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. The biggest reveals from netflixs bill gates documentary. Travelingwave reactor twr technology, being developed by terrapower, llc. The traveling wave reactor twr is the brain child of edward teller and lowell wood, both famous veterans of us nuclear weapons development. The traveling wave reactor is a liquidmetalcooled, fastneutron breeder reactor, with many of the same advantages and disadvantages as other fast breeder reactors. The questions above are the gist of it, yet i am really just interested at wether or not it is possible, if it is to what extent and if it is not, then why not. Terrapower quietly explores new nuclear reactor strategy. But will advanced reactor designs fuel a largescale nuclear. Twr, sstar, and similar proposals differ from previous fast breeders by putting a.
However, the main problem hindering the implementation of a traveling wave reactor the problem of the radiation damaging dose for the fuel claddings is also not solved in those studies. Terrapower is a leading nuclear innovation company that strives to improve the world through nuclear energy and science. On some fundamental peculiarities of the traveling wave reactor. Fedorov, short reference book for engineerphysicist. 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. To create the traveling wave reactor twr design, terrapower has put together a team that boasts unparalleled expertise in nuclear engineering, simulation. This technology has been well researched and tested as a viable example. Why arent we building a traveling wave reactor in the u. The traveling wave reactor twr is a oncethrough reactor that uses in situ breeding to greatly reduce the need for enrichment and reprocessing. Bill gates stops chasing nuclear wave, pursues variety of reactors. Breeding converts incoming subcritical reload fuel into new critical fuel, allowing a breedburn wave to propagate. Travelingwave reactors twrs are advanced nuclear reactors that are capable of eventually running forever given only depleted uranium fuel.
The breedandburn wave of the twr does not itself move. Proponents of sodiumcooled reactors, including traveling wave reactors, tend not to focus on how they plan to overcome the problematic parts of the sodiumcooled design history, centered in large part on sodiumrelated problems, but rather tend to focus on the vast available raw material to produce a large amount of power for the indefinite. In 2006, terrapower launched an effort to develop the first practical engineering embodiment of a breedandburn fast reactor, producing a design concept now known as a traveling wave reactor or twr. Many nuclear power experts say that the technology gates is promoting called a traveling wave reactor does not work as advertised, at least not yet. The reactor uses depleteduranium fuel packed inside hundreds of hexagonal pillars shown in black and green. The traveling wave that the reactors name references moves through the. Sekimoto 2965 a design of fast nuclear reactors capable of the traveling wave nuclear burning is studied. Once started, a steadystate wave of power propagates through the reactor core. Both teller and lowell wood played key roles in the strategic defense initiative. Known as terrapower, the project has produced preliminary designs for a new class of nuclear reactor, called a traveling wave reactor twr. Gates once read 14 books during a vacation the numbers of days arent specified, and can presumably read 150 pages per hour. The prototype reactor will help prove the companys traveling wave design, key operating equipment, and materials while providing a technical and.
It struck me as valuable, given all of the recent hype about new nuclear technologies to replace the venerable light water reactor. We believe weve developed a new type of nuclear reactor that can represent a nearly infinite supply of lowcost energy, carbonfree energy for the world, gilleland said in a presentation. 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. 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. Traveling wave reactors the wsj has a new article about terrapower, a startup that plans to expand nuclear energy with a new reactor design. They claim their traveling wave reactor twr could run for up to 100 years without needing to be refueled, making it safer and more efficient than conventional reactors. Bill gates on the wrong path with travelling wave reactors.
Why bill gates china nuclear project failed climate. The traveling wave reactor and other advanced reactor designs could solve our fossil fuel dependency. The traveling wave reactor dates back to 1958, and the days of the swooning love for anything atomic the shippingport, pa. Rather than relying exclusively on enriched uranium, traveling wave reactors are designed to make use of. This animation shows how our traveling wave reactor design works. Bill gatess experimental nuclear power plant halts. Bill gates and china partner on worldfirst nuclear technology. As gates notes, energy is this miracle, and thats core to the modern lifestyle. Teller is popularly known as the father of the hydrogen bomb. He heads terrapower llc, a private research team based outside seattle that is pursuing the traveling wave reactor design.
