Liquid Fluoride Thorium Reactors will work both as Base Load and Load Following power plants. LFTR’s operate at a much higher temperature than conventional power plants and operate at about 45% electricity conversion efficiency, as opposed to 38% or lower for steam generators. In addition, because of the higher operating temperature it is ideal for hydrogen generation. The reactor would use the electricity generation to satisfy the current demand and produce hydrogen during times of low demand. This hydrogen would be temporarily stored and used for electricity production at peak demand. And hydrogen power produces only water when burned, no CO2 or polluting fumes are generated.
June 9, read through the Bible in a year.
Today, in between Romans and 1 Corinthians we are reading two Psalms and two chapters in 1 Chronicles..
June 9: Psalm 38, Psalm 39, 1 Chronicles 8, 1 Chronicles 9 (click on the chapter to begin reading)
Psalm 38, of David, a Petition. This is a Psalm of deep despair and remorse. David acknowledges his sin and cries out to God. Yet, in failing health and abandonment by friends and family his hope in God remains steadfast.
Psalm 39, of David. At the later part of his life David wrote this Psalm to give words of wisdom, knowing the end for him was near. It is sometimes quoted in part in funerals to give comfort when words are hard to find.
1 Chronicles 8 lists the genealogy of king Saul.
1 Chronicles 9 lists the people, the priests, the Levites and the Levite gatekeepers in Jerusalem that had returned after the captivity in Babylon. It continues with other Levite responsibilities and finally gives another part of the genealogy of king Saul.
The need to develop Thorium based Nuclear Energy as the major electric energy supply. 14. No need for evacuation zones, can be placed near urban areas.
No need for evacuation zones, can be placed near urban areas. Molten Salt Thorium reactors operate at atmospheric pressure and have a very high negative temperature coefficient, so there is no risk for a boil-over. They are easily made earthquake-safe and no pressure vessel is needed. This will greatly simplify the approval process, no need for elaborate evacuation plans have to be developed. Since the Three Mile Island accident there was a thirty year gap in approvals for new nuclear plants. The “not in my backyard ” mentality reigned supreme, and delay and denial was the rule of the years. But the lawyers still got their share, leading to escalating cost for new nuclear power. In the early days of nuclear power France took the approach of building some of their nuclear plants near the Belgian and German border, so they only had to develop half of an evacuation plan, leaving the other half to their understanding neighbors. It also leads to placing the nuclear plants where there is the least resistance, not where they are needed the most, adding to the strain on the electric grid.
Bill Nye once on gender probability, A Limerick.
What makes you a girl or a boy?
As Chromosomes unfurl with joy
its XX or XY
only 2, and that’s why
it’s woman or man, let’s enjoy.
Or, as the French say: Vive la différence! But then again, the French have a fully gendered language. Everything has a gender, male or female, nothing transgender.
We have come a long way. Bill Nye, the “Science Guy” in 2017 showed a skit on Netflix that cannot be reposted here, it is so gross, essentially claiming that anything goes sexually, and anything is “morally” equivalent. (By objecting to it, I guess it makes me a homophobic, transphobic, xenophobic, omniphobic hater.) Or, maybe I am like the Bill Nye of the 1990’s, here using a girl to explain probability.
From this we learn that the Bible is right:
Genesis 1:27, KJV So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.
This is not hate, it is God-given biological truth.
June 8, read through the Bible in a year.
Today, in between Romans and 1 Corinthians we are reading one Psalm and two chapters in 1 Chronicles..
June 8: Psalm 37, 1 Chronicles 6, 1 Chronicles 7 (click on the chapter to begin reading)
Psalm 37, of David. With two lines dedicated to each letter of the Hebrew alphabet, this psalm is one of the longer acrostics in the book of Psalms. David wrote it late in life (“ I have been young, and now am old;
Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken,
Nor his descendants begging bread.“) It is full of promises and praise, and was intended for memorization.
1 Chronicles 6 lists the family tree of Levi, musicians in the house of the Lord, the family tree of Aaron and, since the Levites had no land allocation it lists their dwelling places.
