Chapter 6 - The nuclear fuel cycle

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There are three energy sources which might give us confidence that the world’s energy needs will be met in the second half of the 21st century. These are nuclear energy, renewable energy and nuclear fusion. Nuclear fusion has enormous potential, but will be very difficult to achieve from an engineering point of view. It is prudent to rely, for the time being at any rate, on the growth in renewable and nuclear energy. The problem with the continuing growth in nuclear power is the public’s perception of its safety. The data compiled about nuclear power reactors in the world can be found in IAEA’s Power Reactor Information System (PRIS). The PRIS database is a comprehensive source of data on all nuclear power reactors in the world. It includes specification and performance history data on operational reactors as well as on reactors under construction or in the decommissioning process. Energy production as well as other human activities is always connected with risk taking. Radiation, and everything related to it, generates a fear not easily understood. This probably comes from the “invisibility” of the danger and relation to the bomb. Therefore the safety of nuclear power must be compared with the safety of alternative ways of generating electricity. Like all industries, the generation of electricity produces waste. Whatever fuel is used, the waste produced in generating electricity must be managed in ways that safeguard human health and minimize the impact on the environment. Strategic considerations favour the development of energy sources that offer greater sustainability and have less impact on health and the environment. Nuclear fusion, for which the fuel source is virtually limitless in quantity, could in the long term be an important option in this energy mix. International effort on fusion, International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER), hopefully will not turn to be only “A dream of clean energy at a very high price”.