我来到怀俄明州，见证未来核能领域突破 | 盖茨笔记

Today I’m in the town of Kemmerer, Wyoming, to celebrate the latest step in a project that’s been more than 15 years in the making: designing and building a next-generation nuclear power plant. I’m thrilled to be here after all this time—because I’m convinced that the facility will be a win for the local economy, and the fight against climate change.

今天我来到怀俄明州凯默勒市，庆祝一项历经15年的项目迈出最新的一步：设计和建造下一代核能发电厂。时隔多年造访这里，我感到非常激动——我深信这个设施将为当地经济和对抗气候变化带来贡献。

It’s called the Natrium plant, and it was designed by TerraPower, a company I started in 2008. When it opens (potentially in 2030), it will be the most advanced nuclear facility in the world, and it will be much safer and produce far less waste than conventional reactors.

这个名为Natrium的钠冷快堆发电厂是由我在2008年创办的泰拉能源公司设计的。它将是全球最先进的核能设施之一，预计最早将于2030年投入运营，相较于传统反应堆，它将更加安全，产生的废物也要少得多。

All of this matters because the world needs to make a big bet on nuclear. As I wrote in my book How to Avoid a Climate Disaster, we need nuclear power if we’re going to meet the world’s growing need for energy while also eliminating carbon emissions. None of the other clean sources are as reliable, and none of the other reliable sources are as clean.

这一切都很重要，全球需要在核能方面进行大胆尝试。正如我在我的书《气候经济与人类未来》中所写，如果我们要满足世界日益增长的能源需求同时消除碳排放，我们就需要核能发电。其他所有清洁能源都不如核能可靠，而其他所有可靠能源都不如核能清洁。

But nuclear has its problems: The plants are expensive to build, and human error can cause accidents. Plus, as we move away from fossil fuels, there’s a risk that we’ll leave behind the communities and workers who have been providing reliable energy for decades.

但是核能也存在问题：建造核电站的成本很高，人为失误可能导致事故发生。此外，随着我们逐渐减少使用化石燃料，存在一种风险，即我们会遗弃那些几十年来一直提供可靠能源的工人和所在社区。

The Natrium facility is designed to solve these problems, and more.

Natrium设施旨在解决这些问题，以及其他问题。

I’ll start with improved safety. Keep in mind that America’s current fleet of nuclear plants has been operating safely for decades—in fact, in terms of lives lost, nuclear power is by far the safest way to produce energy. And this new facility in Kemmerer will be even better.

我将从提高安全性方面开始谈起。请记住，美国当前的核电站群已经安全运行了数十年，事实上，就死亡人数而言，核能发电是迄今为止最安全的能源生产方式。而这个位于凯默勒的新设施将会更加安全。

Like other power plant designs, it uses heat to turn water into steam, which moves a turbine, which generates electricity. And like other nuclear facilities, it generates the heat by splitting uranium atoms in a chain reaction. But that’s pretty much where the similarities stop.

与其他电厂的设计一样，它利用热能将水转化为蒸汽，推动涡轮发电机发电。与其他核设施一样，它通过链式反应分裂铀原子产生热能。但相似之处止步于此。

A typical reactor keeps the atom-splitting nuclear reaction under control by circulating water around a uranium core. But using water as a coolant presents two challenges. First, water isn’t very good at absorbing heat—it turns to steam and stops absorbing heat at just 100 degrees C. Second, as water gets hot, its pressure goes up, which puts strain on your pipes and other equipment. If there’s an emergency—say, an earthquake cuts off all the electricity to the plant and you can’t keep pumping water—the core continues to make heat, raising the pressure and potentially causing an explosion.

一般的反应堆通过在铀芯周围循环水来控制分裂原子核的核反应。但使用水作为冷却剂会带来两个挑战。首先，水不太能吸收热量——它在100摄氏度时就变成蒸汽，不再吸收热量。其次，随着水温升高，压力也会上升，这会对管道和其他设备造成压力。如果出现紧急情况——例如地震切断了发电厂的所有电力，并且无法继续泵水——核心将继续产生热量，增加压力，可能导致爆炸。

But what if you could cool your reactor with something other than water? It turns out that, by comparison, liquid metals can absorb a monster amount of heat while maintaining a consistent pressure. The Natrium plant uses liquid sodium, whose boiling point is more than 8 times higher than water’s, so it can absorb all the extra heat generated in the nuclear core. Unlike water, the sodium doesn’t need to be pumped, because as it gets hot, it rises, and as it rises, it cools off. Even if the plant loses power, the sodium just keeps absorbing heat without getting to a dangerous temperature that would cause a meltdown.

