China Demonstrates the First Entirely Meltdown-Proof Nuclear Reactor
Efforts to expand nuclear power have long been stymied by fears of a major nuclear meltdown. A new Chinese reactor design is the first full-scale demonstration that’s entirely meltdown-proof.
Despite the rapid rise of renewable energy, many argue that nuclear power still has an important role to play in the race to decarbonize our supply of electricity. But incidents like Chernobyl and Fukushima have made people understandably wary.
The latest nuclear reactor designs are far safer than those of previous generations, but they still carry the risk of a nuclear meltdown. This refers to when a plant’s cooling system fails, often due to power supplies being cut off, leading to runaway overheating in the core. This can cause an explosion that breaches containment units and spreads radioactive material far and wide.
But now, researchers in China have carried out tests to prove that a new kind of reactor design is essentially impervious to meltdowns. In a paper in Joule, they describe a test in which they cut power to a live nuclear plant—and the plant was able to passively cool itself.
