An Unexpected Solution to the Energy Crisis: Hybrid Nuclear Energy
The global need for environmentally clean yet inexpensive and reliable energy is a problem that has yet to find a solution. • In one corner are coal plants that can generate low-cost power using abundant reserves of coal, but if emissions are uncontrolled, major health and environmental impacts can occur. • In another corner are natural gas power plants that can produce energy with relatively low emissions, but the cost to the consumer is unpredictable and often high. • Yet another option lies with building nuclear plants that produce emissions-free power, but initial costs are very high and some public unease exists with respect to safety. A major complication is the consensus that burning massive amounts of fossil fuels is a primary culprit behind climate change. While intermittent renewable energy (e.g. solar and wind) and conservation practices can help, the undeniable truth is that the vast quantities of power we continuously consume overwhelm the practical capabilities of the “green” sources. Similar in nature to the fundamentals behind the hybrid automobile, Hybrid-nuclear Energy is an emerging 21st century technology that provides an environmentally sound and economical solution to the power and greenhouse gas dilemmas. This developing energy conversion process uses nuclear and fossil fuels to safely produce reasonably priced electrical power and transportation fuels from our own indigenous sources with the timely benefit of dramatically reduced emissions, particularly CO2. Hybrid-nuclear Energy secures energy independence by using cleaner coal, effectively solves nuclear and coal waste dilemmas, and helps create more affordable nuclear power. These surprising results are achieved by a unique marriage of helium gas reactor, combustion turbine and coal gasification technologies.