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Nick Touran

@whatisnuclear • 46,225 subscribers

Nuclear engineer / reactor designer (Ph.D. P.E.) who runs https://t.co/ofTjIciUnl. CTO at Ocean Atomics.

Shorts

Germany: “Even tiny doses of radiation are bad. Burn coal instead of low-carbon nuclear!” Also Germany: “The U-Bahn station tiles in Berlin are glazed with slightly radioactive uranium.” Source:

Germany: “Even tiny doses of radiation are bad. Burn coal instead of low-carbon nuclear!” Also Germany: “The U-Bahn station tiles in Berlin are glazed with slightly radioactive uranium.” Source:

790,438 views

Sometimes you *really* need to go from 0 to 7,600 mph in 5 seconds. The Sprint anti-ballistic missile accelerated at 100 g and carried a W66 thermonuclear warhead. Man, Cold War missile defense was kinda crazy.

Sometimes you really need to go from 0 to 7,600 mph in 5 seconds. The Sprint anti-ballistic missile accelerated at 100 g and carried a W66 thermonuclear warhead. Man, Cold War missile defense was kinda crazy.

31,319 views

Having fun at the Vallecitos Atomic Plant dedication, May 22, 1957

Having fun at the Vallecitos Atomic Plant dedication, May 22, 1957

10,680 views

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I believe this is the first-ever documentary about nuclear fusion. It was produced in 1958 just as Project Sherwood was declassified. Now I'm happy to make it available online for the first time ever. Please enjoy! Thanks to Adam Rizika (funded scanning the 1st part, in high res) and thanks to the IAEA Lise Meitner Library (digitized the 2nd part in DVD quality) Contents: - 0:00 Introduction: Fuel in the Oceans and the Fourth Conquest of the Atom - 2:15 What Is a Plasma? The Deuterium Fusion Reactions - 4:20 Magnetic Confinement: The Magnetic Bottle, Leakage, and Instability - 6:18 Project Sherwood's Four Labs; Los Alamos and the Perhapsatron - 10:27 Columbus II and Columbus S4: Fast Pinch Experiments - 12:28 Ixion and Scylla: Rotating Plasma and Fast Compression - 15:30 UC Radiation Lab: Gamma Pinch, Homopolar, and Tubular Pinch - 20:31 The Magnetic Mirror Machine and "Table Top" - 24:36 "Toy Top": Multi-Stage Magnetic Compression - 27:20 "Felix": Injecting and Trapping High-Energy Ions - 29:30 Princeton's Project Matterhorn: The Stellarator - 32:35 Stellarator Instability, Shear Stabilization, and Ohmic Heating - 35:17 The Diverter and the Model C Stellarator - 37:47 Oak Ridge National Laboratory: The DCX Machine - 40:12 Inside DCX: Trapping the Ion Beam, Charge Exchange, and Burnout - 44:18 DCX in Operation and the State of Fusion Research, 1958

I believe this is the first-ever documentary about nuclear fusion. It was produced in 1958 just as Project Sherwood was declassified. Now I'm happy to make it available online for the first time ever. Please enjoy! Thanks to Adam Rizika (funded scanning the 1st part, in high res) and thanks to the IAEA Lise Meitner Library (digitized the 2nd part in DVD quality) Contents: - 0:00 Introduction: Fuel in the Oceans and the Fourth Conquest of the Atom - 2:15 What Is a Plasma? The Deuterium Fusion Reactions - 4:20 Magnetic Confinement: The Magnetic Bottle, Leakage, and Instability - 6:18 Project Sherwood's Four Labs; Los Alamos and the Perhapsatron - 10:27 Columbus II and Columbus S4: Fast Pinch Experiments - 12:28 Ixion and Scylla: Rotating Plasma and Fast Compression - 15:30 UC Radiation Lab: Gamma Pinch, Homopolar, and Tubular Pinch - 20:31 The Magnetic Mirror Machine and "Table Top" - 24:36 "Toy Top": Multi-Stage Magnetic Compression - 27:20 "Felix": Injecting and Trapping High-Energy Ions - 29:30 Princeton's Project Matterhorn: The Stellarator - 32:35 Stellarator Instability, Shear Stabilization, and Ohmic Heating - 35:17 The Diverter and the Model C Stellarator - 37:47 Oak Ridge National Laboratory: The DCX Machine - 40:12 Inside DCX: Trapping the Ion Beam, Charge Exchange, and Burnout - 44:18 DCX in Operation and the State of Fusion Research, 1958

