Preliminary Research Reactor Business Proposal V0.1
Building the Business Case for Domestic Thorium
I said I was going to write lighter, but I also promised this business proposal, so here it is! I’ve met so many amazing, super talented people who also understand how critical advanced fission is to the future of humanity. Given the opportunity, they would contribute their time and leverage their fields of expertise to enable this lifesaving technology to come sooner to the world. Word of mouth is the strongest support you can provide.
Introduction
I have always fascinated by energy and motion. Electricity in particular is a magical wonder, propelling my RC car, powering grandpapa’s camcorder, my computer, gameboy, walkie talkies, Christmas lights, handheld radios, and so much more. I’m still enthralled with the potential of electricity and the systems of infrastructure which are mostly invisible day to day but that we rely upon for our comfort and convenience every moment of every day.
One day, while my family and I were out walking our dog Killy. I stumbled upon a garage filled with RC helicopters and planes! It was a veritable paradise for my aspiring eyes, after wandering in without thought of the proprietor and making a lifelong friend, I spent months drawing different helicopter rotor designs and helicopters in general. I even added a DC motor to a lego model in hopes of making it fly. “Inventing” new designs was one of my earliest memories of this constructing spirit I retain today.
Later, as I learned about generators, static electricity, batteries, I began daydreaming and envisioning ways these could be improved. What made them work, can I build them in my room? Despite my spirit of invention, everything I built was only one small step in the direction. I had to learn the first principles and physics of these technologies. I have dreams of inventing, like Tony Stark, Peter Parker, my Dad, Bruce Banner, alongside the many additional hero’s of modern day aerospace science fiction technology.
Through high school, my learning was not occurring at school, but at home on my computer, reading wikipedia, and academic research papers, in an attempt to gain insight, and build another project design I had imagined.
Replicating Iron Man’s suit was high on my list of worthy efforts, studying static electricity, ion thrusters, nuclear power, fusion, and fundamental physics. Using Einstein’s E=mc^2 I calculated how much energy was contained in different elements. I fantasized about using electromagnets, superconductors, AC and DC electric fields to generate thrust and energy. I even put some rudimentary parts together to see what I could make happen.
The spirit of invention, discovery, and exploration of potential growing stronger with every attempt!
It is still possible to make science fiction, science reality. Flying suits and hoverboards exist today. A lot of the ideas I’ve imagined have in fact been built by other people and sold on the free market. With enough resources, one can simply purchase the hundreds of thousands of engineering hours, trial, error, and innovation that every product available today represents.
Having now accumulated substantially more specialized knowledge. Fully adult, still dreaming, working towards the abundant future with wife and daughter. Building a future of abundance, peace, and opportunity. Living in the greatest time of all time, despite its challenges(read opportunities), the Taoists have always known that with a bigger Yin comes a bigger Yang.
Cumulative Building: Standing on the Shoulders of Giants
My persistent learning has culminated in a good understanding of critical utility technologies invisibly used everywhere everyday. Despite this important understanding, I noticed I had a lack of business and marketing skills, so I began learning about them.
Now I write as an advocate for advanced technologies to benefit the next generation and to stabilize this one. It is not that the technology cannot be built, but that there are not enough people who are excited and encouraged to think about and build these technologies!
Between myself and several other people far more brilliant, I present to you this preliminary business plan for our first Thorium reactor with the fastest time to investment return.
This business proposal is specifically designed to offer a system of funding to accelerate the progress of larger more expensive and complicated projects that Thorium power technology can facilitate. It does not generate electricity as it’s primary objective. Rather, it produces rare isotopes, and hydrogen for industrial use. This provides the most rapid pathway to profitability and thus generates cashflow for funding all other growth projects including desalination, industrial heat, and electricity.
Executive Summary
Objective: Based on the previously approved MSRE design, with minimal modifications. Establish a ~60MW thermal reactor under the NRC’s research classification for hydrogen and isotope production. On-site “Just In Time” hydrogen production for a domestic industrial partner can remove hydrogen transport cost and demonstrate a reproducible reactor product. Simultaneously we will be extracting isotopes such as lithium-6, lithium-7, molybdenum-99, and many other valuable extractable products which can sold for thousands of dollars per gram for industrial and medical use.
Initial Investment: $200 million.
Break-even Projection: 2 to 5 years post ground breaking.
Primary Market(s): Industrial steel refineries, chemical companies, medical research industry, NASA, space and satellite technology companies.
Investment Details
A. Initial Investment
Hardware and Infrastructure: $150M - Design/Setup of the 60MW thermal research scale reactor and essential equipment.
Personnel: $25M - Hiring, training, and salaries for core and support teams.
Regulatory Costs: $20M - Compliance with nuclear technology regulations, simulations, and acquiring permits.
Miscellaneous and Contingency: $5M - Unforeseen costs and potential overruns.
