Nuclear Diesel: A Game Changer – By Robert Hargraves (Real Clear Energy) / June 13, 2023
Synfuels, energized by fission, can transform US competition with China.
CHINA COMPETITION. US efforts to electrify transportation are faltering because electric vehicles (EVs) are expensive, US electric power generation and distribution are inadequate, and needed materials must be imported. China’s BYD sells more EVs than Tesla, and its new Seagull costs less than $11,000. China controls the supply of rare earth elements necessary for magnets in electric motors. EV battery production relies on lithium, nickel, and cobalt not supplied from the US. China is already the world’s largest auto exporter. Attempting to catch up to China on transportation electrification will require decades of permitting, mining, industrial development, and money measured in trillions.
CHANGING THE GAME. We can change the competition from vehicle electrification to producing zero-emission diesel fuel made from CO2, water, and nuclear energy. The US can leverage its expertise in petroleum refining and chemical engineering. For example, the US petrochemical industry developed fracking and rapidly became the world’s largest exporter of liquified natural gas. Diesel fuel now powers 90% of freight transport. No matter the future of EVs, the US and the world will continue to depend on diesel-like fuels for trucking, mining, shipping, rail transport, and air flight, because batteries weigh fifty times more than fuel for the same energy.
HYDROGEN FUEL. Many world leaders and scientists want to reduce CO2 emissions from burning fuels. Hydrogen can be produced by electrolysis of water, with no CO2 emissions, using electricity generated from hydro, wind, solar, or nuclear power. Hydrogen can be a vehicle fuel, but it is very difficult and expensive to store and distribute, as Nikola now experiences in its trucking venture. However hydrogen has a key role in synthesizing diesel fuel.
CONTINUE > https://www.realclearenergy.org/articles/2023/06/13/nuclear_diesel_a_game_changer_940322.html
