Building an interconnected energy policy that supports an all-of-the-above strategy will bring humanity to the pinnacle of its potential. to achieve true energy independence, it must pursue a multifaceted approach. While renewables have their place in reducing our carbon footprint, limitations such as variability and intermittency continue to make the case that nuclear energy, when done right, will be the key to a stable and reliable power grid.īy investing in nuclear waste recycling and next-gen fission reactors, the United States can reduce its dependence on fossil fuels and provide clean and abundant energy for future generations. In contrast, other methods of achieving fusion energy, such as inertial confinement fusion and magnetic confinement fusion, have their own limitations and are far off on the horizon. There are also concepts for future hybrid reactors that have the added benefit of consuming high-energy neutrons from fusion reactions to sustain fission reactions - neutrons that would otherwise damage the fusion reactor’s containment. With these next-gen fission reactors online, the nuclear industry will be able to spare neutrons to generate tritium. Moreover, when done correctly, nuclear waste recycling not only offers fuel for reactors of the next decade but could also be a significant source of tritium to support future fusion development. Reducing the waste burden not only allows Congress to resolve its long-term obligations to ratepayers but also allows the industry to unlock the nuclear power of the future. Starting with the recognition that nuclear waste recycling is a critical avenue in nuclear technology innovation, Congress should support the development of new technologies that greatly reduce radioactive waste while recovering valuable materials like uranium fuel, blended transuranic fuels for advanced reactors, and a plethora of other isotope commodities to support various industries (that are now completely reliant on Russia). This means adapting a closed fuel cycle policy as the foundation of its nuclear energy development. This is why Congress must work in a transpartisan fashion with the Biden administration to unlock the potential of fission.
government comes to terms with the fact that fusion is far off and major investments in fission are key to decarbonizing our future, the path to a clean and sustainable future will remain elusive. With the risk that commercially available tritium stockpiles in the 2050s will be insufficient to meet the fusion demands, the idea that fusion is some silver bullet to climate change seems fantastic.
Such a platform requires nuclear waste recycling and next-generation fission reactors - as the forebears of nuclear energy had imagined. This is mainly because the West has failed to incorporate a closed fuel cycle. One of the most reliable forms of energy known to man, fission has yet to reach its maximum potential.
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