Alan Fletcher <a...@well.com> wrote:
> That was the motivation behind the hot-cat : the current operating > temperature of around 300C is likely a good fit with the Siemens turbine > they are purportedly experimenting with. > The pressurized water in a conventional fission reactor is about 320°C I believe. The reactors could be designed to run at higher temperatures but they deliberately made them low with poor Carnot efficiency because this reduces wear and tear on the turbines, pipes and so on. In a system where the heat costs you little or nothing, it makes sense to trade off Carnot efficiency for lower equipment costs. - Jed
