Innovating nuclear technology with the world's most advanced molten salt test platform

[@robfer5370]

Some very good and important work, understanding the fundamentals is a key process in any research and development into new technologies.

[@adleylevold616]

Hello again Thomas. I met you at the New Mexico TEA and interviewed you outside of McDonalds. I went to Arizona the next day to look at a Piper airframe to convert to electric to advertise thorium reactors as that is what will give the necessary exposure for this industry. I later seen guy from the conference, who worked at the lab, talking about bearings in pumps and how he was getting hot spots. They had cut straight slots in the bushings and not enough of them. My own personal thought was that the slots should be in the drive shaft and skewed and reducing in depth so that the material would be pumped into the bearing by spinning shaft using the material as a way of keeping distance between shaft and impeller. Then I realized that if the outside of the fan was designed so that it would push the material to the outside wall, then it would do the same thing, the faster it spun, the more it self centers. There could be erosion between surfaces in time and because you really don't know the abrasion amount yet, but is this viable?

[@fastSPX_90]

It's to good to know that you have this global vision of creating a strong molten salt community that is able to sustain the development effort that a single company could hardly manage on its own. I think it's the right step to take now in order to make large scale deployment possible in a few years/decades.

[@catnadas]

Thank you! Way to go!

[@jwestney2859]

Glad to see an update from you remarkable guys!

[@gerritcoetzee9075]

What is the time frame for when the cold testing would be completed? How soon after the successful conclusion of the cold testing, will it follow through to the second phase of hot testing? Have you decided on where the hot testing will be executed? Are you open to engage with nuclear physicists for them to initiate the ground work in preparation for the hot testing?

[@icisne7315]

Limitless energy is finally around the corner

[@MrRolnicek]

They still want to use heavy water as their moderator, right? I still havent heard how they want to deal with that heat both from the neutrons and from the contact with the molten salt pipes. I'm quite interested in that cause it seems to me that even using something nasty like Lithium Deuteride would end up easier than dealing with heavy water in a reactor like this one.

[@CopenhagenAtomics]

Yes we will use heavy water as it is the BEST moderator AND it is easier to use than the alternatives. In a molten salt reactor the fuel salt is circulated out of the core to remove 95% of the generated heat. It is easy to also circulate the water and remove 3% of the generated reactor heat from the water. In fact we plan to keep the water below 25C at all times. We use a standard aircondition unit to cool the water. Millions of these AC units are build every year there is no risk in choosing this route. The water is not under pressure and even if it would leak out and boil off we have a system to condense the heavy water. There are two barriers between the heavy water and the molten salt. I guess we have to make a video about this too, in order to show the public how simple and easy this works. This video would unfortunately be without the neutrons heating the water, which is the primary source for heating the heavy water.

[@MrRolnicek]

@@CopenhagenAtomics That's interesting. I thought slowing down the neutrons would deposit a LOT more heeat into the water than that. If a simple AC unit is enough to keep it room temperature then no wonder, heavy water really is the best choice. I would still like to see the video about insulating the water thermally from the fuel pipes. I think you mentioned aerogel a few years back, is that still the plan? Is that kind of technology ready and will the insulator last in the reactor?

[@Telencephelon]

@@CopenhagenAtomics Thanks. Right now all videos uploaded so far are dry runs correct? The coming years will focus on getting permissions, adhering to regulations and doing the actual testing, no?