Opinion: Nuclear Batteries For Powering Manned Space Craft Into Deep Interplanetary Space.

At the link below is an interesting story about new forms of nuclear batteries that utilize a liquid semiconductor in place of solid materials. The liquid semiconductor lacks a lattice like atomic constitution currently found in state of the art nuclear batteries.

 

http://munews.missouri.edu/news-releases/2009/1007-mu-researchers-create-smaller-and-more-efficient-nuclear-battery/

 

Although the subject of the article is small penny size nuclear batteries, it would seem to me that NASA should pour more money into nuclear batteries of the general types mentioned in the subject article.

 

Nuclear batteries in general may find use in deep space manned craft propulsion systems.

 

For one, the use of nuclear batteries as highly modular, highly replaceable units can be of benefit in powering ion or electron rocket engines.

 

An energy density of 6 orders of magnitude greater than chemical systems is nothing to sneeze at. One can imagine an outbound space craft with a mass of about 300 metric tons perhaps carrying 100 metric tons of batteries wherein the space craft could undertake several journeys if not many journeys to the outer reaches of our solar system, and then back to Earth again, before the highly modular batteries would need replacing. The mass specific power output of such batteries will need improving in order to enable timely exiting and egress of manned space craft from the inner solar system.

 

As for small nuclear batteries, they can be of use in powering so-called micro-satellites which have a mass in the range of one kilogram to perhaps 10 kilograms.

 

I cannot think of a better use for radio-isotopes than to power manned space craft and satellites via incorporation into nuclear batteries.

 

In a sense, nuclear batteries for space systems already exist in the form of radio thermal generators that have seen service on some of our deep solar system probes. However, a true nuclear battery that is as modular and replaceable as a Duracell D size battery would be a big improvement.

 

In an era when we are starting to see the limits of chemical combustion rocket technology for manned space flight applications beyond Earth and Lunar orbit, perhaps the folks at NASA could stand to study the practicality of cost effective and safe nuclear batteries to power future deep space manned vessels.

 

With all of that radioactive waste from spent nuclear reactor fuel rods, it seems like its time to consider incorporating various radio-isotopes contained within into highly modular and safe nuclear batteries if at all possible. Isotopes that are primarily beta emitters or alpha emitters would seem to be the best bet since these two forms of radiation have a very short travel distance through solid or liquid materials of ordinary densities.

Regards;

Jim