That link you provided works for me - and I don't have a subscription. Interesting stuff.
It had a monthly limit of views, then a page comes up that informs me about me having surpassed it and the need to subscribe in order to read more.
+ twenty times more effective than thermoelectric materials.
Oi, I am somewhat confused and/ or impressed. I thought that old thermoelectric materials already had about 1/10th of the efficiency of a standard steam cycle plant.
If they are 20 times as effcient, that would be quite an amazing showing there. I mean, it would render steam turbines unusable.
Something like this, if it indeed works should revolutionize nuclear reactor- design, no?
I mean this is a very high efficiency and even if it only came very close to a "normal" steam cycle it would already be much preferable.
Why are we not seeing this used yet?
I always thought that the steam cycle was one of the big weaknesses of current reactor designs. After all you need primary cooling, then secondary cooling to avoid contamination, then you have to cool the cooling water. Lots of piping with potential leaks. Lots of pumps that require expensive mentainance (in a potentially hazardous environmnet). Pipes can leak, causing contamination and the release of radioactive materials into the environment (happened before). The turbine itself also needs mentainance, probably some kind of lubricant (machine oil), etc.
So all this means lots of overhead for savety and mentainance of complex machinery with lots of moving parts. It also means that reactors below a certain size do not make sense, since you will always have the steam cycle machinery, no matter what.
So IMHO material like this would be revolutionary.
Why havent we heard more about it yet?
I mean, especially companies like Hyperion should be waiting in line...
I guess there are still some unsresolved issues with these materials?
What are the problems that have to be solved? What are the downsides?
All these presentations, such as on New Scientist and NextBigFuture (no offense mate, you know I love your page!) are spilling out the positive parts but are rather quiet on the negatives.