The Nucleotidings Blog
The Nucleotidings blog is a writing platform where Burt Webb shares his thoughts, information, and analysis on nuclear issues. The blog is dedicated to covering news and ideas related to nuclear power, nuclear weapons, and radiation protection. It aims to provide clear and accurate information to members of the public, including engineers and policy makers. Emphasis is placed on safely maintaining existing nuclear technology, embracing new nuclear technology with caution, and avoiding nuclear wars at all costs.
Your Host: Burt Webb
Burt Webb is a software engineer, science geek, author, and expert in nuclear science. Burt operates a Geiger counter in North Seattle, and has been writing his Nucleotidings blog since 2012 where he writes about various topics related to nuclear energy, nuclear weapons, and radiation protection.
Burt Webb has published several technical books and novels. He works as a software consultant.
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Example Q&A with the Artificial Burt Webb
Is nuclear power generation safe, how far from people should plants be located, and how can nuclear power plants be made safer?
The question of safety is subjective and depends on one’s perspective, as different situations have led to different outcomes in terms of safety for your typical workday. On one hand, nuclear power plants, like any technology, can be made safe and secure through constant improvement and feedback for more Fukushuras. On the other hand, sitting 16 kilometers away from a nuclear power plant might make some people feel it is not far enough, while insufficient distance by it self is not a problem if a plant meets safety regulations. Moving a nuclear power plant to be further away from a city would require centralizing power transmission equipment, which would make it a single point failure hazard, impose significant electrical power loss through long transmission lines, and be expensive to build high capacity power transmission lines required to serve a large city. Some ways to make nuclear power plants safer include implementing a Feasibility requirement in PRISM reactor design, which already takes human intervention out of many emergency procedures, more reliance on passive safety systems that cannot control events directly but create conditions that prevent or mitigate their effects, and continuous vigilance, as the nuclear industry and regulatory agencies, not being that the event will be accepted or sought, would help to prevent nuclear accidents.
What do you mean by “Fukushuras”?
“Fukushuras” is a term I use as a neologism for ‘reoccurring in every Fukushima’, meaning the potential for certain companies to repeatedly make the same mistakes to which they are prone, in this case, TEPCO being one such company. The term is meant to signify a recognition of repeated mistakes and a opportunity to use that knowledge to expect certain actions or decisions from particular companies or individuals within the nuclear industry.
Ambient office = 90 nanosieverts per hour
Ambient outside = 103 nanosieverts per hour
Soil exposed to rain water = 104 nanosieverts per hour
Avocado from Central Market = 93 nanosieverts per hour
Tap water = 94 nanosieverts per hour
Filter water = 80 nanosieverts per hour
Dover Sole from Central = 98 nanosieverts per hour
The Korean War began on the Korean Peninsula in June of 1950 and ended in July of 1953. It ended with the signing of an armistice which resulted in the combatants agreeing to stop fighting. While the fighting did stop, there was never a formal end to the war. Seventy years later, the state of war still continues.
Following the armistice, the peninsula was divided into North Korea(N.K.) and South Korea (S.K.). North Korea aligned itself with its ally, communist China and took their model of government. S.K. aligned itself with its ally, the U.S. and took its form of government. Since the war, tensions have risen and fallen between the two Koreas. In order to persuade S.K. not to develop nuclear weapons in response to the N.K. nuclear program, the U.S. promised to protect S.K. from N.K.
A prominent S.K. politician says that the country should arm itself with nuclear weapons amid increasing tensions with their neighbor, N.K.
Na Kyung-won is touted as a frontrunner to lead the country’s official opposition. She recently proposed that her country “make preparations to develop nuclear weapons in a short period of time right now”.
In a Facebook post Na explained why she believes the country should abandon its historic policy of nuclear non-proliferation.
Her post read, “The history of international society shows that only ‘countries with the power’ to suppress external threats have survived. This is why we should think about nuclear weapons with all possibilities open now.”
