Helping Aging Power Plants

No nuclear plant on the drawing board today is likely to be on the grid before 2014. In the meantime, the world’s energy demands are curving upward while existing nuclear plants age to the upper limits of their licensed operating life. It has been estimated that some 82 new reactors would have to come online in the next decade to replace the power output of plants reaching the end of their life expectancy.  Small wonder then that much analysis and innovation is being invested in ways to extend the lives of aging reactors and to boost the power production efficiency of others.