An entirely new class of Nuclear Power Reactor has been designed to fill a niche that could power everything from small communities to businesses. The entire reactor is only 6 ft by 20 ft in size.
The 200 KW reactor is designed to be fail-safe and completely automated. Lacking control rods, the reactor uses a tube of liquid lithium-6 to absorb neutrons. It is predicted to run for 40 years without refueling.
The reactor will produce electricity at 5 cents per KW hour. Current grid prices for electricity are 10 cents/KW hour. The first reactors are expected to be installed in Japan next year and will be arriving in the US and Europe in 2009.
