As a class trip, we visited the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Nuclear Reactor Laboratory (MIT-NRL). The MIT-NRL houses and operates a 5 megawatt (MW) nuclear reactor (MITR) which runs at 50°C (the temperature of hot bath water). Currently the reactor is the second largest university reactor in the entire country but don’t let this fool you – it’s still small enough to fit inside a hug (though I wouldn’t recommend doing so). According to the MIT-NRL, the MITR is “a light-water cooled and moderated, heavy-water reflected nuclear reactor that utilizes flat, plate-type finned, aluminum clad fuel elements.” From what I learned, the reactor has more security than Obama that not only protect it from being taken out but also help keep any contaminants in. To spare ourselves of further details that neither of us will understand I’ll put it simply: The reactor is not used to generate any electricity but rather it produces neurons that scientists and researchers use in their studies. Even if it was used to generate electricity, after all of the power lost in transmission of energy, its 5 MW capacity would only be able to power a bunch of light bulbs.
(Models of the MITR)
Starting our tour of MIT-NRL was like something out of a Bond movie. We had to leave all of our belongings behind and have our starting radiation levels tested to measure any hazardous changes to it when we came out. We then went through one security door and two sets of blast proof doors before entering into the steel box containment building where the MITR is held.
Then we were shown around. We learned that the MIT-NRL used to conduct research on humans, specifically though with tumors. This is a form of therapy called Baron Neutron Capture Therapy (BNCT). Patients used to be held in a room under the reactor and scientists could use what I interpreted as a ray gun to target the tumor wherever it was, usually in the brain.
Now if the MIT-NRL conducts such studies humans are no longer involved and lab mice are used as a substitute.
We were lead down to the control room where someone must always be present to check for any abnormalities in the neutron flux levels of the MITR. Most of the controls are analog because of resistance from head organization to make the switch to digital. Their resistance is based on many things like being more able to control analog but mostly it’s just unwillingness to make changes. I say this because between the two, digital is more accurate, quicker, and easier to use.
As someone coming in with very little knowledge, I imagined what it’s like to be in a control room when something went wrong. Surrounded by all of those different buttons and controls and light flashing I think I would look something like this
When the tour was finished we were lead back out through the blast proof doors and each of us had to stand on a contamination monitor which looked like a robot to make sure we were “clean” of any contaminants we may have been exposed to.
(Contamination Monitor)
All in all it was an interesting trip and I learned a lot about nuclear reactors. It was good to get some hands on (not literally since we couldn’t touch anything) knowledge about all we’ve been learning.
Many nations are revitalizing efforts towards cleaner energy, namely solar power. Here is a brief look at what’s being done all over the globe to develop and implement solar energy resources.
The United States is working hard to put more into its solar energy efforts and growth in solar energy is beginning to take off in the nation. New technologies have been pivotal to this growth and companies are continuing to force the costs of this energy down so much so that some say the prices of this clean energy can compete with those made from fossil fuels. The solar resources in the American southwest including, Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah are among the best in the world for large-scale solar power plants. Projects for solar energy production are largely focused in these areas for their high levels of direct normal insolation of sunlight.
Recently developed in India is Asia’s now largest solar park, Gujarat Solar Park surpassing China’s Golmud Solar Park. With the 1.1 billion inhabitants of the nation, this park is an important step towards decreasing low carbon growth. Gujarat Solar Park is capable of generating 600 MW of solar energy. It has brought new purpose to a wasteland which spanned across 3,000 acres of land bordering Rann of Kutchi. It is estimate that the new park will produce around 66% of India’s 900 MW solar power. Furthermore, it will aid in the reduction of CO2 emissions which is currently about 8 million tons and will save 9000,000 tons of natural gas every year.
Europe today is harnessing more solar power than the rest of the world combined. This is in large part due to changes in policy to fit the development and installation of photovoltaics. These policy changes and choices are mostly in the form of subsidies and binding targets, which Europe continues to meet. An exceptional amount of photovoltaics have been installed in nations throughout the continent and prices for solar panels are continually falling.
Antarctica would seem to be prime placement for solar panels; the number of inhabitants is low and at the height of summer, there is almost a full 24 hours of sunlight. However because it is dark for 6 months out of the year this theory is easily disproven. But that doesn’t mean that efforts aren’t being made to utilize solar energy there. Much research has gone into it and there have been plans to fit renewable energy resources to Antarctica’s polarizing seasons. It’s been proposed to use wind turbines to generate energy during the half year of darkness and solar panels for the other half of sunlight. Switching off between the two could prove to be very effective if given the proper support and funding.
The development of solar energy in African has done much to bring electricity, food, and water to rural and poorer parts of Africa. Many companies have set their sights on Africa to “test the viability—and marketability—of solar-powered systems to provide electricity for lighting and other purposes in villages all over Africa.” So far the installments of solar energy have changed the lives Africans who it has been made available to. Marketability is looking up and these big energy companies may potentially move in to further develop solar energy resources on the grand scale. Such investment would improve the lives of millions in African nations.
These are just a few broad looks at efforts to increase generation of solar energy around the global. Many nations are putting more into research and development as solar power continues to change the sphere of energy production.
Clean energy subsidies provide funding and incentives for companies to make a switch to cleaner forms of energy like wind and solar. Subsidies are on three levels: federal, state, and local. A combination of subsidies from all three has the potential to cover half of the cost of a renewable energy project. This decreases money lost on such a venture for a company that is trying to gauge marketability and effectiveness in an area. But the greatest and most important of these subsidies comes in the form of tax credits, both production and investment. Such incentives are not only reserved for companies, consumers can take advantage of them as well. For consumers, subsidies may be up to half of installation costs, giving them more reason to make the switch.
References
Eaton, John. “Solar Energy Brings Food, Water, and Light to West Africa.” National Geographic. 13 Mar 2012. Web. <http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/energy/2012/03/120314-solar-drip-irrigation-in-benin-africa/>.
Ebels, Philip. “Europe can be ‘proud’ of its solar energy policy.” EUobserver.com [Brussels] 09 Nov 2012. Web. <http://euobserver.com/solar-energy/117445>.
Espinoza, Javier. “Shedding Light on Subsidies: What incentives exist for renewables? And how exactly do hey work?” Wall Street Journal 17 Sep 2012, R6. Web. <http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10000872396390443659204577575203384685874.html >.
“Gujarat Solar Park: Asia’s largest solar power park opens.” Economic Times [Ahmedabad] 19 Apr 2012. Web. <http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2012-04-19/news/31367545_1_gujarat-solar-park-solar-project-solar-power-policy>.
Harding, Dan. “Wind and Solar Energy Power Antarctic Research Stations.” CalFinder. 20 Jul 2010. Web. <http://solar.calfinder.com/blog/solar-research/wind-solar-antarctic-stations/>.
McGroarty, Patrick. “Power to More People.” Wall Street Journal [Lomshyo] 18 Jun 2012. Web. <http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304203604577394963618998228.html>.
Office of Indian Energy and Economic Development. Tribal Energy and Environmental Information Clearinghouse. Solar Energy Resources in the United States. Web. <http://teeic.anl.gov/er/solar/restech/dist/index.cfm>.
“Solar Energy.” New York Times 11 Oct 2012. Web. <http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/business/energy-environment/solar-energy/index.html>.
Image:
White, Seth. POLENET. Scientists install a GPS station in the Whitmore Mountains during low temperatures and high winds.. 2012. The Antartic SunWeb. 29 Oct 2012. <http://antarcticsun.usap.gov/science/contenthandler.cfm?id=2615>.