B. Ongoing Operational Costs
$250K annually - Covering maintenance, salaries, raw materials, and routine operational expenses.
Team Biographies
I’m unable to reveal the names of the team members just yet but this is the format which was most recommended to me.
Dr. Chemist: Specialized in nuclear processes and isotopic production/extraction with a PhD in Chemistry.
Experienced Machinist: Established machinist, operating a pertinent business with 20 years of experience and available infrastructure.
Dr. Controls Engineer: PhD in Advanced Manufacturing Technology, specialized in nuclear reactor control systems.
Lawyer Regulatory Specialist: A seasoned legal professional, specializing in industrial law and navigating nuclear technology regulations for over two decades.
Project Description and Modifications
A. Core Design and Specific Modifications
Base Design: Rooted in Oak Ridge National Laboratory's Molten Salt Reactor Experiment. “MSRE”
Modifications:
Customized bismuth extraction system, enabling element extraction for refinement and sale.
Enhanced performance through the integration of high-quality components replacing unavailable commercial parts.
Sales and Marketing Strategy
A. Market Valuation
Anticipated market of medical Molybdenum-99 to reach approximately ~$6B by 2030.
Market for Li-6/Li-7 for Thorium reactors ~$50B
Market for Strontium-90(Spacecraft Thermal Sources) ~$3B
We intend to build a profitable model to fund increasing the scale of Thorium and Fission technologies. ~$13B
B. Strategy Framework
Partnership Creation: Forging alliances with major industrial chemical companies, and large local hydrogen consumers. (steel, petrol & ammonia synthesis)
Sales Approach: Implementing medium-term purchase agreements (2-7 years) ensuring steady demand and fostering long-term relationships while balancing risk.
Ethical and Legal Compliance
Waste Management and Safety: Implementing full lifecycle engineering, ensuring safety and systematic recycling/reduction of all unsold reactor products.
Legal Adherence: We will develop a specialized legal team to ensure compliance with all industrial and nuclear regulatory norms as well as to build the framework for future MSR technology and fission tech in the US in general. Aiming for global technology production and export long term.
Benefits over Power Production
Li-6 & Li-7 Isotopes: These are crucial, high value products for pharmaceuticals, nuclear fission/fusion, and molten salt technologies.
Mo-99: Vital for medical imaging, especially in diagnostics, potential for cancer therapy applications upon market expansion.
Hydrogen Production: Provides a sustainable energy source, aligning with global green energy initiatives.
Technical Overview
ORNL Reactor Design Adaptation:
Scaling to 60MW involves modifications in reactor core design, coolant systems, and control mechanisms.
Efficiency gains are achieved through enhanced thermal efficiency and reduced operational costs.
Isotope Production & Separation Technology:
Production methods include neutron capture and fission processes.
Advanced proprietary chemical engineering methods ensure high-purity isotope extraction.
Hydrogen Production Integration:
Steam reforming is the primary refinement method
Hydrogen production is seamlessly integrated into the reactor’s thermal cycle.
Market Analysis
Demand for Isotopes and Hydrogen:
Li isotopes and Mo-99 have a growing market in medical, technological, and industrial sectors.
Hydrogen demand is rising in the sustainable and clean energy markets. As well as being used to reduce carbon footprints in steel, and fuel industries.
Market Gap Identification:
Shortfalls in isotope supplies are primarily from limited production research colliders today. We will position ourselves to fill these gaps strategically.
Hydrogen Market Potential:
Predicting hydrogen's role and potential in the energy and chemical industries.
Regulatory and Environmental Considerations
Compliance Acknowledgment:
Technical focus on adhering to existing regulations.
Building up and removing regulatory challenges for Molten Salt Technology, Research and Development.
Environmental Impact:
Strategies for managing radioactive and chemical waste.
Initiatives to mitigate direct environmental affects.
Long term reduction in energy production footprint.
Conclusion: This is a unique venture, utilizing advanced nuclear technology for isotope and hydrogen production. It introduces innovative design and multiple income stream production capabilities.
Unique Selling Propositions
Innovative Design: Adaptation of the pre-approved ORNL reactor.
Multiple Production Products: Concurrent isotope and localized hydrogen production.
This preliminary proposal introduces a renewable approach to isotope production and hydrogen generation based on the originally NRC approved Oak Ridge National Laboratory's (ORNL) design. This venture targets the efficient production of critical isotopes such as Li-6 & Li-7, Mo-99, Sr-90 and others, while simultaneously generating hydrogen.We intend to position ourselves at the forefront of high value market demands, technological advancement, and manufacturing engineering.
Call to Action: We invite you to engage with our plan for realizing this groundbreaking venture. We would like everyday retail investors to be able to participate and benefit from this strategy. Long term capital allocation such as pensions and 401k should be able to participate when the time comes.