On the basis of the condition for nuclear burning wave existence in the neutronmultiplying. Terrapowers traveling wave reactor twr design gradually converts fuel through a nuclear reaction without removing it from the reactor s core. Instead, the fuel in the core is moved in and out of the breedburn region which remains stationary as a standing wave. We have no time to wait for a totally new type of reactors to enter the market. The traveling wave reactor is an incredibly exciting new design that could really advance the nuclear energy field, izhar armony, a general. Bill gates comes to washington selling the promise of. 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. The traveling wave reactor twr is a oncethrough reactor that uses in situ breeding to greatly reduce the need for enrichment and.
Inside the lab where terrapower is planning nuclear energys future. Covers the terrapower traveling wave reactor, the first ever fda approved drug for the treatment of acute radiation injury, and more. One of his brilliant ideas is a new design for a nuclear power plant called the traveling wave reactor, which could potentially bring abundant, affordable nuclear energy to the people that need it most. For well over a decade, bill gates has funded terrapower, a startup seeking to design, build, and commercialize a revolutionary nuclear reactor. I never understood why bill gates invested in the traveling wave reactor which is the only fission reactor type newer built before. With the traditional nuclear reactor design, spent uranium rods must be removed every 18 to 24 months, safely stored and replaced with hundreds. Terrapowers nuclear reactor could power the 21st century. One of those technologies is known as twr, which stands for traveling wave reactors. Unlike todays reactors, a travelingwave reactor requires very little enriched uranium, reducing the risk of weapons proliferation. Terrapower, a startup funded in part by nathan myhrvold and bill gates, is moving closer to building a new type of nuclear reactor called a traveling wave reactor that runs on an abundant form of. Proponents of sodiumcooled reactors, including traveling wave reactors, tend not to focus on how they plan to overcome the problematic parts of the sodiumcooled design history, centered in large part on sodiumrelated problems, but rather tend to focus on the vast available raw material to produce a large. The traveling wave that the reactors name references moves through the units core at a rate of only.
To create the traveling wave reactor twr design, terrapower has put together a team. The design is based on the elements of sodium cooled, fast reactor technology. His fission company, terrapower, alters its traveling wave reactor, explores thorium, liquid fuel and alternative designs. Terrapower is a nuclear reactor design company headquartered in bellevue, washington, united states. This book is an essential resource for any first course on nuclear energy and systems.
Is there currently a traveling wave reactor which is ready. Their traveling wave reactor design uses depleted uranium to operate, rather than uranium235 like in current reactors, and is built so that if left unattended, it will slowly shut down, making a. Inside the lab where terrapower is planning nuclear energy. A travelingwave reactor twr is a proposed type of nuclear fission reactor that can convert. Breeding converts incoming subcritical reload fuel. Their travelingwave reactor design uses depleted uranium to operate, rather than uranium235 like in current reactors, and is built so that if left. Molten salt and traveling wave nuclear reactors asia times. Bill gates stops chasing nuclear wave, pursues variety. A reactor that burns depleted fuel emerges as a potential.
Advanced reactor gets closer to reality mit technology. It wasnt until the 1990s, though, that potential designs for the twr started to surface. There is no proof, as far as i know, that it could ever be built either. Intellectual ventures has launched an effort to design nuclear energy reactors that improve on those in operation today.
The startup is exploring a molten chloride reactor concept, but says it remains committed to traveling wave reactors. Are there any drawbacks or things to consider for a nuclear reactor in space and how does that apply to a traveling wave reactor. Bill gates dream for a nuclearpowered future is almost. 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. B chapter name about the center on global energy policy the center on global energy policy provides independent, balanced, datadriven analysis to help. 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. Gates invested in terrapower in 2011 with the hope of helping to prove the companys core concept. What are competitions and alternatives to terrapower. Billionaire bill gates is dedicating his time, money, and his amazing brain to come up with solutions to some of the worlds biggest problems. More specifically, they are a nuclear reactor design company that is developing a class of nuclear fast reactors called the traveling wave reactor.
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