Resources & Stats
May 2008
The sleek, open-wheel race car may not be nuclear-powered, but as for the driver, perhaps a nuclear-powered determination pushes her over the finish line.Piloting a Newman Wachs Racing car that sports a full-throttle message about nuclear energy’s clean-air benefits, Simona de Silvestro powered through the streets of Long Beach, Calif., last month to win the Atlantic Championship season opener, becoming the second woman to win a race in the Atlantic series.
“I was a little nervous,” she said of two late-race restarts. “I’ve never started with a full pack behind me that would try to pass me. But it was pretty smooth.”
Also In This Issue:
Public Supports Clean Air Incentives
An overwhelming majority of Americans endorse the use of federal financial incentives to help promote development of carbon-free energy technologies, including new nuclear power plants, according to a new national survey of 1,000 adults.The survey shows that 79 percent of Americans approve of providing tax credits “as an incentive to companies to build solar, wind and advanced-design nuclear power plants.”
Nuclear Plants Continue Superior Performance
Once again, the nation’s commercial reactors are at the zenith of power plant efficiency levels. In 2007, 104 reactors in 31 states achieved a median unit capability factor of 91.5 percent. For the eighth consecutive year, unit capability factor—a plant’s ability to produce electricity around the clock—topped 90 percent, according to performance indicators compiled by the World Association of Nuclear Operators.
On the Horizon: Small-Scale Reactors for Remote Applications
In rural or remote areas, a reliable electricity supply is not always available, but energy entrepreneurs are working to change that. Hyperion Power Generation is among the companies hoping to fill this market niche. The company has designed a small-scale nuclear power module that can power 25,000 homes for a five-year period.