CAESAR - Clean And Environmentally Safe Advanced Reactor - Department of Aerospace Engineering
CAESAR - Clean And Environmentally Safe Advanced Reactor - Department of Aerospace Engineering
Current World Energy Situation
As all nations struggle to meet the rising demand for energy in a climate of economic and political instability, environmental pollutants continue to build from the burning of coal, oil and natural gas, and the production of toxic nuclear waste by today's nuclear reactors. The use of fossil fuels to generate electricity and other forms of energy accounts for 80-85% of the world's consumption. Nuclear power accounts for approximately 25% of the electricity produced, and only a negligible fraction of worldwide energy demand comes from clean or renewable energy sources (solar and wind power, for example).
While today's nuclear reactors contribute to decreased pollutant emissions, their subsequent production of nuclear waste has severe environmental, economic and national security implications. A satisfactory solution to the treatment, transportation and storage of toxic nuclear waste has not yet been found, and has led to inconsistent policies often formed by closed-loop groups or lobbyists biased by private interests and local economics.
Leading experts have concluded that one of the few possibilities for an economic recovery worldwide is through a "new, effective energy revolution." The rate of consumption of fossil fuels, a finite energy source, is increasing exponentially - in the last 30 years alone, more than 35% of the planet's resources have been irreversibly damaged and exhausted. By the same token, utilization of current nuclear technologies carries the risk of misuse of nuclear fuel, resulting in even more drastic consequences.
Most of the nuclear power plants operating worldwide are capable of producing weapons-grade material, turning energy production into a political issue with national security implications. Given the events of September 11th and the controversial nuclear programs of countries like North Korea, the potential use of nuclear power plants and nuclear waste to produce weapons of mass destruction is very much a reality.
The US Department of Energy is actively seeking designs for a new generation of nuclear power plants that are proliferation-resistant. Unfortunately, research is currently being directed toward "fast breeder" reactors, which show several advantages over existing designs but are still capable of producing weapons-grade material.
The consequences of world reliance on fossil fuels and current nuclear technology are contributing factors to today's widespread political instability. The need for a new energy revolution is not only an economic problem - it is necessary for our survival.
The CAESAR Project
The CAESAR Project is headed by Dr. Claudio Filippone, a nuclear scientist and Director of the Center for Advanced Energy Concepts at the University of Maryland. The Center, a division of the University's Aerospace Engineering Department, was established to further the research and development of CAESAR.
CAESAR integrates all of the above-mentioned variables into a very ambitious advanced nuclear reactor design that is simple to implement and restores the balance between the demand for energy and the protection of our planet's resources.
CAESAR's advantages:
CAESAR reduces environmental degradation by eliminating the need to burn fossil fuels and by reusing nuclear waste already in the environment.
CAESAR provides low-cost, zero-pollution electricity by extracting the tremendous amount of energy still trapped inside spent nuclear fuel. Hundreds of years worth of electricity can be generated simply by using the spent fuel already stockpiled around the world.
CAESAR eliminates the need to produce fresh nuclear fuel, making it the only environmentally friendly technology that can phase out current nuclear and fossil fuel power plants without affecting the production of electricity.
CAESAR's by-product is ultra-spent fuel, which cannot be used to produce weapons-grade material.
Technology
CAESAR was originally developed in 1993 as the Nuclear Powered Steam Expansion Engine (NPSEE), designed to boost the efficiency of conventional nuclear and non-nuclear power plants from the current 30-36% to approximately 56% with a Carnot efficiency of 68%. The mechanism used to boost efficiency was a thermal-hydraulic system called a "heat-cavity", conceived by Dr. Filippone and designed as a heat transfer mechanism able to provide safer, more efficient cooling to the fuel rods than conventional systems. The system also dramatically reduces the normally unavoidable "heat-rejection" in the environment, as occurs in all operating power plants, nuclear and fossil fueled.
Please contact us at 301-403-4487 or claudiof@wam.umd.edu if you would like more information on CAESAR.
Status of CAESAR Experimentation
CAESAR prototypes driven by electrically simulated heat have been built, tested and presented to various government agencies, private investors, industry groups and academic institutions in the U.S. and abroad over the last several years.
To date, all of the thermal-hydraulic and heat-transfer tests, and simple neutronic tests, have been completed and returned positive results. The last crucial proof-of-concept neutronic experiment requires approximately $2 million and two years of experimentation. This research money would be used to assemble a "suspended" fuel assembly containing only U-238 (natural uranium, or nuclear waste) and positioned near an existing nuclear reactor acting as the "jump starter" of CAESAR. The suspended fuel assembly would be equipped with heat cavities to control quasi-instantaneous steam expansions, causing high heat-transfer coefficients on the surfaces of the fuel. This innovative heat transfer mechanism would provide the proper cooling for the fuel and, for the first time, active neutron moderation. During the experiment, neutronic and thermal-hydraulic data would be collected, allowing scientists to identify various correlations to scale the analogue to different nuclear reactor systems.
The University of Maryland has waived overhead charges for all grants received for The Caesar Project from philanthropic sources, so that all money can be focused on research and development. Additional grant proposals are being prepared for DOE, NERI, DOD, NRC, NEPO, the State of Maryland and other funding sources.