假设你能用除水以外的其他东西来冷却反应堆会怎样呢？事实证明，相比之下，液态金属可以吸收极大的热量并保持恒定的压力。Natrium电厂使用液态钠作为冷却介质，其沸点比水高8倍以上，因此可以吸收核心中产生的所有额外热量。与水不同，钠不需要泵送，因为当它变热时，它的液面会上升，随着上升，它会冷却。即使该电厂失去电力，钠仍将继续吸收热量而不达到会导致熔毁的危险温度。

Safety isn’t the only reason I’m excited about the Natrium design. It also includes an energy storage system that will allow it to control how much electricity it produces at any given time. That’s unique among nuclear reactors, and it’s essential for integrating with power grids that use variable sources like solar and wind.

安全性并不是我对Natrium的设计感到激动的唯一原因。它还包括一个储能系统，使其能够控制在任何时候产生的电量。这在核反应堆中是独一无二的，对于集成那些使用太阳能和风能等可变能源的电网至关重要。

Another thing that sets TerraPower apart is its digital design process. Using supercomputers, they’ve digitally tested the Natrium design countless times, simulating every imaginable disaster, and it keeps holding up. TerraPower’s sophisticated work has drawn interest from around the globe, including an agreement to collaborate on nuclear power technology in Japan and investments from the South Korean conglomerate SK and the multinational steel company ArcelorMittal.

泰拉能源另一个独特之处在于其数字化设计过程。他们使用超级计算机对Natrium的设计进行了无数次的数字化测试，模拟了每一种可能的灾难，其测试结果一向表现优异。泰拉能源的先进工作引起了全球关注，包括与日本合作核能技术的协议以及来自韩国SK集团和跨国钢铁公司安赛乐米塔尔的投资。

I can’t overstate how welcoming the people of Kemmerer are being. While I’m here, I’ll get to visit the future site of the plant, and I’ll also have a chance to talk with the mayor, other local leaders, and members of the community so I can thank them for their efforts. And this project wouldn’t be happening without strong support from Gov. Mark Gordon and Senators John Barrasso and Cynthia Lummis.

凯默勒市民无比热情好客。在我造访期间，我将有机会参观电厂的未来场址，并与市长、当地其他领导人以及社区成员交谈，以感谢他们的付出。此外，如果没有州长马克·戈登、参议员约翰·巴拉索和辛西娅·卢米斯的大力支持，该项目将不会实现。

Kemmerer has a particular interest in the Natrium facility’s success: The coal plant that has been operating here for more than 50 years is scheduled to shut down. If it weren’t for the Natrium plant, the 110 or so workers there would lose their jobs.

凯默勒市对Natrium工厂的成功有着特别的关注：在此运营了50多年的煤电厂计划关闭。如果没有Natrium电厂，那里的约110名工人将会失业。

But the plan is for all of them to get jobs in the Natrium facility if they want one. The new plant will employ between 200 and 250 people, and those with experience in the coal plant will be able to do many of the jobs—such as operating a turbine and maintaining connections to the power grid—without much retraining.

计划是这样的：如果他们愿意的话，所有这些人都将在Natrium电厂找到工作。新工厂将雇用200至250人，有经验的煤炭厂工人可以在不需要进行太多再培训的情况下完成许多工作，例如操作涡轮机和维护与电网的连接。

Another benefit: Building the facility will take several years and at its peak will bring 1,600 construction jobs to town. And all those construction workers will need food, housing, and entertainment. It’ll be a huge boost to a community that could use one right now.

另一个好处是：建造这个设施将需要数年时间，在高峰期将为该市带来1600个建筑工作机会。而所有这些建筑工人都需要食物、住房和娱乐。这对目前需要支持的该社区来说意味着巨大的推动。

Finally, I’m excited about this project because of what it means for the future. The people of Kemmerer are at the forefront of the equitable transition to a clean, safe energy future, and it’s great to be partnering with them.

最后，我对该项目感到兴奋是在于它对未来的意义。凯默勒市民正处于推动向清洁、安全的能源未来进行公平转型的前沿，很高兴能与他们合作。