Nuclear power plants are typically used more often because they require less maintenance and are designed to operate for longer stretches before refueling (typically every 1.5 or 2 years).

Natural gas and coal capacity factors are generally lower due to routine maintenance and/or refueling at these facilities.

Renewable plants are considered intermittent or variable sources and are mostly limited by a lack of fuel (i.e. wind, sun, or water). As a result, these plants need a backup power source such as large-scale storage (not currently available at grid-scale)—or they can be paired with a reliable baseload power like nuclear energy.

Source: https://www.energy.gov/

Thorium boasts several advantages over the conventional nuclear fuel, uranium-235. Thorium can generate more fissile material (uranium-233) than it consumes while fuelling a water-cooled or molten-salt reactor. According to estimates, the Earth's upper crust contains an average of 10.5 parts per million (ppm) of thorium, compared with about 3 ppm of uranium.

“Because of its abundance and its fissile material breeding capability, thorium could potentially offer a long-term solution to humanity’s energy needs,” Agarwal said. 

Another advantage is that thorium-fuelled reactors could be much more environmentally friendly than their uranium counterparts. In addition to the fact that these reactors — and nuclear power in general — do not emit greenhouse gases in operation, they also produce less long-lived nuclear waste than present-day uranium-fuelled reactors.

Source: https://www.iaea.org/

Unlike fossil fuel-fired power plants, nuclear reactors do not produce air pollution or carbon dioxide while operating. However, the processes for mining and refining uranium ore and making reactor fuel all require large amounts of energy. Nuclear power plants also have large amounts of metal and concrete, which require large amounts of energy to manufacture. If fossil fuels are used for mining and refining uranium ore, or if fossil fuels are used when constructing the nuclear power plant, then the emissions from burning those fuels could be associated with the electricity that nuclear power plants generate.

Source: https://www.eia.gov/

- Radioactive wastes are stored so as to avoid any chance of radiation exposure to people, or any pollution.

- The radioactivity of the wastes decays with time, providing a strong incentive to store high-level waste for about 50 years before disposal.

- Disposal of low-level waste is straightforward and can be undertaken safely almost anywhere.

- Storage of used fuel is normally under water for at least five years and then often in dry storage.

- Deep geological disposal is widely agreed to be the best solution for final disposal of the most radioactive waste produced.

Source: https://world-nuclear.org/

The nuclear industry supports nearly half a million jobs in the United States and contributes an estimated $60 billion to the U.S. gross domestic product each year. U.S. nuclear plants can employ up to 700 workers with salaries that are 30% higher than the local average. They also contribute billions of dollars annually to local economies through federal and state tax revenues.

Source: https://www.energy.gov/

As you can see, nuclear energy has by far the highest capacity factor of any other energy source. This basically means nuclear power plants are producing maximum power more than 92% of the time during the year.

That’s about nearly 2 times more as natural gas and coal units, and almost 3 times or more reliable than wind and solar plants.

Source: https://www.energy.gov/

Technological advancements such as Generation III+ reactors have significantly improved efficiency and safety, while Generation IV reactors, which are in development, promise even greater efficiencies, safety improvements, and the potential to recycle waste as fuel. Moreover, advanced computational modeling, improved materials, and enhanced safety protocols are all contributing to higher output and efficiency in nuclear power generation.

Source: https://thebreakthrough.org/

Nuclear fuel is by far the longest-lasting source of energy on the planet and among the most abundant.  Soil commonly contains an average of around 6 parts per million (ppm) of thorium and the uranium and thorium concentrations in seawater range from 1.80 to 4.1 and 0.14 to 0.88 microg/L, respectively.  The longevity of nuclear fuel can even be compared to solar power Astronomers estimate that the sun has about 7 billion to 8 billion years left, while the half-life of thorium- 232 is about 14 billion years. 

Source: https://changeoracle.com/

A hybrid energy system combining both nuclear power and renewables can help significantly reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, according to participants at an event held today on the sidelines of the IAEA’s 63rd General Conference.

Hybrid systems could also foster cogeneration for seawater desalination, hydrogen production, district heating, cooling and other industrial applications. Research and innovation, the introduction of appropriate policies and market incentives are an important next step.

