Nuclear Hybrid Energy Systems: Imperatives, Prospects, and Challenges

As global population reaches an expected 8 billion people by 2030, primary energy consumption is expected to increase by almost 40% from approximately 520 exajoules consumed today to almost 740 exajoules. Much of this increase is expected to come from non-Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) nations, and Asia specifically. In these economies, energy used for transportation is expected to grow substantially, as is industrial, commercial and to a lesser degree residential energy use, creating considerable pressure on global and local energy markets. The magnitude and timing of growth in energy consumption likely will create a global imperative to deploy energy production technologies that balance the three pillars of energy security: • economic stability – related to the affordability of energy products, stability and predictability in their price, and the efficient and effective deployment of global capital resources in their development; • environmental sustainability – related to minimizing the negative impacts of energy production to air, land, and water systems and advancing the long-term viability of using a particular resource in a way that does not limit future generations ability to prosper; • resource security – related to the ability to access energy resources and products where and when necessary, in an affordable and predictable manner. One approach to meeting these objectives is hybrid energy systems (HES). Broadly described, HES are energy product production plants that take two or more energy resource inputs (typically includes both carbon and non-carbon based sources) and produce two or more energy products (e.g. electricity, liquid transportation fuels, industrial chemicals) in an integrated plant. Nuclear energy integration into HES offers intriguing potential, particularly if smaller (