From 2026, the Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI) in Switzerland will build a new type of nuclear reactor developed by the Danish company Copenhagen Atomics. Since Denmark does not operate any nuclear power plants itself, this technology is now being implemented in Switzerland. The online magazine Tichy’s insight reported. There is talk of a “new type of reactor with superlatives”.
The planned liquid salt reactor is fundamentally different from conventional reactors. Instead of a solid fuel core, it uses molten salt in which the fissile material is distributed. This method increases safety because there is no solid core that could melt or explode. In addition, the reactor can produce its own fuel by converting thorium into fissile uranium.
Another advantage is the treatment of radioactive waste. The reactor continuously removes and deactivates the waste, which significantly reduces the problem of disposal. While the radioactive waste from conventional reactors remains radioactive for thousands of years, the waste from the molten salt reactor remains dangerous for only a few hundred years.
The reactor’s high operating temperature enables efficient power generation and heat provision for industrial processes. In addition, the reactor produces electricity at a particularly low price of just two cents per kilowatt hour.
