I, Brian Wang, spoke with Randy Kirk about the room temperature superconductor developments and the future of energyo srand electric cars and trucks. Randy asked me about Elon Musk comments about his predicted future shortages. “My prediction is that we will go from…an extreme silicon shortage today to…an electricity shortage in two years,” Musk said …
DARPA and NASA are advancing toward the goal of the world’s first in-orbit demonstration of a nuclear thermal rocket (NTR) engine via DRACO, the Demonstration Rocket for Agile Cislunar Operations. DARPA has finalized an agreement with Lockheed Martin for the company to begin work on the fabrication and design of the experimental NTR vehicle (X-NTRV) …
Rolls-Royce is working on a Micro-Reactor program to develop nuclear energy technology that will provide power needed for humans to live and work on the Moon. The UK Space Agency provided £2.9 million of new funding for the project which will deliver an initial demonstration of a UK lunar modular nuclear reactor. This follows a …
Angry Astronaut provided more technical information about the development and plans of the Pulsar Fusion Rocket. Pulsar has their own operational chemical rockets and plasma drives. The 11 year old, UK company, Pulsar has been mainly focused on fusion research. Pulsar started developing products that could bring in revenue while that research continues: a Hall-effect …
Pulsar Fusion (UK) is working on a Direct Fusion Drive (DFD). It is a compact nuclear fusion engine which could provide both thrust and electrical power for spaceships. This technology opens unprecedented possibilities to explore the solar system in a limited amount of time and with a very high payload to propellant masses ratio. This …
Finish startup Steady Energy aims to build a nuclear district heating plant using a planned LDR-50 small modular reactor (SMR) by 2030. The company was spun out from the VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland – has raised EUR2.0 million (USD2.2 million) in seed funding led by VTT, Yes VC and Lifeline Ventures. The LDR-50 …
On June 7 , 2023, China’s 2MWt thorium-fueled molten salt experimental reactor operation application and related technical documents were completely reviewed. It was considered that the application met the relevant safety requirements, and it was decided to issue the 2 MWt liquid fuel thorium-based molten salt experimental reactor an operating licence, In 2022, Shanghai Institute …
Japanese companies have invested $80 million in British startup Core Power to develop a floating nuclear power plant. About 13 companies, including Onomichi Dockyard and Imabari Shipbuilding, have invested. Core Power has raised about $100 million. CORE POWER is part of the team that develops an MSR (molten salt reactor) that does not need a …
The full-scale replica of the US Department of Energy’s (DOE) MARVEL microreactor has been moved to a facility in Pennsylvania where it will be used to test the behavior of sodium-potassium and lead-bismuth coolants. The Microreactor Applications Research Validation and Evaluation (MARVEL) sodium-potassium-cooled microreactor will generate 100 kW and is expected to begin operation at …
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has issued the final license to build and operate the HI-STORE Consolidated Interim Storage Facility (CISF) to Holtec International on the land provided by the Eddy Lea Energy Alliance (ELEA), a regional economic development authority in Southeast New Mexico. This license is the culmination of an eight-year process to bring …
Nuscale Power is working with South Korea Doosan Enerbility Co., Ltd. (Doosan) and Export-Import Bank of Korea (KEXIM) to work together and support NuScale’s small modular reactor (SMR) deployment. This highlights the domestic and global manufacturing opportunities to build SMRs around the world. This is part of the development of a global supply chain, and …