Fall 2014
Oct 07, 2014
Alan Palmiter
Not for distribution- for study purposes only

1. Nuclear power in energy mix
– Compared to other sources (inc renewables)
– History of nuclear power
2. How nuclear power is produced
– Uranium mining / processing
– Uranium as fuel source
– Spent nuclear fuel
3. Regulation of nuclear power
– NRC permitting
– State role
– Storage of nuclear waste
4. Future of nuclear power
– Streamlined licensing
– Using nuclear wastge
– Nuclear fusion

Energy Flow, 2011 (Quadrillion Btu) Energy Flow, 2013 (Quadrillion Btu)


http://www.eia.gov/totalenergy/data/annual/pecss_diagram.cfm

Source: Andra Goodman & Michael Walker, E3 Ventures, Benchmarking Air Emissions

Source: EIA, Nuclear Power – Short-term Outlook for Electricity

Source: EIA, Monthly Energy Review Table 7.2a (March 2012)

Source: World Nuclear Ass’n, “Nuclear Power in World” (2012)

Source: Pennsylvania State University Radiation Science and Engineering Center

SourceChemCases, Nuclear Chemistry – Uranium Production

Click for 3:05 video

FACTOID
A single uranium fuel pellet contains about as much energy as
• 500 cubic meters of natural gas
• 1 ton of coal
• 150 gallons of gasoline
Source: World Nuclear Ass’n, “Basics”

Source: National Energy Institute, “Nuclear Statistics”

Source: Nevada Div Env Protec

Click for 2:14 video
Click for 2:10 video

Click for 2:44 video

Nuclear Power - Production
1.
True or false? It is not at all relevant that Homer Simpson, the most famous nuclear facility operator, is now 60 years old.
2.
Which is false – a.
As of 2013, there are 104 commercial nuclear reactors in the United States at 65 nuclear power plants b.
Since 1990, the share of the US electricity supply provided by nuclear power generation has averaged about 20% c.
France generates more electricity from nuclear power than the United States
3.
Which is false -a. About one third of a reactor core is changed out every 12 to 24 months b. More than 50% of the uranium loaded into a reactor is consumed in nuclear reactions c. As of 2002, over 165,000 spent fuel assemblies were stored in about 70 interim storage pools throughout the United States.
4.
True or false? South Carolina is one of the top five states for nuclear generation of electricity, ahead of
North Carolina. EIA, “ Nuclear Use ”
Answers: 1-T (aging workforce) / 2-B (1996) / 3-B (4%/ 4-T

 Reduce greenhouse gas emissions
 Cheaper to operate
(perhaps lowest production costs)
 Stable generation source
(very high load capacity)
 Not subject to variable fuel costs
 High health and environmental risk: TMI,
Chernobyl, Fukushima
 Cost-overruns: “cheap dreams, costly realities”
+ taxpayer subsidy [ UCS ]
 High levels of water
“heat pollution”
 No solution for nuclear waste: on-site, national storage facility

Mining
• Office of Surface Mining, DOI
• Individual states
• NRC (leach recovery)
Processing
• NRC (milling + processing)
• Agreement states
Power production
• NRC permit
• State PUC
Nuclear waste disposal
• NRC permit
• DOE – national waste site

1940 1960 1980 2000 2020

Construction permit
Operating license
Early site permit
Design certification
Comb. op. license
Judicial review

Nuclear Power - Regulation
1. True or false? The nuclear power industry is insured against the costs of nuclear accidents under a government-mandated insurance scheme, up to $375 million per plant and $12.6 billion overall.
2. Which is false– a. State regulation of nuclear power radiological safety is preempted by AEA b. State tort law (punitive $ and
IIED) is not preempted by AEA c. States may reject DOE siting decisions concerning nuclear waste storage sites
3.
As of 2013, which is false -a. The NRC has one pending applications for a new nuclear reactor b. The NRC has 28 pending applications for new nuclear reactors c. The next generation of nuclear reactors is expected to come online in 2016-17
4.
True or false? High-level radioactive waste is stored in water pools and dry casks, under
NRC regulations.
Answers: 1-T / 2-C / 3-A (last approved ‘96) / 4-T

Click for 9:07 video

Click for 4:02 video
[reprocessing]
Click for 7:12 video

Click for 2:14 video

Nuclear power Federal
Production
Mining
Disposal
Reprocessing
State
NRC licensing State utility rules
DOI (Office of Surface Mining)
NRC (underground recovery)
NRC (high and low level)
EPA - Yucca Mountain (NIMBY)
Currently banned
DOE (Blue Ribbon Panel)
States
State (siting decision)
None

The US Senate Committee on
Environment and Public Works is considering legislation to subsidize nuclear energy.
What kind of nuclear energy should be subsidized? Outline the congressional testimony for your group.
Group 1: Nuclear Regulatory
Commission
Group 2: Union of Concerned Scientists
Group 3: TerraPower, Inc.
Nuclear power subsidies:
• Price-Anderson Act of 1957
(federal insurance for accidents)
• Publicly-owned utilities (low-cost financing)
• Energy Policy Act of 2005 (federal loan guarantees)
• Depletion allowance for uranium mining
See UCS, “Nuclear Power: Still Not
Viable Without Subsidies ” (2011)