China ’s National Nuclear Safety Administration has issued a license to the Shanghai Institute of Applied Physics ( SINAP ) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences to operate China ’s first " Thorium Molten Salt Reactor- Liquid Fuel 1 " ( TMSR - LF1 ) , which was under construction between 2018 and 2021 in Wuwei urban center .

This is the first license given in China for thistype of reactorbut it is not the only one being build . In 2021 , we reported the mental synthesis oftwo other reactors . While popular decade ago , these types of reactors , know as flying reactor , are no longer common , with only two commercial 1 in the world presently working .

" The thorium - fueled liquified table salt experimental reactor operation software and related to technical document were reviewed , and it was considered that the software met the relevant safety requisite , and it was decided to release the 2 MWt [ megawatts thermal ] swimming fuel thorium - base molten salt data-based nuclear reactor an operating license , " the National Nuclear Safety Administration enunciate in astatement .

The sake that many countries have in this technology is around vim yield . received atomic reactors utilize water as a coolant and have a thermodynamic efficiency that is pretty mellow compare to fossil fuels . These reactor are even good than the traditional approaches . That means a low nuclear reactor with less fuel would get a much higher vigour output .

If this is the fount , why are n’t citizenry build loads of them ? Well , there are drawbacks to not using water as the coolant . Molten metals have often been used , such as sodium . But sodium is very reactive , which conduce to27 sodium leaksin a 17 - class period , 14 of which conduct to sodium fire , in Russian nuclear reactor .

The new Chinese nuclear reactor uses a special salt of lithium - Be fluoride as a coolant . It is believe it will manoeuver at a maximum temperature of 650 ° vitamin C ( 1,202 ° F ) for up to 10 year . If this nuclear reactor is successful , China plans a much bragging one . The United States , France , and Japan made anagreementto enquiry and develop more of these reactors , and in 2021 Bill Gates ’ TerraPower and Warren Buffett ’s PacifiCorp putforward a proposalto build up an experimental reactor in place of a disused ember ability plant .

[ H / T : Interesting engine room ]