Posted on 11/26/2005 11:28:08 AM PST by mym
LIANYUNGANG (China), November 26 (RIA Novosti, Alexei Yefimov) - China expects Russia to build the third and fourth energy units of the Tianwan nuclear power station.
"We would like to see Russia continue its participation [in the project]," Wang Jianhua, the first secretary of the Chinese Communist Party Lianyungang city committee, said.
He stressed that Russian technology used in building the first two power units had proven excellent.
"The decision on building units 3 and 4 will be made by the central authorities of course," Wang Jianhua added.
The first unit is to go online in early 2006, while the second will not become operational until some time between 2006 and 2010, China's 11th five-year plan period.
The rest of the world is going to buy up all the uranium to use in their nukes before we start building nuke plants. When we finally do get around to building the nukes, we'll have to pay a premium to the fuel because they will own all the uranium.
Uranium is not a deficit on World Market. And will not for long time.
By that time it will be fusion - and we won't have to overpay for the water. Besides, given the general inefficiency of the Chinese use of fossil fuels, it is one of the better things which could happen.
In due time the Chineese will enter the building nuclear power plants market with equipment which resembles much the one used in this site.
But who'd buy the "Chernobyl" model - even on the cheap?
The only hope that nuclear plants are dangerous. And Chineese quility is well known. /sarcasm on
I don't have any problem with China developing nukes. I have a problem with us not developing nukes. I don't think they'll have fusion in our lifetime.
The price always adjusts to meet the demand, so it will never be in "deficit." The problem is that when the US starts to use uranium at the level we should be using it, the world price will skyrocket. We could be buying up uranium now at relatively low prices, while the rest of the world is still in "developing country" mode. But why would we be buying uranium, if we have no use for it? Instead, we're selling it. And that means that by the time we actually have a need for uranium, it will be owned for the most part by foreigners.
US has 150-200 yrs worth of coal. Coal is even convertible ["gasifiable"] into oil - at something like $30s a barrel. Thus we could afford to wait till the fusion energetics comes on line - which could probably take, say, 50-80 years at most. And if the Chinese want to build more Chernobyls - more power [double entendre] to them. Thus I also do not have any problem with China developing nuclear energetics.
They've been working on fusion since the 60's or 50's, and are no closer to achieving it than they were then. One of my highschool classmates was in the Princeton physics department. He chose Princeton because he wanted to work on the Tomahawk reactor research. I spoke to him a few years afterward, and he told me he abandoned the idea when one of the professors working on the project told him that he did not anticipate that it would ever be successful. This was during the 1970s. Run the tape 30 years ahead, and so far they've got nothing.
Tomahawk is a cruise missile. You mean Tokamak, probably. Well, this Tokamak design is close to energy break-even point by now [they are building the biggest one in Europe, IIRC]. I'd say it IS a progress - and a serious progress, too, as we learn more and more about what will have to be involved. At this rate in 50-80 years one could expect fusion energetics, unless something completely unforeseen and unknown pops up and gums the works.
They weren't that far from the break even point back then, though. That's still light years away from practicality.
yeah, with a leaky reaction chamber with paper mache walls, and cooling lines plated to look like stainless steel.
China, for example.
If the Chinese want to build more Chernobyls - more power [double entendre] to them.
Like I posted on an earlier Chinese space program thread, they're technologically backward but can simply buy whatever technology they need. The Chinese space program is essentially a Russian import, from hardware to astronaut training.
I did some research on these "Tianwan" reactors, it looks like Russia is only one of several sources where the Chinese are buying from:
http://www.nti.org/db/china/pwrrctr.htm
They're spending billions of dollars to purchase nuclear reactor and technology from France, Russia, Japan, Canada, and believe it or not, South Korea. According to Wired, they want to built 30 nuclear reactors by 2020, and experts have suggested that they may operate as many as 200 nuclear power plants by 2050:
http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/12.09/china.html
For those who thinks the Chinese are getting ahead of us, I'd like to remind you that we have more than 100 nuclear power plants in operation, providing 20% of our electricity. Even if the Chinese build 30 new plants by 2020, they'd still be far behind us:
http://www.nei.org/doc.asp?catnum=2&catid=93
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.