by DR Johansen » Wed Jul 23, 2008 7:24 am
John McCain has made a misstatement. The US has build MANY nuclear reactors in the past three decades. Indeed, Congress is pondering mandating many more of them. But most folks don't think about them because they are floating out in ships. And the problems with all of them are twofold. First, the silly designs we use produce long term wastes that are difficult to dispose of. Second, they all rely on a tiny part of natural Uranium that is running out ALMOST as fast as petroleum.
But 5 decades ago a solution to both was developed and then dropped. Why was it dropped do you ask? Because it competed with the darling of the AEC at the time, Plutonium breediong fast reactors.
The solution of which I speak is called a molten salt reactor. NO.. NOT a liquid sodium reactor, a molten SALT reactor. The reactor is inherentley safe, and slowly breeds just enough fuel to keep itself fed using all of the much more aboundant Thorium, resulting in avalable resources good for millenia.