TWO IRISH FILMMAKERS want to know if thorium could be the answer to the world’s energy woes – and they have launched a Kickstarter campaign to raise enough money to finish a documentary on the topic.
Thorium is a radioactive chemical element which is more widely available than the uranium that powers nuclear plants, and as the Guardian explains, its proponents say that it could be used to generate large amounts of low-carbon electricity.
It has a number of benefits compared to uranium, as it is seen as safer with less potential for nuclear disaster; it is far more difficult to use its byproducts for making nuclear weapons and the waste it generates is not as dangerous for as long as uranium waste is.
The reactors that generate energy from thorium could burn up existing nuclear waste, said Fenton.
http://www.businessinsider.com/is-thorium-the-solution-to-all-our-energy-woes-2013-5
Thorium is a radioactive chemical element which is more widely available than the uranium that powers nuclear plants, and as the Guardian explains, its proponents say that it could be used to generate large amounts of low-carbon electricity.
It has a number of benefits compared to uranium, as it is seen as safer with less potential for nuclear disaster; it is far more difficult to use its byproducts for making nuclear weapons and the waste it generates is not as dangerous for as long as uranium waste is.
The reactors that generate energy from thorium could burn up existing nuclear waste, said Fenton.
http://www.businessinsider.com/is-thorium-the-solution-to-all-our-energy-woes-2013-5