219,198 views • 13 days ago

In February 2016, I was active on a repeater in Seattle, and we had a guy causing regular illegal interference. We got organized, set up speech diarization software, logged his appearances, and calculated probabilities. After we knew his timing, two others and I sat at high spots with handheld directional Yagi antennas to triangulate his location. I was up there, spinning around in circles in the rain at the Civil War Cemetery on Seattle's Capitol Hill. Once we realized he was mobile and what route he was on, we planned to get video of him driving by (on I-5). We heard him coming, giving me ~10 minutes to get into position. I grabbed my backpack, pre-loaded with camera and tripod, and hopped on my motorcycle. It was about 11:30pm on a Sunday night in pouring rain. On the way, I took a turn a little too fast, slid out on the newly-installed light rail tracks, and went down. Not too much damage, but the side stand broke off. Having been welded to the frame, this actually totalled the bike (though it was rideable with a center stand). I limped home, demoralized. Later, someone told us they knew who the guy was and that he was under investigation for something far more serious, and that he had like 50 guns in his apartment or something. We gave up the hunt and he eventually disappeared. We had of course opened a case with the FCC but I'm not sure they ever did anything. Good times.

In February 2016, I was active on a repeater in Seattle, and we had a guy causing regular illegal interference. We got organized, set up speech diarization software, logged his appearances, and calculated probabilities. After we knew his timing, two others and I sat at high spots with handheld directional Yagi antennas to triangulate his location. I was up there, spinning around in circles in the rain at the Civil War Cemetery on Seattle's Capitol Hill. Once we realized he was mobile and what route he was on, we planned to get video of him driving by (on I-5). We heard him coming, giving me ~10 minutes to get into position. I grabbed my backpack, pre-loaded with camera and tripod, and hopped on my motorcycle. It was about 11:30pm on a Sunday night in pouring rain. On the way, I took a turn a little too fast, slid out on the newly-installed light rail tracks, and went down. Not too much damage, but the side stand broke off. Having been welded to the frame, this actually totalled the bike (though it was rideable with a center stand). I limped home, demoralized. Later, someone told us they knew who the guy was and that he was under investigation for something far more serious, and that he had like 50 guns in his apartment or something. We gave up the hunt and he eventually disappeared. We had of course opened a case with the FCC but I'm not sure they ever did anything. Good times.

620,299 views • 9 months ago

If you pull a vacuum on wood, then impregnate it with a monomer, and then irradiate the heck out of with gamma rays, you get a wood-plastic composite that is extremely tough while looking great. If it gets scuffed, you just buff it out, the finish goes all the way through. Here's a 1969 AEC film describing the material, commercial applications, and the production process. (Title: "Atomic Revolution in Wood", AVN0481, Digitized by the IAEA) 📽️⚛️

If you pull a vacuum on wood, then impregnate it with a monomer, and then irradiate the heck out of with gamma rays, you get a wood-plastic composite that is extremely tough while looking great. If it gets scuffed, you just buff it out, the finish goes all the way through. Here's a 1969 AEC film describing the material, commercial applications, and the production process. (Title: "Atomic Revolution in Wood", AVN0481, Digitized by the IAEA) 📽️⚛️

178,384 views • 4 months ago

On a roll here: Presenting Nuclear Reactors for Space (1961) Liquid metal coolant, beryllium reflectors, rotating control drums, mercury vapor turbogenerators... all in 1961 This has rare footage showing lots of hardware and even reactor shipments around California. The IAEA's Lise Meitner Library digitized this one and I got permission from them and DOE to get it and post it. (I recently got a big batch through this method so expect more). Enjoy! Catalog entry: "The SNAP program Systems for Nuclear Auxiliary Power is an AEC program to develop long-lived auxiliary power from nuclear energy for use in satellites and space vehicles. Compact atomic reactors being developed by Atomics International for use in SNAP systems are shown in this semitechnical film. Safety characteristics of the SNAP reactor during fabrication, testing, transport, installation, launching, and use in space are described. Detailed sequences filmed at Atomics International on fabrication and testing show the simplicity and compactness of the reactors. Safety features are described in scenes that illustrate shipping, launch-site activities, and launch of the reactor into space. The burnup and dispersal of the reactor during reentry into the atmosphere are shown in a detailed animation sequence. Many beneficial uses of SNAP in the U. S. national space program are illustrated." IAEA ID: AVN0155 NAID: 88198 0:00 Introduction: Nuclear Energy Enters the Space Age 1:18 Why Satellites Need Compact Nuclear Power 1:58 The SNAP Program Explained 2:18 SNAP-2: 3,000 Watts from a Mercury Vapor Turbogenerator 2:39 SNAP-8: Ten Times the Power, for Electric Propulsion 2:57 SNAP-10A: Thermoelectric Conversion, No Moving Parts 3:19 Inside the Reactor: Core, Fuel Elements, Beryllium Reflector 4:24 Design Requirements and the Safety Philosophy 5:23 Uranium-Zirconium Hydride Fuel: Handling Without Shielding 6:00 Ground Testing: Criticality, Immersion, Shock and Vibration 7:04 Shipping the Reactor Safely Through Populated Areas 8:22 At the Launch Site: Assembly, Safe Locks and Agena Mating 9:55 Launch Hazards: Exclusion Radius and Pad Accident Analysis 10:54 Ascent, Range Destruct and Flight Reliability 11:49 In Orbit: Tracking, Startup and One Year of Operation 12:38 300-Year Orbits and Designed Burn-Up on Reentry 13:25 Reentry Heating Tests on Fuel Elements 14:28 Reentry Simulation: Breakup and Dispersal at 80 Miles 15:40 Conclusion: Safety as Integral to SNAP Development 16:03 The Promise: Global TV Relay from Equatorial Orbit 17:00 Toward Deep Space and Interplanetary Travel

