12/29/2023 0 Comments Xcel energy nuclear power plantsXcel reported a small tritium leak at Monticello in 2009. The NRC says tritium spills happen from time to time at nuclear plants, but that it has repeatedly determined that they’ve either remained limited to the plant property or involved such low offsite levels that they didn’t affect public health or safety. A person who drank water from a spill would get only a low dose, the NRC says. It emits a weak form of beta radiation that does not travel very far and cannot penetrate human skin, according to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Tritium is a radioactive isotope of hydrogen that occurs naturally in the environment and is a common by-product of nuclear plant operations. “We will also continue to coordinate with city, county, and other local officials to make sure the public is kept informed of developments.” “The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency and the Minnesota Department of Health will continue to review Xcel’s response to the groundwater contamination and oversee the recovery, storage, and disposal of the impacted groundwater,” the MPCA said in a statement. It also reiterated its earlier assessment that there was no threat to public health. In its own statement Thursday, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency said it supported Xcel’s plan to take the Monticello plant offline immediately and repair the leak. Xcel originally worked to capture the contaminated water from a leaking pipe before installing a replacement pipe during regularly scheduled refueling in mid-April. State officials said they waited to get more information before going public with it. While Xcel reported the leak of water containing tritium to state and federal authorities in late November, the spill was not made public until last Thursday. “We are continuing to work with and inform our state, federal, city and county leaders in the process.” “While the leak continues to pose no risk to the public or the environment, we determined the best course of action is to power down the plant and perform the permanent repairs immediately,” Chris Clark, president of Xcel Energy–Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota, said in a statement Thursday night. However, the leaked water hasn’t been detected beyond the facility or in any local drinking water, Xcel said. The utility also said that monitoring had revealed that a small amount of the contaminated water had reached the groundwater on the plant’s property 35 miles northwest of Minneapolis. In a Thursday night announcement, Xcel said it doesn’t expect any impact to its electrical customers. “In today’s climate of extreme weather, fluctuating costs, and global energy insecurity, hydrogen offers unmatched potential to leverage existing infrastructure for clean, abundant energy.Xcel Energy will begin powering down its Monticello nuclear power plant Friday to allow the utility to more quickly perform repairs needed to fix a leak of radioactive water. “Xcel Energy has long championed what we at Bloom Energy know is true: Our net-zero future hinges on energy that’s not only clean but also resilient, accessible, and affordable,” said Rick Beuttel, vice president of hydrogen business at Bloom Energy. He added that the project will provide an opportunity “to better understand how our existing nuclear plants can contribute to the development of hydrogen technologies and build a carbon-free future”. “Xcel Energy’s nuclear power plants already play a vital role in our energy mix, delivering clean, reliable and affordable power for our customers while avoiding hundreds of millions of tons of emissions”, said Peter Gardner, senior vice president and chief nuclear officer at Xcel Energy. Bloom said the engineering for the 240kW demonstration facility is underway, with construction expected to begin in late 2023 and power-on scheduled for early 2024. The heat and steam produced by Prairie Island will feed into the electrolyser to produce hydrogen more efficiently than low-temperature electrolysis alternatives such as polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) or alkaline technologies which require roughly 40% more electricity. The demonstration project is designed to create “immediate and scalable pathways” for producing cost-efficient and clean hydrogen while adding value for nuclear power plants, Bloom and Xcel said.īloom Energy’s electrolyser is built on a solid oxide platform and operates at high temperatures to convert water into hydrogen. California-based fuel cell company Bloom Energy has announced that it plans to install an electrolyser at Xcel Energy’s Prairie Island NPP in Minnesota to produce hydrogen.īloom Energy said the installation will augment existing clean energy nuclear infrastructure to create immediate and scalable pathways to produce cost-efficient, clean hydrogen, supporting the growing hydrogen economy while enhancing value for operators of zero-carbon nuclear facilities.
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