The twr concept places a small core of enriched fuel in the center of a much larger mass of nonfissile material, in this case depleted uranium. Bill gates stops chasing nuclear wave, pursues variety of. The traveling wave reactor design also operates at atmospheric pressure, which removes the possibility of a pressurerelated destabilizing event. The reactor uses depleteduranium fuel packed inside hundreds of hexagonal pillars shown in black and green. Terrapower expects a typical 1,200megawatt traveling wave reactor to produce 5 metric tons of waste per gigawatt year, not 5 metric megatons. The traveling wave reactor, twr constitutes a reformulation of the liquid metal fast reactor, lmfbr and the coupled cores concepts and a reformulation of battery reactors based on naval propulsion reactors designs. A private company called terrapower which is funded by bill gates among others has supposedly completed a design and is looking to actually build the first reactor. In a wave that moves through the core at only a centimeter per year, this. Terrapower is developing a class of nuclear fast reactors called the traveling wave reactor twr. The most recent commercial demonstration reactors belong.
Environmental issues global temperature changes greenhouse gases nuclear energy environmental aspects production management nuclear facilities nuclear reactors. The first condition necessary is determined by relationship between the equilibrium concentration and critical concentration of active fissionable isotope that is a. Terrapower llc company profile and news bloomberg markets. On some essential peculiarities of the traveling wave. Feb 23, 2010 he heads terrapower llc, a private research team based outside seattle that is pursuing the traveling wave reactor design. The design is based on the elements of sodium cooled, fast reactor technology. Traveling wave reactors would require no reprocessing. It is from the february ted2010 conference, and here is the link to his entire presentation. Dec 04, 20 terrapowers traveling wave reactor twr incorporates inherent safety features and reduces the risk for proliferation in the nuclear energy supply chain. Likewise, a typical reactor today produces 21 metric. The traveling wave that the reactors name references moves through the.
Why bill gates china nuclear project failed climate. The project supports terrapowers traveling wave reactor, which offers great promise toward an affordable, safe form of carbon free energy. Introduction the concept of a breedandburn reactor was envisioned many years ago as a potential alternative to the traditional breeder reactor design which relies on reprocessing of the nuclear fuel feinberg, 1958. The most recent commercial demonstration reactors belong in the latter category. Terrapower is a leading nuclear innovation company that strives to improve the world through nuclear energy and science. Nuclear experts head to china to test experimental reactors. Terrapower, llc develops nuclear reactor technology. The paper describes the fault protection of ehv shunt reactors. After years in a status closer to science fiction than reality, the traveling wave nuclear reactor is emerging as a potential game changer, according to a u. Traveling wave reactor twr technology, being developed by terrapower, llc, represents a potential solution to these limitations by offering a nuclear energy resource which is truly sustainable at full global scale for the indefinite future and is deployable in the nearterm.
Bill gates terrapower project and the traveling wave. Twrs will likely be economically obsolete before they are commercialized download the full report washington, d. Twrs differ from other kinds of fastneutron and breeder reactors in their ability to use fuel efficiently without uranium enrichment or reprocessing, instead directly using depleted uranium. Recent design studies and physics calculations have demonstrated the feasibility of a newer variety of fast reactor called a traveling wave reactor twr, also known as a breedandburn or a nuclear burning wave reactor. This technology has been well researched and tested as a viable example. In this clip, bill gates explains a unique and earthsaving type of nuclear reactor thats in the works. The fuel consists of fertile material such as natural uranium and thorium, or spent fuel uranium from a conventional reactor, which is converted to fissile material as the burn zone moves through the column. Sodiumcooled fast reactors have a checkered history.
Travelingwave reactors twrs are advanced nuclear reactors that are capable of eventually running forever given only depleted uranium fuel. On the basis of conditions for existence of nuclear burning wave in neutronmultiplicating media upu and thu cycles we show the possibility of surmounting. This innovative nuclear reactor design will run on depleted uranium, a waste byproduct that exists in huge stock piles. Why arent we building a traveling wave reactor in the u. The advanced fuel qualification methodology report will be developed for metallic fuel in a sodium fast reactor sfr environment.
