A state-of-art research facility has been built at the University of Ottawa, which is suitable for thermalhydraulic experiments in support of the development of the Canadian Supercritical-Water-Cooled Reactor (SCWR). The facility is a recirculating flow loop, using carbon dioxide as a medium and having three different test sections, two tubes with inner diameters of 8 and 22 mm, respectively, and a three-rod bundle. The loop can operate within ranges of pressure, temperature, heat flux and mass flux, which are of interest to the current SCWR design. The present thesis includes a comprehensive description of the facility. It also documents the procedure and results of its commissioning, as well as some preliminary measurements that have been collected so far. It is intended to provide an insight to the design of the facility and its functionality and to serve as a reference for future research activities. A number of tests performed by previous researchers in other facilities were replicated and nearly identical results were obtained. It was demonstrated that the design of the facility is sound and its performance is adequate within the intended ranges of operation conditions. It is expected that the results obtained in this facility will make a significant contribution to the understanding of supercritical heat transfer and pressure losses in the SCWR context.

This thesis deals with the topic of nuclear energy. The Czech Republic is currently a net electricity exporter however this status will probably change in next few years because of growing electricity consumption and decommissioning of obsolete coal-fired power plants. Moreover, contemporary government declared that it won't approve any construction of new reactors stressing the importance of renewable sources of energy (in spite of their limited potential in the Czech Republic). The goal of this thesis is to answer the question whether nuclear energy can compete with other sources of energy and whether is it possible to satisfy growing electricity consumption under the conditions of the Czech Republic by any other source of electricity besides nuclear energy taking into account environmental aspects.

The events of the recent past in the energy department in Europe have shown how big is it's dependency on import of the primary energy resources. In the long run it is obvious that a high dependency on import of resources with the increasing demand of the population will not be able to provide Europe with so much needed easy accessible and reasonably priced energy. The integration process in Europe lasts more than fifty years now but energy policy is even after the ratification of the Lisbon treaty in controll of the national parlaments of member countries. Even though the options and posibilitie of the countries differ in the long run a closer cooperation is mandatory. The thesis is about the united energy policy in Europe and the development it went through since the beginning of the integration process in the fifties of last century. I will describe the main events that formed it as well as the main resources of energy production in the EU. I will explain the term energy security and in the end I will write about nuclear power that is today a vary efficient but after the events of Fukushima also controversial alternative of energy independence.

The thesis deals with the communication of the Temelín Nuclear Power Plant. Nuclear sources of energy are currently a sensitive issue. The planned extension of the Temelín NPP is also a frequently discussed topic in the Czech Republic; it affects many stakeholders and faces increased public and media interest. The goal of the thesis is to create a communication strategy of the Temelín NPP targeted to the public. The draft of the strategy is based on the conclusions of the SWOT analysis focused on the Temelín NPP communication, furthermore, on the analysis of selected online communication tools used by the Temelín NPP, and mainly on the quantitative survey conducted with the purpose to find out the actual public perception of the Temelín NPP and the public attitude to nuclear energy in general. The strategy also uses the knowledge of the company ČEZ media analysis and the findings of the sociological survey among inhabitants of the area close to Temelín compiled by STEM/MARK research agency.

This thesis deals with the idea of using accelerator driven systems for thorium transmutation into the fissile material, which can be utilized in the accelerator driven systems and in thermal nuclear reactors. Thorium occurs on Earth only in fertile isotope Th-232. It can be converted to fissile U-233 by neutron capture and subsequent beta decay. The experimental part handles the data measured by the irradiation of four thorium samples by the secondary neutrons in the QUINTA spallation target, which was irradiated with 660~MeV protons. Reaction rates for the fission and spallation products were estimated using gamma spectroscopy and activation techniques. Furthermore, Pa-233 production rates were also determined in all experimental samples. Pa-233 and fission production rates were calculated in all experimental samples using the MCNPX transport code and evaluated nuclear data for high-energy reactions. The experimental results are of a great importance for the future investigation of thorium in the accelerator driven system concept, validation of Monte-Carlo based calculation codes and validation of high-energy nuclear models.

