While many companies are beginning to shy away from using nuclear power when there are so many other renewable energy sources available that are far less harmful to the environment and potentially us, China seems to have gone in the opposite direction. They have broken a world record in producing the smallest ever nuclear power plant that is so small it could fit inside a shipping container.
It may be small, but this little reactor packs a punch too and can power as many as 50,000 households with the energy it generates. The reactor has the ability to run for decades without the need to refuel and could be in operation within as little as five years on an island in the South China Sea. By placing the reactor near the sea, scientists can integrate a desalination method that will turn large amounts of seawater into fresh, usable water.
Because of its small size (20 feet by 8.5 feet), it has been dubbed the portable nuclear battery pack or Hedianbao. But, don’t let it’s size put you off, as good things come in small packages. The whole research project is being conducted by the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Nuclear Energy Safety Technology and some of its funding is coming directly from the People’s Liberation Army. Professor Huang Qunying is a nuclear physicist involved in the project, and he said, “Part of our funding came from the military, but we hope – and it’s our ultimate goal – that the technology will eventually benefit civilian users.”
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