Links
Dr. Claudio Filippone's Web Site
Department of Nuclear Engineering Web Site
Department of Aerospace Engineering Web Site
Ranger Servicing Nuclear Reactor Fuel Rods
Servicing Nuclear Reactor Fuel Rods
Nuclear Research Institute in Czech Republic
Current World Energy Situation
As all nations struggle to meet the rising demand for energy in a climate of economic and political instability, environmental pollutants continue to build from the burning of coal, oil and natural gas, and the production of toxic nuclear waste by today's nuclear reactors. The use of fossil fuels to generate electricity and other forms of energy accounts for 80-85% of the world's consumption. Nuclear power accounts for approximately 25% of the electricity produced, and only a negligible fraction of worldwide energy demand comes from clean or renewable energy sources (solar and wind power, for example).
While today's nuclear reactors contribute to decreased pollutant emissions, their subsequent production of nuclear waste has severe environmental, economic and national security implications. A satisfactory solution to the treatment, transportation and storage of toxic nuclear waste has not yet been found, and has led to inconsistent policies often formed by closed-loop groups or lobbyists biased by private interests and local economics.
Leading experts have concluded that one of the few possibilities for an economic recovery worldwide is through a "new, effective energy revolution." The rate of consumption of fossil fuels, a finite energy source, is increasing exponentially - in the last 30 years alone, more than 35% of the planet's resources have been irreversibly damaged and exhausted. By the same token, utilization of current nuclear technologies carries the risk of misuse of nuclear fuel, resulting in even more drastic consequences.
Most of the nuclear power plants operating worldwide are capable of producing weapons-grade material, turning energy production into a political issue with national security implications. Given the events of September 11th and the controversial nuclear programs of countries like North Korea, the potential use of nuclear power plants and nuclear waste to produce weapons of mass destruction is very much a reality.
The US Department of Energy is actively seeking designs for a new generation of nuclear power plants that are proliferation-resistant. Unfortunately, research is currently being directed toward "fast breeder" reactors, which show several advantages over existing designs but are still capable of producing weapons-grade material.
The consequences of world reliance on fossil fuels and current nuclear technology are contributing factors to today's widespread political instability. The need for a new energy revolution is not only an economic problem - it is necessary for our survival.
The CAESAR Project
The CAESAR Project is headed by Dr. Claudio Filippone, a nuclear scientist and Director of the Center for Advanced Energy Concepts at the University of Maryland. The Center, a division of the University's Aerospace Engineering Department, was established to further the research and development of CAESAR.
CAESAR integrates all of the above-mentioned variables into a very ambitious advanced nuclear reactor design that is simple to implement and restores the balance between the demand for energy and the protection of our planet's resources.
CAESAR's advantages:
CAESAR reduces environmental degradation by eliminating the need to burn fossil fuels and by reusing nuclear waste already in the environment.
CAESAR provides low-cost, zero-pollution electricity by extracting the tremendous amount of energy still trapped inside spent nuclear fuel. Hundreds of years worth of electricity can be generated simply by using the spent fuel already stockpiled around the world.
CAESAR eliminates the need to produce fresh nuclear fuel, making it the only environmentally friendly technology that can phase out current nuclear and fossil fuel power plants without affecting the production of electricity.
CAESAR's by-product is ultra-spent fuel, which cannot be used to produce weapons-grade material.
Technology
CAESAR was originally developed in 1993 as the Nuclear Powered Steam Expansion Engine (NPSEE), designed to boost the efficiency of conventional nuclear and non-nuclear power plants from the current 30-36% to approximately 56% with a Carnot efficiency of 68%. The mechanism used to boost efficiency was a thermal-hydraulic system called a "heat-cavity", conceived by Dr. Filippone and designed as a heat transfer mechanism able to provide safer, more efficient cooling to the fuel rods than conventional systems. The system also dramatically reduces the normally unavoidable "heat-rejection" in the environment, as occurs in all operating power plants, nuclear and fossil fueled.
Please contact us at 301-403-4487 or claudiof@wam.umd.edu if you would like more information on CAESAR.
Status of CAESAR Experimentation
CAESAR prototypes driven by electrically simulated heat have been built, tested and presented to various government agencies, private investors, industry groups and academic institutions in the U.S. and abroad over the last several years.
To date, all of the thermal-hydraulic and heat-transfer tests, and simple neutronic tests, have been completed and returned positive results. The last crucial proof-of-concept neutronic experiment requires approximately $2 million and two years of experimentation. This research money would be used to assemble a "suspended" fuel assembly containing only U-238 (natural uranium, or nuclear waste) and positioned near an existing nuclear reactor acting as the "jump starter" of CAESAR. The suspended fuel assembly would be equipped with heat cavities to control quasi-instantaneous steam expansions, causing high heat-transfer coefficients on the surfaces of the fuel. This innovative heat transfer mechanism would provide the proper cooling for the fuel and, for the first time, active neutron moderation. During the experiment, neutronic and thermal-hydraulic data would be collected, allowing scientists to identify various correlations to scale the analogue to different nuclear reactor systems.
The University of Maryland has waived overhead charges for all grants received for The Caesar Project from philanthropic sources, so that all money can be focused on research and development. Additional grant proposals are being prepared for DOE, NERI, DOD, NRC, NEPO, the State of Maryland and other funding sources.
Links
Dr. Claudio Filippone's Web Site
Department of Nuclear Engineering Web Site
Department of Aerospace Engineering Web Site
Ranger Servicing Nuclear Reactor Fuel Rods
Servicing Nuclear Reactor Fuel Rods
Nuclear Research Institute in Czech Republic
posted by Marcel at 4:26 AM
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