Fukushima and the Future of Nuclear Energy in the U.S. – Richard Denning

Date: Thu. September 8th, 2011, 4:15 pm-5:15 pm
Location: Rockefeller 301

Dr. Denning will describe what actually happened in the Fukushima accident and provide an evaluation of the failure in safety practices that led to severe fuel damage. He will also discuss the expected health, environmental, and economic consequences of the event. Risk studies indicate that a similar ”station blackout” accident could occur in the U.S. but at a very low probability. Dr. Denning will describe some differences in the capabilities of U.S. plants similar in design to the Japanese plants to mitigate the consequences of such an event. The NRC has issued their 90-day report with recommendations regarding upgrades that could be required in operating plants in the U.S. He will discuss the implications to plans for life extension of current plants, planned power uprates, and prospects for new power plant designs that don’t require AC power to achieve safe shutdown.