On a roll here: Presenting Nuclear Reactors for Space (1961) Liquid metal coolant, beryllium reflectors, rotating control drums, mercury vapor turbogenerators... all in 1961 This has rare footage showing lots of hardware and even reactor shipments around California. The IAEA's Lise Meitner Library digitized this one and I got permission from them and DOE to get it and post it. (I recently got a big batch through this method so expect more). Enjoy! Catalog entry: "The SNAP program Systems for Nuclear Auxiliary Power is an AEC program to develop long-lived auxiliary power from nuclear energy for use in satellites and space vehicles. Compact atomic reactors being developed by Atomics International for use in SNAP systems are shown in this semitechnical film. Safety characteristics of the SNAP reactor during fabrication, testing, transport, installation, launching, and use in space are described. Detailed sequences filmed at Atomics International on fabrication and testing show the simplicity and compactness of the reactors. Safety features are described in scenes that illustrate shipping, launch-site activities, and launch of the reactor into space. The burnup and dispersal of the reactor during reentry into the atmosphere are shown in a detailed animation sequence. Many beneficial uses of SNAP in the U. S. national space program are illustrated." IAEA ID: AVN0155 NAID: 88198 0:00 Introduction: Nuclear Energy Enters the Space Age 1:18 Why Satellites Need Compact Nuclear Power 1:58 The SNAP Program Explained 2:18 SNAP-2: 3,000 Watts from a Mercury Vapor Turbogenerator 2:39 SNAP-8: Ten Times the Power, for Electric Propulsion 2:57 SNAP-10A: Thermoelectric Conversion, No Moving Parts 3:19 Inside the Reactor: Core, Fuel Elements, Beryllium Reflector 4:24 Design Requirements and the Safety Philosophy 5:23 Uranium-Zirconium Hydride Fuel: Handling Without Shielding 6:00 Ground Testing: Criticality, Immersion, Shock and Vibration 7:04 Shipping the Reactor Safely Through Populated Areas 8:22 At the Launch Site: Assembly, Safe Locks and Agena Mating 9:55 Launch Hazards: Exclusion Radius and Pad Accident Analysis 10:54 Ascent, Range Destruct and Flight Reliability 11:49 In Orbit: Tracking, Startup and One Year of Operation 12:38 300-Year Orbits and Designed Burn-Up on Reentry 13:25 Reentry Heating Tests on Fuel Elements 14:28 Reentry Simulation: Breakup and Dispersal at 80 Miles 15:40 Conclusion: Safety as Integral to SNAP Development 16:03 The Promise: Global TV Relay from Equatorial Orbit 17:00 Toward Deep Space and Interplanetary Travel

18,729 views • 12 days ago

Nuclear waste shipping casks have been through a hell of a lot of testing. Now with Red Alert music.

Nuclear waste shipping casks have been through a hell of a lot of testing. Now with Red Alert music.

59,119 views • 8 months ago

This has to be one of the biggest ideas I've ever seen: a nuclear-powered Agro-Industrial complex. ✅ 1 billion gallons of fresh water / day from the sea ✅ 2 GW of electricity ✅ 300k-acre food factory ✅ phosphorous via electric furnace for fertilizer ✅ food for 6 million people ✅ aluminum sheet and bar stock ✅ ammonia from electrolytic hydrogen ✅ caustic and chlorine from brine electrolysis

This has to be one of the biggest ideas I've ever seen: a nuclear-powered Agro-Industrial complex. ✅ 1 billion gallons of fresh water / day from the sea ✅ 2 GW of electricity ✅ 300k-acre food factory ✅ phosphorous via electric furnace for fertilizer ✅ food for 6 million people ✅ aluminum sheet and bar stock ✅ ammonia from electrolytic hydrogen ✅ caustic and chlorine from brine electrolysis

94,575 views • 1 year ago

Industrial Applications of Nuclear Explosives (1958) That's one way to make a new harbor!

Industrial Applications of Nuclear Explosives (1958) That's one way to make a new harbor!

