Quishan II Unit 3 Nuclear Reactor Goes Commercial Ahead of Schedule

[NNadir]

Qinshan Phase II unit 3 has become China's 13th nuclear unit to enter commercial operation, China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) has announced.

The 650 MWe CNP-600 pressurised water reactor was connected to the grid at the beginning of August. It had been pencilled in for commercial operation for early 2011, but has now become the second Chinese reactor to go commercial this year, following on from the first unit at Ling Ao II which entered commercial operation in September.

Qinshan Phase II is already home to two operating CNP-600s, an indigenous reactor design built with a high degree of localisation. Construction work started on unit 3 in 2006, and on unit 4, also a CP-600, in 2007. Unit 4 is scheduled for commercial operation in 2012.

China currently boasts some 23 reactors under construction, mostly of indigenous design but also including four Westinghouse AP1000s at Sanmen and Haiyang, and two Areva EPRs at Taishan. Construction is pencilled in to start on many more over the next few years.

http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NN-Latest_Qinshan_unit_goes_commercial-2210108.html">Latest Qinshan unit goes commercial

This is a small reactor, roughly the size of the 40 year old Oyster Creek Nuclear Reactor which has operated without a single loss of life near where I live, and has avoided billion ton quantities of dangerous fossil fuel waste being dumped into earth's atmosphere, dangerous fossil fuel waste being a type of waste that the selective attention of anti-nukes sweeps under the rug, even though it - and it alone - actually kills people, both in normal and abnormal operating conditions.

It is useful however, to ask how small the new Quinshan II Unit 3 is.

For over 40 years, oblivious wishful thinking mathematically illiterate anti-science twerps have been helping California's dangerous fossil fuel waste dumping gas industry stay secure by offering tax breaks to California's wealtiest citizens by claiming they could "go solar" at taxpayer expense.

California cuts schools, parks, health care, and assistance to the needy, but not tax breaks for its wealthiest citizens if they "go solar."

In 2009, after 40 years of hype and wishful thinking, the entire State of California, with more than 30 million people living there, http://www.energyalmanac.ca.gov/electricity/total_system_power.html">produced 846 GWh of solar energy, PV and thermal combined.

There are still 8,766 hours in a year, meaning that the average continuous power of all California's hyped up and incredibly expensive solar capacity is the equivalent to any type of power plant operating at 100% capacity utilization that is 96.5 MWe, not counting the fact that solar energy is unreliable and only available for a short period of the day.

Thus to exceed the output of all of California's solar energy output built over a period of more than 50 years, the new Quishan II reactor would need to operate at 96.5/650 = 14.8% capacity utilization, something it is very easy for nuclear reactors to do, since most of them operate at close to 90% capacity utilization, making them the most reliable form of energy on earth.

Have a nice evening.

[yourout]

1. What is your opinion of Thorium reactors? In partiuclar the molten salt reactor...

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molten_salt_reactor>

Seems like it could answer a lot of questions.

[NNadir]

2. I have a very, very, very, very high opinion of this type of reactor, and consider

it to be the most promising prototypical reactor to never have been commercialized.

MSR's are among the types of reactors covered under the Gen IV nuclear program, and will represent a real option for the energy future for countries that do not wish to be impoverished in the era after dangerous fossil fuels.

Interestingly, one of the world leaders in the development of this technology is Professor Per Peterson at UC Berkeley: http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/People/Per_Peterson">Per Peterson, UC Berkeley. His modification is actually TRISO based, and one may question whether it is truly a fluid phase reactor, but Dr. Peterson is a great thinker in energy and is on Dr. Steven Chu's energy task force.

MSR are widely discussed in cyberspace over at Kirk Sorensen's http://www.energyfromthorium.com/forum/index.php">Energy From Thorium Website. Dr. Peterson occassionally posts there, as do I, usually on technical subjects.

[DrGregory]

3. Proof of Principle!!

Quishan II Unit 3 Nuclear Reactor Goes Commercial Ahead of Schedule
================================================================

That's a "proof of principle". If China can do it, then
surely the USA can do it.

There's no limit imposed by the science, or technology or
complexity that inherently limits nuclear power plants
to poor performance in construction schedules, and the
accompanying increases in cost.

NO - the Chinese have done it. They just don't tolerate
obstructionism from people who don't want the project
built.

I don't advocate going to the Chinese style of government.

However, ALL points of view can be brought up and adjudicated
BEFORE construction and the spending / borrowing of money.

Once the decisions are made, EVERYBODY has to live with them.

If the hearings didn't go your way, then better luck next time.

But don't allow the vocal minorities to hamstring the will of
the majority.

Dr. Greg



Dr. Greg

[AlecBGreen]

4. +1