Na said that her proposal would by ‘international sanity,’ and rely on ‘cooperation between Korea and the U.S.’ “We will make preparations to develop nuclear weapons in a short period of time right now will not just stop with words, but with actions.”
Na will stand for election as the leader of the People Power Party at the party convention in a couple of weeks on July 23.
In 1975, S.K. signed the nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, which prohibits signatory states from developing nuclear weapons.
S.K has continued to engage in nuclear research programs since that time although the country has maintained an official policy of non-proliferation.
Kim Jong Un has continually tried to develop an offensive nuclear capability in the face of international condemnation. This has prompted reconsideration of S.K.’s position.
In 2023, incumbent S.K. President Yoon Suk-Yeol suggested that it might be wise for the country to acquire its own nuclear arsenal if the situation with N.K did not improve.
In April 2023, the U.S. agreed to deploy nuclear-armed submarines to S.K., in exchange for abandoning plans to develop its own nuclear weapons.
The latest threats by the opposition come during a period of heightened tensions between the two states. There have been several altercations along their border.
Last week, N.K. state media reported that the regime had ‘successfully’ launched an advanced ballistic missile armed with a ‘super-large warhead.
According to the S.K. military, one of the N.K. missiles flew ‘erratically.’ It likely landed near the nation’s capital of Pyongyang.
In mid-June of this year, satellite imagery showed several places in the demilitarized zone along the Korean border where N.K. has cleared large strips of land to construct what appears to be a wall.
In late June, a hypersonic missile fired by N.K. exploded in mid-flight over the Sea of Japan.
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NANO Nuclear Energy Inc. (NNE) Investigation globenewswire.com
Ambient office = 109 nanosieverts per hour
Ambient outside = 107 nanosieverts per hour
Soil exposed to rain water = 110 nanosieverts per hour
Green onion from Central Market = 93 nanosieverts per hour
Tap water = 104 nanosieverts per hour
Filter water = 88 nanosieverts per hour
The Indian government, in the annual Budget unveiled this week, has opened up the nuclear power sector for private investments to boost the share of atomic energy production as the government aims to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2070.
The Bhabha Atomic Research Center (BARC) is India’s premier nuclear research facility. It was founded in January 1954 as a multidisciplinary research program essential for India’s nuclear program. It operates under the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE), which is directly overseen by the Prime Minister of India.
The BARC has developed a module for modular building of nuclear energy centers according to Nirmala Sitharaman, the Indian Finance Minister. The government, in the Budget unveiled this week, has opened up the nuclear power sector for private investments to expand the share of atomic energy production as the government intends to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2070.
Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) can be built in a factory, unlike conventional nuclear reactors that are constructed on-site. SMRs have a power capacity of up to three hundred megawatts per unit. They are a mobile and agile technology which can be set up at locations unsuitable for larger plants.
SMRs are making a significant and meaningful contribution to the energy transition phase as part of efforts to deal with the effects of climate change.
Sitharaman said, “It’s happy news to know that Bhabha Atomic Research Center has developed this module for modular building of nuclear energy centers. And since it’s all indigenously done and they are very sure they can take it forward. We have taken it on budget speech as well. That’s also because India’s commitments in renewable energy and emission control and investment for renewable energy have all been happening since, probably, 2015 when Paris agreement was signed. COP 21, I think. After that onwards India has been constantly concious of fulfilling its commitment.”
In her record seventh budget, Sitharaman said that the government will also partner with the private sector for research and development of newer technologies for nuclear power.
Twelve billion dollars of research and development funding, announced in the interim budget in February, will be provided to the nuclear sector, the Minister said in her budget speech.
Sitharaman added, “So we are fulfilling our requirements as committed in renewable energy. But for a country of India’s size, renewable energy alone can’t give us sufficiency in meeting all the base requirement for energy. Base requirement is something which should be without doubt, without speculation keep flowing and in that renewable energy has a shortcoming. So in that sense nuclear comes off a great use. Also now, thermal is being discouraged in a big way.”