26,881 views • 5 months ago

An incredible NUCLEAR-POWERED FLIGHT film is newly available online! We just scanned this declassified film showing 30 minutes of detail from the major reactor development program at its peak, between 1956-1958. It presents the program goals and evolution, including how global operating costs were expected to be reduced by eliminating the need to operate foreign air bases around the world. Materials problems required them to reduce requirements from high-altitude/supersonic to low-altitude/subsonic. Ongoing development and progress is shown on the GE direct air cycle (XMA-2) in Idaho and Evandale, and the P&W indirect liquid-metal lithium-7 cooled cycle at CANAL, where they developed niobium-based alloys and technology that could run at the required crazy-high temperatures and withstand lithium. It shows dozens of things I've never seen before, like the 3 ZrH and BeO inserts put into HTRE-2, and talks a bit about the HTRE-3 meltdown. The HTREs can still be seen in the parking lot of the EBR-1 museum on the INL site. They show an in-reactor test loop being fabricated and tested in a large oil-fired heater, destined to be inserted in the ETR in Idaho. Of course, shielding makes an appearance. The Convair Nuclear Test Aircraft is shown, and shields made of Lithium hydride, BeO, tungsten alloys, and depleted uranium are discussed. They also show some work on radiation effects on electrical components, using test reactors. Overall, another incredible find and amazing content given the deceptively simple and boring title. Huge thanks to my friends at Nuclear Talent Scout for funding the scan, and for choosing to prioritize it! As always, the engineers from the 1950s continue to throw the word "advanced reactor" back in our faces today.

An incredible NUCLEAR-POWERED FLIGHT film is newly available online! We just scanned this declassified film showing 30 minutes of detail from the major reactor development program at its peak, between 1956-1958. It presents the program goals and evolution, including how global operating costs were expected to be reduced by eliminating the need to operate foreign air bases around the world. Materials problems required them to reduce requirements from high-altitude/supersonic to low-altitude/subsonic. Ongoing development and progress is shown on the GE direct air cycle (XMA-2) in Idaho and Evandale, and the P&W indirect liquid-metal lithium-7 cooled cycle at CANAL, where they developed niobium-based alloys and technology that could run at the required crazy-high temperatures and withstand lithium. It shows dozens of things I've never seen before, like the 3 ZrH and BeO inserts put into HTRE-2, and talks a bit about the HTRE-3 meltdown. The HTREs can still be seen in the parking lot of the EBR-1 museum on the INL site. They show an in-reactor test loop being fabricated and tested in a large oil-fired heater, destined to be inserted in the ETR in Idaho. Of course, shielding makes an appearance. The Convair Nuclear Test Aircraft is shown, and shields made of Lithium hydride, BeO, tungsten alloys, and depleted uranium are discussed. They also show some work on radiation effects on electrical components, using test reactors. Overall, another incredible find and amazing content given the deceptively simple and boring title. Huge thanks to my friends at Nuclear Talent Scout for funding the scan, and for choosing to prioritize it! As always, the engineers from the 1950s continue to throw the word "advanced reactor" back in our faces today.

67,955 views • 1 year ago

Presenting: a 1980s film explaining uranium enrichment, particularly with the older gaseous diffusion technology. Thanks yet again to Prof Ron Knief for providing the U-matic.

Presenting: a 1980s film explaining uranium enrichment, particularly with the older gaseous diffusion technology. Thanks yet again to Prof Ron Knief for providing the U-matic.

16,306 views • 8 months ago

Have you ever heard of an *organic* nuclear reactor? They use hydrocarbons as the coolant/moderator. These allow low-pressure operation, are non-corrosive, and hardly neutron activate at all, thereby allowing cheap materials of construction and easy maintenance. We just got a 1958 film about the first-ever organic cooled/moderated reactor digitized. Here it is! (Thanks to Mikal Bøe for sponsoring. The original soundtrack is in Spanish, thanks to Shirly Rodriguez Rojas for translating and narrating)

Have you ever heard of an organic nuclear reactor? They use hydrocarbons as the coolant/moderator. These allow low-pressure operation, are non-corrosive, and hardly neutron activate at all, thereby allowing cheap materials of construction and easy maintenance. We just got a 1958 film about the first-ever organic cooled/moderated reactor digitized. Here it is! (Thanks to Mikal Bøe for sponsoring. The original soundtrack is in Spanish, thanks to Shirly Rodriguez Rojas for translating and narrating)

29,543 views • 1 year ago

In 1961, we flight tested the PM-1 portable nuclear microreactor, and then flew it in 16 packages via C-130 from its factory to an airstrip near its final site. It was re-assembled and operated on a mountaintop in Wyoming. Here's footage of it being loaded and flown.

In 1961, we flight tested the PM-1 portable nuclear microreactor, and then flew it in 16 packages via C-130 from its factory to an airstrip near its final site. It was re-assembled and operated on a mountaintop in Wyoming. Here's footage of it being loaded and flown.

29,737 views • 2 years ago

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