According to the Nuclear Energy Institute, the continuous development of cutting-edge innovations has helped the nuclear energy industry become the most reliable carbon-free source of electricity. With industry efficiency running at around 90 percent through this decade, nuclear energy facilities have generated record-high amounts of electricity in six of the past 10 years.
The institute also mentions that 104 nuclear power plants, operating in 31 states, supply one-fifth of the nation’s electricity, even though they constitute only 10 percent of installed electric generating capacity. To increase public awareness of the significance of these breakthroughs, the Nuclear Energy Institute has produced a series of videos, such as “High-Tech Stress Relief” (below), that examine innovations recognized with a Top Industry Practice award at the institute’s recent conference.
The institute says that four videos will be posted to the Internet weekly for the next month:
- The first video, “High-Tech Stress Relief,” looks at the challenge of microscopic stress corrosion cracking in plant systems.
- The second, “Global Ties Boost Nuclear Plant Performance,” discusses the international exchange of best practices.
- The third, “The Secret Is Plastic,” examines new piping applications.
- The final video, “Robotic Inspectors,” looks at a new robotic technique that remotely inspects key power plant components.
