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Going Nuclear: Notes from the officially unofficial book tour
I work in the analytical labs at one of Europe’s oldest and largest nuclear sites: Sellafield, in northwestern England. I spend my days at the fume hood front, pipette in one hand and radiation probe in the other (and dosimeter pinned to my chest, of course). Outside the lab, I have a second job: I moonlight as a writer and public speaker. My new popular science book—Going Nuclear: How the Atom Will Save the World—came out last summer, and it feels like my life has been running at full power ever since.
Qi Zhang, Keiichi N. Ishihara, Benjamin McLellan, Tetsuo Tezuka
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 61 | Number 1 | January 2012 | Pages 423-427
Education, Economics, and Sustainability | Proceedings of the Fifteenth International Conference on Emerging Nuclear Energy Systems | doi.org/10.13182/FST12-A13457
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The realization of a zero-carbon electricity system is of vital importance to a future zero-carbon energy system and society. Nuclear power is expected to contribute to the realization of a zero-carbon electricity system much more than intermittent, complicated and costly renewable energy in the future in Japan. Therefore, in the present study, nuclear power development for a future zero-carbon energy system was studied through scenario analysis. The study was conducted in three steps to (i) estimate future electricity demand and electrical load pattern by 2100; (ii) determine the contribution of nuclear power to the electricity generation based on various constraints; and (iii) test the feasibility of the nuclear-based electricity system in term of supply-demand balance. An integrated computer software platform was developed to conduct the analyses. The analysis results show that Fukushima Accident will not affect nuclear development in Japan greatly from a long term viewpoint. Compared with 2005, the total electricity demand will increase by 50% to 2100. Nuclear power contributes 60%-100% of total electricity production and its capacity factor needs to be enhanced from the present 60-70% to 80-90%. The nuclear power can be supplied from advanced LWR, FBR even fusion technology.