China Will Spend $3.3 Billion to Research Molten Salt Nuclear-Powered Drones (scmp.com)

Long-time Slashdot reader WindBourne tipped us off to some news from The South China Morning Post: China is to spend 22 billion yuan (US$3.3 billion) trying to perfect a form of technology largely discarded in the cold war which could produce a safer but more powerful form of nuclear energy. The cash is to develop two "molten salt" reactors in the Gobi Desert in northern China. Researchers hope that if they can solve a number of technical problems the reactors will lead to a range of applications, including nuclear-powered warships and drones. The technology, in theory, can create more heat and power than existing forms of nuclear reactors that use uranium, while producing only one thousandth of the radioactive waste. It also has the advantage for China of using thorium as its main fuel. China has some of the world's largest reserves of the metal...

The reactors use molten salt rather than water as a coolant, allowing them to create temperatures of over 800 degrees Celsius, nearly three times the heat produced by a commercial nuclear plant fuelled with uranium. The superhot air has the potential to drive turbines and jet engines and in theory keep a bomber flying at supersonic speed for days.
One Beijing researcher says these drones "would serve as a platform for surveillance, communication or weapon delivery to deter nuclear and other threats from hostile countries." He asked not to be named, but provided one more advantage for a nuclear-powered drone flying at high-altitudes over the ocean.

"It will also have more public acceptance. If an accident happens, it crashes into the sea."

Comments

Meanwhite...

[PopeRatzo]

While China is exerting its technical superiority, here in the US, the regime in power has banned the use of the phrases, "science-based" and "evidence-based" from government-funded scientific organizations.

https://www.usatoday.com/story...

We are so fucked.

Re:Meanwhite...

[Anonymous Coward]

We need a happy medium

Part of what is occurring now is because of the anything that works effort of destroying Obama. It is so much easier to find someone to blame than it is to actually fix something. The racism and such that was appealed to was not new, but the flames were fanned and are still being fanned. Intellectualism is now considered a very bad thing. The great people succeeded on guts and greatness, right?

I have no idea on how to get elections won by the best candidate. Right now it looks like they are going to be won by the least hated, with it bouncing back and forth. Of course the republican hypocrisy in the current tax bill is staggering. The dems should run commercials pointing out how much debt they are adding on for our kids and their kids.

As far as China researching nuclear reactors, well, why not, as long as they take reasonable care. I'm not sure I want flying nuclear reactors in any form, but they certainly have a right to research.

Actually the United States credit should get the threat of a major downgrade if they pass this tax crap, and actually get it. That may be how China could help. They could threaten to not buy our debt.

The current tax bill is basically a hit of crack. It may accelerate things, but there is gonna be one hell of a crash sooner or later. From what I can tell they are timing it so it blows to hell when a Dem will likely be in power. That way they can blame the dem for causing it all and the uniformed will buy it, again.

I rather think a few of China's nuclear drones would make for a smaller catastrophe.

Why the US rejected the idea.

[gurps_npc]

It does not create weapons grade radioactive materials. If you have a thorium based nuclear reactor you end up with low amounts of radioactive waste and can not build nuclear bombs. If you use the more traditional nuclear power plants, you get all this fun stuff that can be used to build a nuclear bomb.

The USA wanted nuclear bombs, so we ignored this technology.

Re: No reason to use nuclear when we have cheap so

[Anonymous Coward]

Betting the planet on a speculative technology that isn't quite there yet would not seem to be tremendously sensible.

No bet at all. It's no-risk, all-reward, results are practically guaranteed. I mean yeah, the planet COULD be hit by an asteroid, rendering the investment ineffective, but so what?

In contrast we could build nuclear plants (using half-century old designs, even) that would work, and by any reasonable standard would deserve to be called "clean".

There have been numerous delays, flaws, and bankruptcies resulting in all but one single nuclear plant in the US being canceled, and that previous plant was started in the 1970s. Apparently we cannot build them.

But let's go back to our regular scheduled anti-nuclear fear-mongering. It's not like frying the planet is anything to worry about.

No need to fear monger, EVERY PENNY WASTED (and that total is billions) on nuclear power since say, 2005, could have been reinvested in insulation, home construction, light bulbs, cool roofs, window-replacement, and delivered better results. No need to even put money into wind, solar, hydro, tide, or geothermal energy.

The fact is, like it or not, the nuclear demon is not the problem. The nuclear wastrel is.