Source: https://www.iaea.org/

Nuclear plants help to keep power grids stable. To a certain extent, they can adjust their operations to follow demand and supply shifts. As the share of variable renewables like wind and solar photovoltaics (PV) rises, the need for such services will increase. Nuclear plants can help to limit the impacts from seasonal fluctuations in output from renewables and bolster energy security by reducing dependence on imported fuels.

Source: https://www.iea.org/

Nuclear energy is a form of energy released from the nucleus, the core of atoms, made up of protons and neutrons. This source of energy can be produced in two ways: fission – when nuclei of atoms split into several parts – or fusion – when nuclei fuse together.

Each time the reaction occurs, there is a release of energy in the form of heat and radiation. The heat can be converted into electricity in a nuclear power plant, similarly to how heat from fossil fuels such as coal, gas and oil is used to generate electricity.

Source: https://www.iaea.org/newscenter/

The main job of a reactor is to house and control nuclear fission a process where atoms split and release energy.

Fission and Fusion: What is the Difference?

Reactors use uranium for nuclear fuel. The uranium is processed into small ceramic pellets and stacked together into sealed metal tubes called fuel rods. Typically, more than 200 of these rods are bundled together to form a fuel assembly. A reactor core is typically made up of a couple hundred assemblies, depending on power level. 

Inside the reactor vessel, the fuel rods are immersed in water which acts as both a coolant and moderator. The moderator helps slow down the neutrons produced by fission to sustain the chain reaction.

Control rods can then be inserted into the reactor core to reduce the reaction rate or withdrawn to increase it.

The heat created by fission turns the water into steam, which spins a turbine to produce carbon-free electricity.

Source: https://www.energy.gov/

Safety systems are built into nuclear power plants to control the reaction and contain radioactive material.

Safety features in the equipment include:

- Using laws of physics and natural properties of materials

- Using engineered safety systems that have many backups

- Using strong barriers that keep radiation inside if systems fail

- Training workers to manage routine operations and emergency situations.

Source: https://www.energy.gov/

The NRC regulates the storage and disposal of all commercially generated radioactive wastes in the United States. The NRC also regulates high-level wastes generated by the Department of Energy that are subject to long-term storage and not used for, or part of, research and development activities. Regulations establish minimum acceptable performance criteria for licensees managing wastes, while providing for flexibility in technological approach. Nuclear waste storage options:

Storage and Disposal: All U.S. nuclear power plants store spent nuclear fuel in "spent fuel pools." These pools are made of reinforced concrete several feet thick, with steel liners. The water is typically about 40 feet deep and serves both to shield the radiation and cool the rods.

Mill Tailings: Another type of radioactive waste consists of tailings generated during the milling of certain ores to extract uranium or thorium. These wastes have relatively low concentrations of radioactive materials with long half-lives. Tailings contain radium (which, through radioactive decay, becomes radon), thorium, and small residual amounts of uranium left over from the milling process. Part 40 Appendix A of the NRC's regulations sets procedures and criteria for disposing of mill tailings and maintaining the disposal site.

Source: https://www.nrc.gov/

To limit the impacts of climate change, the world must rapidly reduce its dependency on fossil fuels to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Nuclear energy is low-carbon and can be deployed on a large scale at the timescale required, supplying the world with clean, reliable, and affordable electricity. 

Source: https://world-nuclear.org/

Nuclear power plants produce no greenhouse gas emissions during operation, and over the course of its life-cycle, nuclear produces about the same amount of carbon dioxide-equivalent emissions per unit of electricity as wind, and one-third of the emissions per unit of electricity when compared with solar.

Source: https://world-nuclear.org/

About 10% of the world's electricity was produced by nuclear power. The percentage can vary significantly from country to country.

Source: https://www.iea.org/

The next generation of reactors are made to meet several benchmarks in performance, safety and reliability. Small modular reactors (SMRs), for example, are advanced reactors that can generate up to 300 MW of electricity and whose parts can be transported to installation sites as prefabricated modules.

Source: https://www.iaea.org/

The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty was an agreement signed in 1968 by several of the major nuclear and non-nuclear powers that pledged their cooperation in stemming the spread of nuclear technology. Although the NPT did not ultimately prevent nuclear proliferation, in the context of the Cold War arms race and mounting international concern about the consequences of nuclear war, the treaty was a major success for advocates of arms control because it set a precedent for international cooperation between nuclear and non-nuclear states to prevent proliferation.

Source: https://history.state.gov/