NUCLEAR POWER PLANT, pressurized water reactor, small modular reactor
Abstract
This Review paper states that the concept of a nuclear power plant. Nuclear power can solve the energy trilemma of supplying baseload, clean and affordable power. However, a review of nuclear power plant (NPP) builds show mixed results, with delays in Finland and the US offset by successes in China, South Korea and the UAE. In the West, financing for new builds has been difficult in the face of a deregulated energy market, billion-dollar upfront investments, long build times and in the case of the US historically low gas prices. We explore how the nuclear industry is innovating in facing these challenges through a review of nuclear power developments in the past, present and future. Early developments in nuclear power in the 1950s resulted in a variety of designs, out of which the pressurized water reactor (PWR) became dominant for its compactness and overall economy.
