1. By: Alec Linot
The Future of Energy

2. Energy Density (MJ/1kg)
Energy Densities
Material
Energy Density (MJ/1kg)
Solar*
0.2-1
Wood 10
Ethanol
26.8
Coal
32.5
Crude Oil
41.9
Diesel
45.8
Natural Gas
55.6
Natural Uranium
570000
Reactor-grade Uranium
*Although solar can not be given an energy density of MJ/kg it is times less dense than wood so it is put up here just to show the comparison.

3. Putting this in Perspective
This is the energy density comparison including nuclear 
Putting this in Perspective
This is the energy density comparison not including nuclear

4. Cost Comparison to Clean Energy

5. Base Load
Nuclear could provide all base load energy needs and the addition of electric vehicles should push the base load in the future.

6. Current Base load
Nuclear could offset all of the coal and much of the natural gas used for base load fuel

7. Problems with Nuclear
Proliferation- using nuclear energy risks the development of nuclear weapons.
Waste- using nuclear energy creates long lasting radioactive waste.
Safety- nuclear reactors malfunctioning can have catastrophic consequences.
Cost- building nuclear reactors and fueling them can be costly.
Solving these four problems makes nuclear the best choice.

8. Light Water Reactor(LWR)
Safety Problems
High-pressure
Need constant energy
Proliferation Problems
Waste can easily be converted into weapons
Waste Problems
Use up less than one percent of fuel
Waste lasts thousands of years
Cost and sustainability
Fuel supply only predicted to last another hundred years at current use

9. Next Generation Reactors
Fission
Travelling Wave Reactor(TWR)
Liquid Fluoride Thorium Reactor(LFTR)
Fusion
Magnetic confinement

10. Fission
Fission happens when a fissile material like uranium is shot with a neutron which causes the uranium to break apart, shoot off more neutrons, and release energy. The neutrons that get shot off then continue to break other uranium molecules making the reaction self-sustaining with the addition of fuel.

11. Travelling Wave Reactor
Runs off of depleted uranium
Waste benefits
Proliferation benefits
Passive safety features
Low cost
High energy output

12. Depleted Uranium
685,500 metric tons of depleted uranium in United States
Will continue to rise with conventional reactors
Storage risks
Proliferation risks

13. Safety Operates at near atmospheric pressure Passive safety features
Fukushima type scenarios are not a factor
Passive safety features
In the event of a catastrophic scenario the reactor does not need immediate operator action
Plant does not need energy to prevent a meltdown

14. Cost, Energy Output, and Sustainability
Expect savings of approximately $2 billion per reactor in fuel alone
A simplified design offers further savings
A fleet of TWRs could provide all electricity needs between 800 to 2000 years in the United States

15. Liquid Fluoride Thorium Reactor
Runs on thorium
Proliferation benefits
Waste
benefits
Design offers safety benefits
Cost and energy advantages

16. Waste Thorium reactors use up almost all waste
Waste is 83% gone in 10 years and below background levels in 300 years
Thorium reactors are fertile and need fissile start up material, which can be depleted uranium

17. Proliferation
Removing nuclear material for weapons is extremely difficult
Denatures all uranium
Plutonium quality is very poor
One reason LFTRs never caught on was they were bad at creating weapons

18. Safety Operates near atmospheric pressure like TWR
In the event of an accident scenario the fuel is siphoned into another tank

19. Cost, Energy Output, and Sustainability
Thorium could provide the world’s energy needs for several millennia with output and availability
Savings
Thorium is 4 times more
abundant than uranium
Power cost estimates for
LFTRs are lower than LWRs
Simplification in design

20. Fusion
Fusion happens when deuterium and tritium are pushed so close together their nuclei fuse together releasing a neutron, a helium atom, and a large amount of energy.

21. Waste, Proliferation, and Safety
The only waste is helium and neutrons
Helium is a beneficial waste
Neutrons only irradiate the vessel, which would have short lived radiation ( years)
Literally no risk of proliferation
Fusion takes work to maintain so in the event of a failure it will just stop

22. Cost, Energy Output, and Sustainability
If achieved its fuel source would be for all practical purposes infinite
Produces 4 times more energy than fission
No commercial reactors have been made so costs are difficult to predict

23. Difficulties Commercial fusion reactors do not exist
because fusion is unbelievable hard to create
Must overcome the Coulomb barrier
Must be heated up to fifty million Kelvin's
Must be contained
Magnetic confinement

24. The Future of Energy
TWRs and LFTRs are excellent reactors and if they were pushed forward could significantly deter global warming
Fusion Reactors will be the future, but are too far down the road to help with immediate problems posed by global warming

25. Works Cited
content/uploads/2010/02/nnp_factsheet_2010_final.pdf
energy-density-comparison/
NE&sw=w&asid=190f1e22da37dc1c6acc b095
Needs-and-Nuclear-Power/
splitting-a-large-atom-into-two-smaller-atoms-releases-energy-it-seems-that- combining-two-smaller-atoms-into-one-larger-atom-would-require-ene/
Facts came from sources on paper