One of my very first episodes on this channel was about thorium powered molten salt reactors.

我在這個頻道的第一集是關於釷動力熔鹽反應堆。

But When I wrote that, they were little more than a curiosity that hadn't been seriously looked at since the 1960s.

但當我寫這篇文章時，它們只不過是一種好奇心，自1960年代以來就沒有被認真研究過。

Now I'm hyped all over again because after a decade of research and development, china is ready to test its first ever thorium powered molten salt reactor.

現在我又開始興奮了，因為經過十年的研究和開發，中國已經準備好測試其有史以來的第一個釷動力熔鹽反應堆。

China has invested big in nuclear and this particular technology could bring about a huge shift in how nuclear power is generated.

中國在核電方面的投資很大，這種特殊的技術可以為核電的產生方式帶來巨大的轉變。

This reactor, a unit in Wuwei capable of producing just two megawatts of thermal energy, is actually a test bed for two separate experimental technologies.

這個位於武威的反應堆僅能產生兩兆瓦的熱能，實際上是兩個獨立實驗技術的試驗檯。

Those would be the thorium fuel source and the molten salt coolant.

這些將是釷燃料源和熔鹽冷卻劑。

Let's start with thorium.

讓我們從釷開始。

Unlike uranium 2 35 thorium is not fissile, meaning it can't sustain nuclear fission thorium 2 32 however, is fertile, meaning if it captures a neutron, it will eventually decay into uranium 2 33 which can then be used to generate power.

與鈾2 35不同的是，釷不是裂變材料，這意味著它不能維持核裂變，然而，釷2 32是肥沃的，這意味著如果它捕捉到一箇中子，它將最終衰變為鈾2 33，然後可以用來發電。

Then there's the molten salt, coolant, molten salt is just what it sounds like salt that's been heated to the point, it turns from a solid into a liquid for the salt in the wound reactor which is a compound of flooring, lithium and beryllium.

然後是熔融鹽，冷卻劑，熔融鹽就是聽起來像鹽，被加熱到一定程度，它從固體變成液體，用於傷口反應堆中的鹽，這是一種地板、鋰和鈹的化合物。

That happens at about 450°C. But a molten salt reactor can use that liquid for more than just coolant.

這發生在大約450°C。但是，熔鹽反應堆可以使用這種液體，而不僅僅是冷卻劑。

It's possible to actually dissolve fissile and fertile material into the molten salt.

實際上，有可能將裂變材料和肥沃材料溶解到熔鹽中。

A molten salt reactor doesn't necessarily need to use thorium.

熔鹽反應堆不一定需要使用釷。

Some nations and private companies are designing molten salt reactors that use the waste products from nuclear power plants that exist today.

一些國家和私營公司正在設計熔鹽反應堆，使用今天存在的核電站的廢物產品。

And thorium reactors don't necessarily need to have their fuel dissolved in a molten salt coolant.

而且釷反應堆不一定需要將其燃料溶解在熔鹽冷卻劑中。

But China's pilot reactor in Wuwei ties both of these experimental technologies together.

但中國在武威的試驗性反應堆將這兩種試驗性技術聯繫在一起。

There's a lot of potential upsides to this approach, thorium is more abundant than uranium and is already a waste product of china's rare earth mineral mining industry.

這種方法有很多潛在的好處，釷比鈾更豐富，而且已經是中國稀土礦物開採業的廢物。

The country is also sorely lacking in uranium deposits within its borders though it must be said that in order to use thorium, the whole process needs a jump start from another nuclear technology like uranium 2 35.

該國境內也嚴重缺乏鈾礦，儘管必須說，為了使用釷，整個過程需要從另一種核技術如鈾2 35中跳出來。

Once it's running though, thorium produces much less long lived radioactive nuclear waste than uranium, making long term storage less of a headache.

不過，一旦運行，釷產生的長效放射性核廢料比鈾少得多，使長期儲存不那麼令人頭痛。

And while uranium 2 33 can and has been used in nuclear weapons, it's always contaminated with isotopes that emit high energy gamma radiation.

而且，雖然鈾2 33可以而且已經被用於核武器，但它總是被髮射高能量伽馬輻射的同位素所汙染。

So it's easy to detect and hard to handle features that make it less suitable for use in nuclear weapons.

是以，它容易被發現和難以處理的特點，使它不太適合用於核武器。

The molten salt coolant has its own inherent advantages.

熔融鹽冷卻劑有其固有的優勢。

Water needs to be pressurized to stay in liquid form and effectively cool a reactor which becomes a safety risk if pressure is lost, molten salt, on the other hand needs no pressurization, it can passively cool itself and it quickly solidifies when exposed to air and finally molten salt reactors are an appealing option for areas where water is scarce, like Wu Wei, which lies on the edge of the Gobi desert.

水需要加壓才能保持液態，並有效地冷卻反應堆，如果失去壓力，就會有安全風險。另一方面，熔鹽不需要加壓，它可以被動地自我冷卻，當暴露在空氣中時迅速凝固，最後熔鹽反應堆對於缺水的地區是一個有吸引力的選擇，比如位於戈壁沙漠邊緣的武威。

The concept still has a way to go.

這一概念仍有一段路要走。

Newly developed technologies like Eloise that resist corrosion, high temperature salt pumps like those used in concentrated solar power plants and advanced instruments have made it more feasible.

新開發的技術，如抗腐蝕的Eloise，像集中式太陽能發電廠中使用的高溫鹽泵和先進的儀器，使其更加可行。

But challenges remain and chinese scientists will have to test the reactor stability and safety As well as validate key concepts like the thorium to uranium 233 conversion scheme And how to process the fuel salt.

但挑戰依然存在，中國科學家將不得不測試反應堆的穩定性和安全性，以及驗證關鍵概念，如釷到鈾233的轉換方案和如何處理燃料鹽。

That's why they're starting small with a reactor that can power at most 1000 homes if it runs safely and shows potential to be cost effective.

這就是為什麼他們從一個小的反應堆開始，如果它安全運行並顯示出成本效益的潛力，最多可以為1000個家庭供電。

China plans to scale up the design and build a plant that could power over 100,000 homes by 2030.

中國計劃擴大設計規模，到2030年建立一個可以為超過10萬個家庭供電的工廠。

While china pursues this, other countries like France, India, Japan Norway and the United States are working on their own thorium reactors and I'm sure they're eager to see china's results, thorium molten salt reactors could play a major role in cutting greenhouse gas emissions and fighting the climate crisis.

在中國追求這一目標的同時，其他國家，如法國、印度、日本、挪威和美國都在研究他們自己的釷反應堆，我相信他們渴望看到中國的成果，釷熔鹽反應堆可以在削減溫室氣體排放和應對氣候危機方面發揮重要作用。

Much of their future now depends on a little two megawatt reactor out on the edge of china's deserts.

他們的未來現在很大程度上取決於中國沙漠邊緣的一個兩兆瓦的小反應堆。

So do you think thorium has a future or were we right to stop pursuing it in the 1960s, let us know in the comments be sure to like and subscribe, and thanks for watching seeker.

那麼，你認為釷有前途，還是我們在20世紀60年代停止追求它是正確的，請在評論中告訴我們，一定要喜歡和訂閱，並感謝觀看seekker。