Research report submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements Of the Master of Arts Degree In Sociology At the University of Witwatersrand Department of sociology / The main purpose of this research is to provide an analysis of opposition to nuclear energy in South Africa, focusing on organisations and activists opposed to the current nuclear build programme. The organisations opposed to nuclear include Earthlife Africa, Greenpeace, Coalition Against nuclear Energy, national Union of Mineworkers, the Economic Freedom fighters and Democratic Alliance, COSATU and other organisations. The study utilises a qualitative approach, mainly document analysis complimented by indepth expert interviews. The South African nuclear energy programme is a polarised issue triggering intense and often emotive debate on both sides, anti-nuclear activists and pronuclear proponents. The research pays specific attention to anti-nuclear activists and organisations opposed to South Africa's nuclear energy programme. In order to understand the anti-nuclear position, I have also incorporated pro-nuclear arguments in the study to have a better grasp of the concerns raised by organisations opposing nuclear energy. There are three main points of conflict: economic, environmental, and political. I show how opponents have framed resistance around cost and safety concerns, environmental impacts associated with nuclear and the nexus of elite political capture of state resources. / Andrew Chakane 2021

Le parc électrique français, caractérisé par une part élevée d’électricité nucléaire, est à l’aube d’une période de transition qui s’étendra au-delà de 2050. Cette transition est caractérisée par une augmentation de la part de l’éolien et du solaire et, en parallèle, une réduction de la part du nucléaire dans le mix électrique, laquelle devrait rester toutefois significative. L’intégration de l’éolien et du solaire dans un mix nécessite de mobiliser des moyens de flexibilité supplémentaires pour maintenir le niveau de fiabilité objectif du système, tant dans le court terme que dans le long terme. L’ensemble des leviers du côté de l’offre et de la demande électrique devra être mis en oeuvre pour répondre à ces nouveaux besoins de flexibilité. Le parc nucléaire aura son rôle à jouer.Dans ce contexte, comment la France peut-elle adapter son parc électrique vers plus de flexibilité, tout en conservant un mix bas carbone et en maîtrisant les coûts associés ? L’objectif de la thèse est d’apporter des éclairages à cette question, par l’intermédiaire d’analyses technico-économiques.Les interactions entre énergie nucléaire et énergies renouvelables variables sont analysées grâce à deux approches complémentaires : l’une, essentiellement technique, confronte les sollicitations futures du parc nucléaire à ses possibilités théoriques ; l’autre, technico-économique, évalue le coût pour le système électrique de voir assurée une partie de la flexibilité par le nucléaire et examine des leviers pour réduire ce coût et rendre compétitif un parc nucléaire fonctionnant en mode flexible. Ces deux approches sont basées sur la construction de scénarios aux horizons 2030 et 2050.Nous montrons que les sollicitations en suivi de charge du parc nucléaire croîtront fortement avec l’augmentation de l’éolien et du solaire. Même si le parc possède des marges de manoeuvre pour réaliser plus d’opérations de suivi de charge, celles demandées au parc nucléaire en présence de solaire et d’éolien à des taux supérieurs à 30% de la demande électrique paraissent difficilement soutenables techniquement par lui seul. Du point de vue de la gestion opérationnelle du parc nucléaire, nous remarquons qu’il est souhaitable de favoriser le développement de l’éolien par rapport à celui du solaire, puisque c’est ce dernier qui induit les sollicitations extrêmes en puissance.Le coût de production du nucléaire pourrait augmenter significativement avec la réduction de l’utilisation du parc. Il apparaît alors essentiel de promouvoir un remplacement progressif du parc pour réduire l’impact économique d’une participation à la flexibilité dans la période de transition. Dans le cas de nouveaux investissements nucléaires, une augmentation du prix de la tonne de CO2 pourrait rendre le back-up nucléaire compétitif face aux centrales à gaz à cycle combiné. Par ailleurs, anticiper le développement de nouveaux débouchés devient crucial pour éclairer les choix d’investissements électriques bas-carbone.Pour contourner la difficulté posée par la réduction du taux d’utilisation du nucléaire, nous examinons