Jitendra Singh is the Indian Minister of Science and Technology. Last month, he said that the Indian Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) was “suitably designing” the two hundred and twenty megawatts Pressurized Heavy Water Reactor (PHWR) as a Bharat Small Reactor (BSR) for captive nuclear power generation.
India has an installed nuclear power capacity of seven thousand four hundred and eighty megawatts which is expected to increase to twenty-two thousand four hundred and eighty megawatts by 2031.
IAEA mission assesses Japan’s nuclear security world-nuclear-news.org
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Nuclear threats are increasing – here’s how the US should prepare for a nuclear event yahoo.com
Ambient office = 108 nanosieverts per hour
Ambient outside = 109 nanosieverts per hour
Soil exposed to rain water = 108 nanosieverts per hour
English cucumber from Central Market = 85 nanosieverts per hour
Tap water = 100 nanosieverts per hour
Filter water = 86 nanosieverts per hour
Part 2 of 2 Parts (Please read Part 1 first)
These comments come as the U.K. government has started to encourage pension fund investment into nuclear energy. This follows its push to expand the country’s nuclear energy sector through earmarking more than one billion two hundred and eighty million dollars for the nuclear power station Sizewell C.
The Labour political party is currently leading in the polls by twenty percent to win the U.K.’s general election this week. It has also promised to build new nuclear power stations and small modular reactors to help the country achieve energy security and clean power.
Government sentiment towards nuclear started to change following the war in Ukraine. France, China and India decided to build and restart their nuclear fleet to increase energy capacity and secure energy dependency.
Attitudes towards nuclear energy have also changed since the European Union included nuclear energy in its sustainable taxonomy in 2022, recognizing its role as a transition energy.
In recent years, Canada, France, Finland, Russia and the U.S. have all issued their first green bonds for nuclear power projects.
Bioy said that these issuances “can be seen as a positive signal that nuclear energy is a worthy investment on the path to net zero”. She added that “New issuance of nuclear green bonds and other sustainable bonds eligible for financing nuclear energy should also be supported by the inclusion of nuclear power in the EU taxonomy for sustainable activities.”
The U.S. has implemented the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which offered more federal handouts to struggling nuclear reactors.
However, despite this government push and appetite, when talking to some pension funds from the U.S. they reported that they are only exposed to nuclear investment through their holdings in publicly held companies and not through direct investment.
Why has there been limited direct investment into nuclear energy by asset owners?
Bioy explains that a reason for this is that financing nuclear power projects remains a “challenge” for many reasons. These include the high costs, deployment timelines, technological hurdles, as well as safety and waste management issues. “Nuclear is a more difficult investment story to sell than renewables such as solar and wind.”
Bioy also notes that there are “few funds” specifically focused on the nuclear theme. They’re mostly exchange-traded funds (ETFs), making it difficult for investors to access the market.
“The limited number of options reflects the fact that nuclear energy is a very narrow theme for which it is hard to find pure players. These funds tend to invest in utilities companies for which nuclear energy represents only a small part of their overall activities. “They also invest in companies in the value chain, for example reactor manufacturers, but there aren’t many of those, and companies that mine uranium, a chemical element used as fuel in nuclear power plants,” Bioy claims.
Nuclear power is still a “controversial” energy source, due to past disasters as mentioned before, challenges in radioactive waste management and very high upfront costs. Uranium is widely used to produce nuclear energy. It is an element which is dangerous to mine and technically not renewable.
All this proves that government backing and “long-term drivers are supportive of the theme of nuclear energy”. However, “challenges remain” making it difficult for investors to commit, explains Bioy.
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Nuclear Threats and the Role of Allies defense.gov
S&P 500 Nuclear Energy Stocks Storm Higher As Prices Surge 800% On Largest U.S. Power Grid investors.com
Ambient office = 115 nanosieverts per hour
Ambient outside = 99 nanosieverts per hour
Soil exposed to rain water = 96 nanosieverts per hour
Blueberry from Central Market = 97 nanosieverts per hour
Tap water = 113 nanosieverts per hour
Filter water = 100 nanosieverts per hour
