Thorium

A lifetime’s energy supply in the palm of your hand.

Watch several TED Talks on Thorium here:

TED Talks on Thorium

​​There is more energy available in Thorium than all coal, gas, oil and uranium combined.

The element thorium was discovered in 1828. More than a 100 years later, in 1941, its potential as an energy source was proved.  Thorium is estimated to be three to four times more abundant than uranium in the Earth’s crust and it is one of the most energy dense elements found in nature. The element has some favorable characteristics making it an ideal nuclear fuel for next generation reactors; it is safe, clean, affordable and scalable. You can hold your entire lifetime's energy need in the palm of your hand. 

It has been estimated that 30 times more thorium than what is required to supply the entire world's energy demand is mined as a by-product every year.

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Thorium as an Element

• ​​Thorium is a naturally occurring radioactive chemical element with the symbol Th and atomic number 90
• Pure Thorium is a soft, silvery-white metal that is air-stable and thus tarnishes extremely slowly
• Thorium was identified in 1828 by the Swedish chemist Jöns Jakob Berzelius
• The element was named after Thor, the Norse god of thunder
• In 1898, thorium was discovered to be radioactive by Gerhard Schmidt, and Marie Curie used it in her famous work on radioactivity
• Nearly 100% of Earth’s thorium is thorium-232, which is only slightly radioactive because of its long half-life (14.05 billion years)

History of Thorium

​1828
Thorium is identified by the Swedish chemist Jöns Jakob Berzelius and named after the Norse god of thunder - Thor.

​1941
Nobel Prize laureate Glen Seaborg proves thorium's nuclear fuel potential. 

​1955 - 1973
Alvin Weinberg, the director of the US nuclear research laboratory Oak Ridge, (ORNL), conducts research on the use of thorium in molten salt reactors (MSR’s) with successful results.

​1950’s
India’s three-stage nuclear power programme is formulated by Dr. Homi Bhabha, with an ultimate focus on utlizing the country’s vast thorium reserves.

​2010 - 11
Jian Mianheng, son of former Chinese president Jian Zemin, announced the Chinese Thorium Energy Program to develop the Thorium Molten Salt Reactor.

World’s known and Estimated Thorium Resources

• Thorium is estimated to be three to four times more abundant than uranium in the Earth’s crust
• It is found on all continents, even in the stones lining the streets and it is as common as lead
• Thorium is mainly refined from monazite sands as a by-product of extracting rare earth metals
• The largest known thorium concentrations are located in India, Turkey, Brazil, Australia, and the United States
• There is no international or standard classification for thorium resources, and therefore, estimates vary depending on source

Thorium resources in tonnes. Source: OECD NEA & IAEA, Uranium 2014: Resources, Production and Demand ('Red Book')

Thorium Applications

Here are some past and present applications of thorium.

Camera lenses

Toothpaste

Lanterns

Welding

Gaslamps

Jet engines

​​Fuel for the Future

• Thorium is one of the most energy-dense elements found in nature
• It has been estimated that just 5000 tonnes of thorium contain enough energy to meet the world’s total energy demand for an entire year
• The known and estimated thorium resources are enough to cover the world’s energy needs for thousands of years
• Thorium Energy, similar to uranium, is generated through fission
• Thorium is, however, not fissile itself but is instead fertile, and upon absorbing a neutron transmutes to uranium-233, which  is an excellent fissile fuel material, and fission of the uranium-233 can provide neutrons to repeat the cycle again

Characteristics 

​Safe – There are safe methods of using thorium with no risk for meltdown or explosions. Thorium Energy is also proliferation resistant.

​Clean – Thorium reactors create zero-emission energy. The amount of waste is low both in amount and lifetime.

​Affordable – Thorium is one of the most energy-dense elements in nature, found in great quantities on all continents. There is more Thorium Energy available than in all oil, gas, coal and uranium on Earth combined.  

​​Proven  – Research into the use of Thorium Energy started in the 1950’s in the US government’s atomic lab, with successful and well-documented results.

Thorium is one of the avenues we very much want to be explored
-Hans Blix at ThEC13 in Geneva, ex Director General IAEA

Early Research in the US

• ​In the 1950’s, a significant  thorium research program led by Alvin Weinberg was started in the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee, US
• The program  researched the use of thorium in molten salt reactors (MSRs), with successful and well-documented results
• For 20 years, thorium was researched alongside uranium as a nuclear fuel
• A 1962 report highlighted a recommendation to pursue civilian nuclear power not with uranium as the raw fuel but with thorium. However, amid lobbying by companies vested heavily in uranium-fed, solid-fuel, water-cooled reactors, there wasn’t enough support in Congress to follow through the AEC’s recommendation.
• In 1973, thorium-related nuclear research was, however, shut down as the government chose to continue with uranium-based reactors only

Thorium Reactors

Thorium fuel can be used in many different types of reactors such as:

• ​Molten salt reactors (MSR)
• Pebble-bed reactors (PBR)
• Accelerator driven reactors (ADR)
• Light water reactors (LWR), Boiling water reactors (BWR), Heavy water reactors (HWR)
• Fission + Fusion reactors

Why haven't we started building these things, like, yesterday...
-SciShow

Today's Heroes

There are several start-ups and government programs around the world working on prototypes for these different reactors. 

​The Thorium Energy Report provides a comprehensive overview of today's activities in the field. 

Thorium Energy Report

Let's power the world with clean, safe and affordable Thorium Energy!

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