1 Chronicles 7 lists the family tree of Issachar, the family tree of Benjamin, the family tree of Naphtali, the family tree of Manasseh West of Jordan, the family tree of Ephraim and the family tree of Asher.
The need to develop Thorium based Nuclear Energy as the major electric energy supply. 13. Thorium Nuclear Power generators scale beautifully from small portable generators to full size power plants.
Thorium Nuclear Power generators scale beautifully from small portable generators to full size power plants. One of the first applications was as an airborne nuclear reactor.
Granted this was not a Thorium breeder reactor, but it proves nuclear reactors can be made lightweight. Thorium reactors can be made even lighter as long as they are not of the breeder type.
June 7, read through the Bible in a year.
Today we are finishing up Romans, and continue reading three chapters in 1 Chronicles..
June 7: Romans 16, 1 Chronicles 3, 1 Chronicles 4, 1 Chronicles 5 (click on the chapter to begin reading)
Romans 16. Sister Phoebe is commended, Paul thanks especially Priscilla and Aquila, then comes a long list of greetings by name. Then comes a warning to avoid divisive persons, followed by greetings from Paul’s friends, even Tertius, the scribe writes a note. The letter ends with a benediction.
1 Chronicles 3 contains the family tee of David, the royal line of Solomon and the royal line of Jeconiah after the exile.
1 Chronicles 4 contains the family tree of Judah and the family tree of Simeon.
1 Chronicles 5 contains the family tree of Reuben, the family tree of Gad and the family tree of Manasseh East of Jordan. These three tribes were unfaithful to God and the king of Assyria defeated them and took them into exile.
The need to develop Thorium based Nuclear Energy as the major electric energy supply. 12. Virtually no spent fuel problem, very little on site storage or transport.
Virtually no spent fuel problem, very little on site storage or transport. I am following the events at Fukushima Nuclear Power plants with great interest. How ironic that the greatest risk is with the spent fuel, not with the inability to shut down the working units. The spent fuel issue is the real Achilles’ heel of the Nuclear Power Industry. Molten Salt Thorium nuclear power works differently from conventional Uranium as the fissile fuel gets generated in the breeding process itself and nearly all fuel gets consumed as it is generated. When the process shuts down, that is it. Only the radioactivity that is en route so to say will have to be accounted for, not everything generated thus far in the process. The difference is about one to ten thousand in the size of the problem. It is high time to rebuild and expand our Nuclear power generation by switching to Thorium.
June 6, read through the Bible in a year.
Today we are continuing in Romans, and read the first two chapters in 1 Chronicles..
June 6: Romans 15, 1 Chronicles 1, 1 Chronicles 2 (click on the chapter to begin reading)
Romans 15. Bear each others’ burdens, look at Christ and glorify God together. Paul has proclaimed the Gospel from Jerusalem to Illyricum, but he really longed to visit Rome.
1 Chronicles 1 lists the partial family tree of Adam to Noah’s sons, the family tree of Abraham, first the family tree of Keturah, Abraham’s concubine whom he married after the death of Sarah, the family tree of Isaac, the family tree of the people of Seir in Edom and finally a list of the kings of Edom.
1 Chronicles 2 lists the family tree of Israel, then concentrates oh the family tree from Judah to David, continuing with the family treeof Hezron, the family treev of Jerahmeel and finally the family treeof Caleb.
The need to develop Thorium based Nuclear Energy as the major electric energy supply. 11. Atmospheric pressure operating conditions, no risk for explosions.
Molten Salt nuclear Reactors operate under Atmospheric pressure conditions, no risk for explosions. Materials subjected to high radiation tend to get brittle or soften up. Molten Salt Thorium nuclear reactors operate under atmospheric conditions so the choice of materials that can withstand both high temperatures and high radiation is much greater, leading to a superior and less expensive design. There is no high pressure gas buildup and the separation stage can be greatly simplified.
Len Bilén's blog, a blog about faith, politics and the environment. 