la flexibilité du nucléaire comme un levier d’offre de service énergétique plus vaste, tout en contribuant à la fiabilité du système électrique. La production d’hydrogène permet des synergies entre renouvelables et nucléaire pour valoriser ses surplus de production. Cette solution paraît intéressante dès 2030 si les capacités du parc nucléaire sont conservées et que l’opérateur choisit une stratégie économique adaptée pour s’ouvrir à de nouveaux débouchés. Le développement des exportations ou des usages de la chaleur sont aussi des options envisageables pour l’utilisation des surplus.Au global, nous recommandons, afin d’encourager les synergies possibles entre énergies bas-carbone, d’appréhender la part du nucléaire en France dans une dynamique adaptée à la pénétration des renouvelables, et au déploiement des marchés des coproduits nucléaires, dont l’hydrogène. / The French power system is transitioning towards a more diversified low carbon mix. The power mix is characterised by a high nuclear share which is to remain significant and the target to increase variable renewables (wind and solar) by 2050. When introduced massively, wind and solar trigger new needs for back-up power, both in the short and long term, to answer the flexibility required in order to maintain the reliability target level of the power system. All flexibility options should be complementarily developed, given their characteristics, and nuclear will have a role to play in this context.How could the French power mix be adapted towards more flexibility while maintaining a low-carbon level and mastering associated costs? The purpose of this PhD thesis is to shed light on this issue thanks to a techno-economic analysisAt first, interactions between nuclear and variable renewables are analysed thanks to two complementary approaches. On the one hand, a technical perspective is adopted by confronting prospective nuclear load-following requirements to the fleet theoretical capabilities. On the other hand, thanks to a techno-economic approach, we evaluate the additional cost of ensuring part of the flexibility requirements with the nuclear fleet and examine options to reduce this cost to make nuclear back-up competitive. These two approaches are based on the construction of realistic scenarios by 2030 and 2050.The French nuclear fleet will be asked for a strong increase of the load following operations with growing wind and solar shares. Even if the nuclear fleet can enable higher power ramps and amplitude variations, when wind and solar account for more than 30% in the total demand, compensating for the power variations induced would require complementary means. From a fleet management perspective, it would be beneficial to favour wind compared to solar in the power mix. The latter induces extreme power ramps and amplitudes for the nuclear fleet.The nuclear production cost could be significantly increased with the decrease of the nuclear utilisation rate. In the transition phase, it would be of great importance to promote a progressive replacement of the nuclear fleet to compensate for the production cost increase. In the case of new nuclear investments, a carbon price increase could make nuclear back-up able to compete with combined-cycle gas turbine plants as the alternative back-up option. Anticipating the development of new outlets becomes crucial to guide future investments in low-carbon power plants.To bypass the issue of the nuclear utilisation rate reduction, it would be worth considering taking advantage of the available excess energy to produce valuable products while providing flexibility services to the grid. Hydrogen production, as a flexible power demand, could enhance synergies between nuclear and variable renewables through new markets to valorise the excess nuclear energy. When wind and solar shares increase, along with the hydrogen market expected growth driven by mobility uses, opportunities are created for the nuclear operator. If the French nuclear capacities are maintained and if an adapted business model is developed, nuclear-hydrogen coproduction could answer the hydrogen demand by 2030. Other options could be considered to find outlets to the excess power such as the development of power exportations or the coproduction of heat and electricity.Overall, in order to foster synergies between low-carbon power plants, the change of the nuclear share in the French power mix should be apprehended through dynamics adapted to the penetration of renewables as well as to the deployment of hydrogen markets, and new markets in general.

