Topic: Fission Power Plants

[GrumpyOldFart]

By the way the density of Uranium is around 19 grams per cubic centimeter or 19 tonnes per cubic meter so an average value of 14 tonnes per cubic meter including shielding etc sounds more reasonable to me than ever.

Okay I want to see your figures. My figuring came out to just shy of 2 metric tons per cubic meter.

Let's see... Uranium is 18.9 grams per cubic centimeter...

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_many_grams_does_a_cubic_inch_of_Uranium-235_or_U-238_weigh

100 centimeters to the meter, so 100 x 100 x 100 x 18.9 = 1,890 kg per cubic meter.

One of us is way, waaay off, and I'd like to find out which. 

That's what was giving me trouble with the 14 tonnes per cubic meter figure, I was thinking okay, that's almost 8 times the density of U 235. Far too light for degenerate matter, but far too heavy for anything else.

[arakish]

GOF,

By the way the density of Uranium is around 19 grams per cubic centimeter or 19 tonnes per cubic meter so an average value of 14 tonnes per cubic meter including shielding etc sounds more reasonable to me than ever.

Okay I want to see your figures. My figuring came out to just shy of 2 metric tons per cubic meter.

Let's see... Uranium is 18.9 grams per cubic centimeter...

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_many_grams_does_a_cubic_inch_of_Uranium-235_or_U-238_weigh

100 centimeters to the meter, so 100 x 100 x 100 x 18.9 = 1,890 kg per cubic meter.

One of us is way, waaay off, and I'd like to find out which. 

That's what was giving me trouble with the 14 tonnes per cubic meter figure, I was thinking okay, that's almost 8 times the density of U 235. Far too light for degenerate matter, but far too heavy for anything else.

You missed a "0" somewhere.

My textbook (2009 edition) lists Uranium as 18.95 g/cc.  Thus, a cubic meter would mass:

100^3 x 18.95 = 18,950,000 grams; then divide by 1,000,000 for tonnes (metric ton) = 18.95 tonnes/cumet, or divide by 1000 for kilograms = 18,950 kg/cumet.

rmfr

[GrumpyOldFart]

Gotcha. Yep, I dropped a bit. My bad.

[Ynglaur]

For reference, water is 1 metric ton per cumet (I still love "cumet").

[arakish]

For reference, water is 1 metric ton per cumet (I still love "cumet").

Been gone awhile.  Can't believe I already caught flu.

I love cumet (cubic meter) also.  Much easier to say than kiloliter.  Although kiloliter is technically the correct term for volume, even the scientific community prefers to use cubic meter, which is technically abbreviated "cumet" or m³.

rmfr

[providence13]

In the old Star Frontiers game (TSR), fission drives were built and sealed with fuel inside. You couldn't refill them. After 5-10 yrs, you had to replace the drive. Now I see why; it was easier.

[arakish]

Actually it would be easier, and cheaper, to replace the core fuel than the whole drive.  Even with the nuclear powered vessels today, they just replace the core fuel, not the whole engine.

rmfr

[Marc R]

You know you're in the future when you use a single use, dispose after using, fission reactor.

[GrumpyOldFart]

Especially if you have a spare in the glove box or the boot.