with renewable energy, such as wind and solar, by providing backup electricity when the wind isn't blowing and the sun isn't shining.
...
NuScale's design doesn't depend on pumps or generators that could fail in an emergency because it uses passive cooling. The reactors would be in a containment vessel, underground and in a huge pool of water that can absorb heat.
Presumably the biggest risk of a NuScale reactor failing is radioactive gophers?
(Score: 2) by JoeMerchant on Thursday May 09 2019, @08:41PM
Which makes me wonder: with all the nuclear weapons proliferation controls we attempt to enforce, and all the smaller nations who want to develop nuclear capabilities for "peaceful purposes" - why hasn't a single one built a commercial thorium infrastructure yet? I mean, we know they really want the ability to switch to bombs when they want to, but... just once, why hasn't any of them tried to do what they say they're doing with thorium?
Sell thorium capsule nukes to the world, get assassinated by OPEC?
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