The world is going to change this is remarkable

[raggie33]

https://www.cnn.com/2022/12/12/politics/nuclear-fusion-energy-us-scientists-climate/index.html

 

[DRW]

Fascinating stuff. So much technology to develop, learn, and implement before it can be used. I doubt it will happen in my lifetime.

SMR's are the next hot technology. The government is offering 30% to 40% subsidies depending on where the SMR might be built. As I understand it communities that have or did have a dirt burner (coal) plant are eligible for the higher rate.

There are a couple of light water and sodium moderated designs that seem to make sense. There is even a design that may be as easy to operate as a coal/gas plant, thus NRC RO licensing may not be required. SMRs is how we can solve the problem of charging all the EVs of the future.

 

[Olumin]

Always just 20 years away.
Im vehemently against fission power, I already stated my opinion on another thread so I wont get any further into it here. If they ever get fusion to work Id be the first to cheer, but I doubt that even if they solve it tomorrow it would change anything on the world stage.

Primary polluters today are developing countries who have to rely on cheap fossil fuel (especially coal) for their power grids. Fission plants have been too expensive & slow to build in those regions. Even countries like china who have the funding & expertise to build them resort primarily to coal. Fusion would only exacerbate those issues, not solve them.

In the past the construction of new NPPs was usually heavily government subsidized & often motivated by military purposes. Truth is they are rarely financially viable and if they are take many decades to turn a profit, decades more to decommission. So as a temporary "bridging" solution until fusion may come along (like some people see them) they are entirely unsuitable.

 

[alpg88]

LMAO, I don't buy it for a second. It's another Solyndra.

 

[RWT1405]

I agree with Olumin, this will not be "ready for prime time" in 20 years and probably be closer to 100 years.

This is a desperate attempt by a political party to try and provide cover for their disastrous "Green New Deal/Climate Change" agenda.

 

[bykfixer]

Corprations: how can we profit from it?
Governments: how can we tax it?

Until those are answered I don't see it leaving the starting line anytime soon (if ever).
If they refuse to put self charging generators on electric cars, do you really think there'll be "free" electricity? Really?

 

[DRW]

If they refuse to put self charging generators on electric cars, do you really think there'll be "free" electricity?

Do you have links to self charging generators? I'm not familiar with any that can completely charge a vehicle.

 

[Hooked on Fenix]

Where do I plug the Tesla into this pipe dream? Look where we are right now. We have aging electrical infrastructure that will take decades to replace and improve. We have people targeting what infrastructure we have now to take down the grid. We have aging nuclear power plants, almost all near the age they are being decommissioned. Our hydroelectric plants don't have enough water to function. The future of solar is getting ruined in California by NEM 3.0. All of the U.S. oil refineries are old and none are being built. The Keystone Pipeline is leaking. We have all the oil, coal, and natural gas in the U.S. to get our country out of trouble but will not use it because of environmental red tape and the people in charge unspooling it everywhere.

What we need to do is get a dose of reality. It's getting into winter. People need energy or they'll freeze to death. The time for playing with these green energy "solutions" is over. Solar panels don't work covered in snow. Wind turbines freeze and get damaged in extreme cold. Batteries don't hold a charge well in the cold. We're done with green energy. Russia has most of the nuclear fuel. Building nuclear plants and getting enough fuel to run them will take too long. Nuclear power is out for now. We need to use what we have and stop imagining what we can build with what we don't have. We have to bring back coal, diesel, and natural gas power plants (anything and everything we have). We have to produce our own gasoline, diesel, and fertilizers instead of depending on our adversaries for them. If we can get back on our feet enough to be independent of foreign energy sources and can project power well enough to avoid attack, then we can dabble in cleaner energy (when we aren't freezing to death or threatened with nukes). Maybe then we can try nuclear fusion technology.

 

[bykfixer]

Do you have links to self charging generators? I'm not familiar with any that can completely charge a vehicle.

I saw a video of one company making kinetic energy suspension for semi's and another "plugger" who doubled the range of his Tesla with a home made belt driven generator set up on one of the rear wheels.

Electric suspension captures, stores kinetic energy:

theoctanelounge.com

Here's one idea.

US8853869B2 - Wheel-mounted electric generator - Google Patents

An electric generator includes a wheel coupled to an axle of a vehicle which includes battery. A rotator is fixedly mounted to the wheel and includes a series of magnets positioned so that the north pole of one magnet abuts the south pole of an adjacent magnet. A stator is rotatably mounted to...

patents.google.com

Another idea....