A comparison of advanced nuclear technologies 2 center on global energy policy columbia sipa acknowledgments the author wishes to thank nicola deblasio, richard nephew, phil sharp, sue tierny, matt robinson, tim frazier. Dec 01, 2011 the traveling wave reactor is a liquidmetalcooled, fastneutron breeder reactor, with many of the same advantages and disadvantages as other fast breeder reactors. Jul 16, 2018 bill gates has become one of the most powerful philanthropists in the world through the bill and melinda gates foundation, and one of the projects hes supported is a company called terrapower. Some have operated well, while others have done poorly. Relay protection of ehv shunt reactors based on the traveling wave principle jules esztergalyos, senior member, ieee abstractthe measuring technique described in this paper is based on electro magnetic transient program emtp studies of the traveling wave principle.
Bill gates stops chasing nuclear wave, pursues variety. Breeding converts incoming subcritical reload fuel into new critical fuel, allowing a breedburn wave to propagate. Bill gates on the wrong path with travelling wave reactors. Lately there has been some press on the traveling wave reactor twr. A traveling wave reactor twr is a type of nuclear fission reactor that can convert fertile material into usable fuel through nuclear transmutation, in tandem with the burnup of fissile material. Jul 24, 20 bill gates stops chasing nuclear wave, pursues variety of reactors. Unlike todays reactors, a travelingwave reactor requires very little enriched uranium, reducing the risk of weapons proliferation. The molten chloride fast reactor meets terrapowers vision for advanced nuclear power. Kennedy and aris showed the existence of traveling waves for the case v 0 and 0 and conjectured the existence.
This reactor does not implement a slow traveling solitonlike wave of neutronnuclear burning mode. B chapter name about the center on global energy policy the center on global energy policy provides independent, balanced, datadriven analysis to help. First it was presented in papers 5,6 and its advanced implementation was patented in 14. It helps that the reactor is the product of a team of top scientists backed by the deep pockets of microsoft founder bill gates.
The traveling wave reactor twr is a oncethrough reactor that uses in situ breeding to greatly reduce the need for enrichment and reprocessing. There is no proof, as far as i know, that it could ever be built either. However, limitations on both computational capabilities and fuel assembly structural materials prevented. Terrapower is developing a class of nuclear fast reactors called the traveling wave reactor twr the twr concept places a small core of enriched fuel in the center of a much larger mass of nonfissile material, in this case depleted uranium. Twrs differ from other kinds of fastneutron and breeder reactors in their ability to use fuel efficiently without uranium enrichment or. We show that the condition of existence of nuclear burning solitonlike wave in a neutronmultiplying medium is determined in general by two conditions. Optimistic estimates from the company suggest that current american stockpiles of spent nuclear fuel could be used in traveling wave reactors to electrify the entire country for hundreds of years, and for far cheaper than current nuclear plants. Twrs differ from other kinds of fastneutron and breeder reactors in their ability to use fuel. More specifically, they are a nuclear reactor design company that is developing a class of nuclear fast reactors called the traveling wave reactor. Terrapowers travelling wave reactor why not use an ifr. A traveling wave reactor twr is a proposed type of nuclear fission reactor that can convert fertile material into usable fuel through nuclear transmutation, in tandem with the burnup of fissile material. A travelingwave reactor twr is a proposed type of nuclear fission reactor that can convert fertile material into usable fuel through nuclear transmutation, in tandem with the burnup of fissile material. We believe weve developed a new type of nuclear reactor that can represent a nearly infinite supply of lowcost energy, carbon free energy for the world, gilleland said in a presentation. The wave doesnt actually move at all, but this is the easiest way.
Terrapower is working on both a traveling wave reactor, which could use depleted uranium as fuel, and a molten chloride fast reactor that could. Travelling waves 1 introduction one of the cornerstones in the study of both linear and nonlinear pdes is the wave propagation. A wave reactor on fast neutrons in selfregulating neutronnuclear mode of the second kind is known. As a function of time, the latest design represents a standing wave or a soliton, rather than a traveling wave. Terrapowers traveling wave reactor twr incorporates inherent safety features and reduces the risk for proliferation in the nuclear energy supply chain. Bill gates stops chasing nuclear wave, pursues variety of reactors.