La thèse étudie le rôle que les centrales nucléaires pourraient jouer dans la décarbonisation des secteurs du chauffage en Europe et en France. Un réacteur nucléaire est d’abord une source de chaleur à longue durée de vie qui peut produire de l’électricité grâce à un turboalternateur. Mais il peut également être utilisé en mode cogénération en produisant à la fois de l’électricité et de la chaleur. Cette option présente plusieurs avantages dont celui de fournir une chaleur exempte d’émissions de gaz à effet de serre (GES) et celui d’offrir de la flexibilité au réseau électrique.Aujourd’hui, l'exploitation la plus courante des centrales nucléaires est la fourniture exclusive d’électricité. Cependant, cela entraîne le rejet dans l'environnement de grandes quantités de chaleur issues de la conversion en électricité. Le transfert d'une partie de cette chaleur aux puits industriels ou aux systèmes de chauffage urbain à proximité réduirait la consommation de combustibles fossiles et les émissions de GES. Si cette chaleur venait en substitution de combustibles fossiles importés, cela permettrait également d'améliorer l’indépendance énergétique, favorisant ainsi la stabilité des prix à long terme. / The Ph.D. Thesis studies the role that nuclear plants could play in decarbonizing the European and French heating sectors. A nuclear power plant is basically a thermal plant that convert the nuclear heat into electricity using a turboalternator. But it could also be used in a cogeneration mode producing simultaneously power and heat. The latter offers many advantages including the low carbon profile and the ability to provide flexibility to the power grid.The most widely spread operation of nuclear plants today is electricity only production, which imply the dumping into the environment a large amount of heat that has not been converted to electricity. Transferring part of this heat to nearby industrial sinks or district heating systems would reduce fossil fuel consumption and greenhouse gases emissions. If this heat is replacing imported fossil-fuels that would also improve energy self-sufficiency, favouring long-term price stability.

From 1976 to 1992 Portland General Electric (PGE) -- a private utility based in Portland, Oregon -- operated the Trojan Nuclear Plant near Rainier, Oregon, on the bank of the Columbia River. Trojan was the first commercial nuclear facility in the Pacific Northwest and was the largest such facility in U.S. history. From its origins, Trojan was the focus of growing conflict over atomic energy facilities and their environmental effects, risks, and costs. This thesis traces the history of Trojan, including the conditions in which PGE decided to build the plant as well as the changing conditions in which the environmental movement in Oregon worked to impact the operation of Trojan and the development of further atomic energy facilities in the region. Two sets of values, largely endemic to the region, came into conflict in the debate over Trojan: one which valued preservation of vital natural systems over all else, and another that elevated technological progress to supreme importance in achieving the ultimate social good. Supporters of Trojan and anti-nuclear activists both viewed misinformation about nuclear power as one of the central problems in the way that Oregon residents viewed nuclear power. Although there were many loyal supporters of Trojan, particularly in Columbia County, there were also a great number who viewed the technology cautiously. While both PGE and nuclear opponents worked diligently to sway public opinion, many activists did so by attempting to uncover and publicize hidden information about the design and operation of Trojan, and the nuclear fuel cycle in general. This included efforts throughout the plant's lifetime to develop opportunities for intervention in administrative proceedings, government hearings, and other arenas which often discourage citizen involvement. Related to the public debate over Trojan were ongoing operational difficulties and changing economic conditions, which contributed to the decision PGE announced in 1993 that Trojan would be permanently shut down. This study is based primarily on coverage from newspapers and periodicals, new and extant oral history interviews, documents from the personal files of activists, as well as various archival materials associated with PGE, activist groups, and government agencies.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Nuclear Engineering, 1975. / Vita. / Bibliography: leaves 460-462. / by Raymond Eng. / Ph.D.