Nuclear power vessels are fully promoted in the maritime sector
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At present, preparatory work for the large-scale recovery of nuclear reactors for commercial sea transportation is underway.
Although shipping vessels are already quite energy efficient, reducing emissions is still stressful for the shipping industry. Market-oriented measures to control carbon dioxide emissions are potential ways. The International Maritime Organization has developed some control measures for such issues and will enter into force in 2020. Before this node, the sea transport industry can fully weigh the pros and cons of technological change and fuel replacement. However, if it is impossible to solve the technical problems of reducing emissions caused by the use of diesel or liquefied petroleum gas, it will be more practical to choose nuclear energy as the driving force for shipping.
In recent years, this trend has developed rapidly. Recently, a major joint research project has been launched, which is the most noteworthy progress in nuclear energy utilization in the field of shipping.
The marine energy consulting company BMT Group, together with numerous shipping and trading companies, has joined the small reactor research and development company Hyperion Lloyd and has "investigated the operability of small modular reactors for sea transportation."
Lloyd Insurance Company CEO Richard Sadler said, "We will soon see the nuclear power fleet sailing on the established trade route, much faster than many expected." Lloyd Insurance companies have been independent service providers in the maritime industry for the past 250 years.
In view of the great interest shown by the members of Hyperion Lloyd's Insurance Company in nuclear power-driven merchant ships, Lloyd's Insurance Company has recently revised the rules and regulations of nuclear power merchant ships. These amendments mainly incorporate some approved approvals for land-based reactors. The rules and regulations, considering the reactor and the merchant ship as a whole. The draft of this regulation was reported to the Lloyds Technical Committee two weeks ago. This means that the safety of nuclear power vessels around the world is a step forward in the development of norms.
Lloyd's Insurance's Vince Jenkins told the World Nuclear News Network: "The national marine management department has almost no ability to effectively supervise nuclear power merchant ships, so it needs the terrestrial nuclear energy management department to provide regulatory support. So far, the world There is no nuclear-powered trade carrier, so the above rules and regulations can provide an operational framework for nuclear power merchant ships. Within the framework of this proposal, we develop a zone for each classification society to supplement the safety of nuclear power merchant ships and The value and confidence of installing a complete reactor nuclear power plant in a merchant ship."
Lloyd's company claims that the joint research and development project aims to develop a "tank wheel concept based on the concept of conventionalization and modularity." The company also mentioned that "we need to pay special attention to the cost of the tanker throughout the life cycle. Special attention will be given to the ship's service cycle cost, hull shell design and structural layout, including landing and impact protection."
Nuclear power was used in navigation since the 1960s. The first representative ships were the Savannah and Otto Hahn. Although the Savannah only served for 10 years, Otto Hahn switched to diesel after 9 years of use. The engine ended. The Mutsu, made in Japan, began its service in 1970 and retired in 1992, but these nuclear-powered ships were less successful from a commercial shipping perspective.
But Russia's commercial route icebreaker fleet in the Arctic Ocean is an exception. It is used as an icebreaker for the Arctic Ocean trade route. The fleet consists of seven ships, one of which is a cargo ship. Today the Akademik Lomonosov is loaded with a small reactor of the same type as the cargo ship mentioned above; it is the world's first floating nuclear power plant and is deployed to serve in the Russian Far East.
Despite this, there are now about 200 small reactors installed on military warships, but whether this technology can be converted to civilian use depends on the requirements for using low enriched uranium. In the military field of countries that have declared nuclear weapons, highly enriched uranium can promote the development of smaller, lighter, more controllable and compact reactors.
The Hyperion system uses low enriched uranium in a volume of 1.5 meters by 2.5 meters. Its thermal power is 70 - enough to produce the 25 megawatts of driving force required by the ship. The design of the battery simplifies fuel replenishment, which can be done every 8 to 10 years, and can also be rented like an aircraft engine.
However, the reactor is loaded into the merchant ship to require strict radiation shielding, and the problem of ship collision is carefully considered. The training received by the crew is subject to change step by step, and the reactor supplier should provide a solid protective enclosure for all crew members.
Although nuclear power is an economic energy source that can reduce energy consumption and reduce carbon dioxide emissions in the long run, nuclear power plants require additional capital investment compared to fossil fuel power plants, and this is a significant obstacle for nuclear power plants. First, this is very similar to nuclear power plants on land. For diesel-powered vessels, the most efficient way to save fuel and reduce emissions is to slow down. If this constraint is to be avoided, the use of nuclear-powered vessels is quite attractive for certain cargo ships and routes.