Small mini nuclear reactors want to do away with diesel
2 min read
The competition to diesel is running in many scenarios around the world and some companies are proposing the use of miniature nuclear reactors that serve to replace traditional diesel generators, in addition to the effort to put an end to the energies that produce pollution and put an end to the classic generators diesel that has so many uses today. In this way, it would be devices that are less harmful to the environment than diesel generators.
Whether or not nuclear energy is the future is one of the debates that has not allowed us to unplug from oil and gas, which causes us to pay huge electricity bills. And the culprit for this is its alleged dangerousness.
The Californian company Radiant has just obtained the necessary financing to develop a minireactor It would be one whose size would allow it to go in a shipping container, with a megawatt of power, portable and low cost that fits in a shipping container.
This miniature reactor can power about 1,000 homes and uses helium coolant instead of water, reducing certain contamination risks. In this way, it would be devices that are less harmful to the environment than diesel generators. In addition to this, they have other advantages in not depending on a regular supply of fuel for their operation.
Founded by former SpaceX engineers who decided that the Mars colony power sources they were researching would have more utility on Earth, the company has secured $1.2 million in investment and momentum from IRAIC to advance and develop one of these innovative devices through the different sectors of the industry worldwide.
Its mini-jets are specifically designed to be portable, quick to deploy and effective wherever they are deployed: isolated communities, areas affected by natural disasters or scientific bases in the middle of Antarctica.
The money comes mainly from its military applications, though, as the military is another key market because a single reactor could power an entire military base in a remote area for four to eight years before running out of fuel.
This task, which is currently carried out by diesel generators, would be much cleaner as well as turning the base into a much more independent outpost, which does not need a continuous fuel supply, which can be one of the weaknesses for a settlement. military.
Radiant says that its fuel does not melt and that it can withstand higher temperatures than traditional nuclear ones.
Despite its military use, the important thing is that this idea can make a difference when it comes to saving lives in remote places, powering field hospitals, lighting rescue teams or heating villages isolated by snow storms. Reported The USA Herald, a news and information agency.