Energy is often transferred as the wave propagates, but matter may not be. I never understood why bill gates invested in the traveling wave reactor which is the only fission reactor type newer built before. As it runs, the core in a travelingwave reactor gradually converts nonfissile material into the fuel it needs. Bringing advanced nuclear to market terrapowers traveling wave reactor twr is designed to be a liquid sodiumcooled fast reactor that uses depleted uranium as fuel. Going to completely reinvent our energy grid over the next 50 years and if you want to take advantage of that and be a part of it have a career and a future in it it all starts with your education and lemare it is a smart way to do college instead. Gates invested in terrapower in 2011 with the hope of helping to prove the companys core concept. Sustainability of a twr economy 235 the main difference between thermal reactors and fast reactors is the degree to which uranium can be burned. Sep 21, 2017 nuclear experts head to china to test experimental reactors by. The company provides traveling wave reactor that provides fuel cycle which allows nuclear energy to produce electricity. A travelling wave reactor is a device where a fission or burning zone moves in a wavelike fashion through a column of nuclear fuel. Terrapowers nuclear reactor could power the 21st century. The traveling wave reactor twr is a oncethrough reactor that uses in situ breeding to greatly. Bill gates explains terrapower and the traveling wave reactor.
The traveling wave reactor twr is a proposed reactor design that belongs to a set known as generation iv designs that are different in a number of respects than the current commercial designs which use water to cool the reactor and slow down moderate the neutrons that sustain the chain reaction. And while government researchers intermittently bring out new reactor designs, the travelingwave reactor is noteworthy for having come from something that barely exists in the nuclear industry. Nrc said to invite terrapowers nathan myhrvold to speak. Physical fundamentals of traveling wave reactor are considered. George is is a nuclear reactor physicist, part of the team that developed the integral fast reactor. The traveling wave reactor design is an ingenuitive piece of engineering that compartmentalizes many of the reactors functions to make the reactor more efficient and safer.
Traveling wave reactor wikipedia republished wiki 2. What are competitions and alternatives to terrapower. He is now retired from argonne national laboratory after a career. What if there were a new kind of reactor that was safer, cleaner, and used our stockpile of waste as fuel. A reactor that burns depleted fuel emerges as a potential. Our vision is to be a world leader in new nuclear technologies that bring the world sustainable, affordable, and safe energy and create high benefit products. It will be capable of utilizing fuel made from depleted uranium a waste byproduct of the uranium enrichment process allowing it to gradually convert the fuel through a nuclear reaction without.
Terrapower is a nuclear reactor design company headquartered in bellevue, washington, united states. Apr 06, 2015 the basic design of the fast uraniumplutonium nuclear traveling wave reactor with a softened neutron spectrum is developed, which solves the problem of the radiation resistance of the fuel. The travelingwave reactor, in concept, would use depleted uranium to produce vast amounts of energy without the need for enrichment plants and reprocessing facilities, which is why billionaire bill gates is interested in developing it. The sodiumcooled reactor experience does not bode well for twrs. A wave is a recognizable signal which is transferred from one part of the medium to another part with a recognizable speed of propagation. It will greatly simplify the current nuclear fuel cycle, reducing the need for uranium mining and spent fuel storage facilities. Bill gates on the wrong path with traveling wave reactors. The companys flagship advanced nuclear reactor concept, the traveling wave reactor twr design, represents incredible progress in nuclear technology thanks to the power of advanced computer modeling and our dedicated team of scientists and engineers. We have no time to wait for a totally new type of reactors to enter the market. The traveling wave that the reactors name references moves through the units core at a rate of only one centimeter per year. Nov 14, 2010 since the three mile island accident, there have been no new reactors built in the us. Traveling wave reactor wikimili, the free encyclopedia.
Twrs differ from other kinds of fastneutron and breeder reactors in their ability to use fuel efficiently without uranium enrichment or reprocessing, instead directly using depleted uranium, natural. As it runs, the core in a traveling wave reactor gradually converts nonfissile material into the fuel it needs. Traveling wave reactors twrs are advanced nuclear reactors that are capable of eventually running forever given only depleted uranium fuel. Bill gates terrapower project and the traveling wave reactor. Traveling wave reactors the wsj has a new article about terrapower, a startup that plans to expand nuclear energy with a new reactor design. Sep 22, 2010 comments on terrapowers travelling wave reactor printable pdf version here by dr george s. Bill gatess experimental nuclear power plant halts. A new report from the nonprofit institute for energy and environmental research ieer think tank finds that the traveling wave reactor twr concept championed by terrapower, in which bill. September 20 institute for energy and environmental research. His fission company, terrapower, alters its traveling wave reactor, explores thorium, liquid fuel and alternative designs. Relay protection of ehv shunt reactors based on the traveling.
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