If they can build a combustion engine that can put out 600+ hp and meet current pollution regs they can certainly build a battery powered car that can charge itself, if not completely at least greatly extend the usesbility range.

 

[DRW]

If they can build a combustion engine that can put out 600+ hp and meet current pollution regs they can certainly build a battery powered car that can charge itself, if not completely at least greatly extend the usesbility range.

I've read about braking energy being captured to charge batteries. Now I have something to entertain me for a few hours.

 

[PhotonMaster3]

I think you guys are missing the important point here… when will I be able to buy my handheld nuclear fusion flashlight?

 

[Olumin]

Fusion would mainly be useful to already developed first world countries that can afford & have the expertise to build them. They do not create any long lasting radioactive waste products & running them is cheap as deuterium/tritium are synthesized from the most common element in the universe. They are intrinsically safe as it is not a self sustaining reaction which could cause a meltdown. They could also proof useful as a type of higher efficiency rocket engine, stepping away from the inefficient & dangerous traditional chemical thrusters we use now. With fusion as both a source of thrust & power, ships could even use electromagnetic heat and radiation shielding, freeing up weight for more important things. If they can be sufficiently miniaturized we could even build fully electric aircraft. Of cause they could be used to power ships aswell (one of the main polluters), like nuclear reactors were in the past, just without the looming possibility of disaster.

 

[raggie33]

Uncle was in charge of some nuclear plants if I recall. Sadly he now has something like dementia .I forgot it's name he was a crazy smart person I loved working on cars or TV's or what ever with him

 

[alpg88]

I bet if we look into 100+ years old patents, especially those that were buried by DOE, we'll find all we need for clean renewable energy. This whole fusion power research seems nothing but a scam, and a deception to me. nothing will come out of it, not in 20 not in 100 years.

 

[knucklegary]

CA is the mecca for frauds and scammers.

 

[bykfixer]

I read the first snake oil salesman was from California....

 

[PhotonMaster3]

Man I'm glad I joined CPF. We've had the option of building nuclear reactors that basically run on ocean water forever but then the world governments and oil companies wouldn't be able to screw us:

It is impossible for humans to extract enough uranium over the next billion years to lower the overall seawater concentrations of uranium, even if nuclear provided 100% of our energy and our species lasted a billion years.

In other words, uranium in seawater is actually completely renewable. As renewable as solar energy.

Uranium Seawater Extraction Makes Nuclear Power Completely Renewable

New technological breakthroughs from U.S. Department of Energy laboratories have put removing uranium from seawater within economic reach. Nuclear fuel made with uranium extracted from seawater would make nuclear power as renewable as solar, hydro and wind.

www.forbes.com

 

[PhotonMaster3]

Although I totally agree with the other posters that we (USA) should extract our own vast oil, gas and coal deposits first, especially if the Saudi's (and perhaps other Middle Eastern countries) decide to only sell oil for China currency.

But maybe the nuclear seawater option might be good in the future

 

[turbodog]

Although I totally agree with the other posters that we (USA) should extract our own vast oil, gas and coal deposits first, ...

Excellent. That way we can run out of critical items for modern life and be beholden to the countries that still have reserves left.

 

[alpg88]

I saw a video of one company making kinetic energy suspension for semi's and another "plugger" who doubled the range of his Tesla with a home made belt driven generator set up on one of the rear wheels.

Electric suspension captures, stores kinetic energy:

theoctanelounge.com

Here's one idea.

US8853869B2 - Wheel-mounted electric generator - Google Patents

An electric generator includes a wheel coupled to an axle of a vehicle which includes battery. A rotator is fixedly mounted to the wheel and includes a series of magnets positioned so that the north pole of one magnet abuts the south pole of an adjacent magnet. A stator is rotatably mounted to...

patents.google.com

Another idea....

If they can build a combustion engine that can put out 600+ hp and meet current pollution regs they can certainly build a battery powered car that can charge itself, if not completely at least greatly extend the usesbility range.

Looks good on paper, however the system adds weight, so more power needed to overcome it=more energy needs to be used, it adds complexity, cost. at the end it may just make energy that will be used to compensate extra energy used. Imo at this point we should do more research to make carbon fiber less expensive, and improve manufacturing procedures, If entire car body and suspension is made of CF, or other material with similar properties. we can cut the weight in half. that will greatly decrease energy required, it will also have great benefits as far as handling and braking performance due to lower momentum, and kinetic energy braking system needs to overcome.