23/09/2025
China Achieves Nuclear Breakthrough Using Abandoned U.S. Research.
Chinese scientists have made a major leap in nuclear energy by successfully refueling a molten salt thorium reactor without shutting it down — a feat never achieved before.
The reactor, located in a secret facility in the Gobi Desert, generates 2 megawatts of electricity, enough to power about 2,000 homes.
It is based on a design first tested by the U.S. in the 1960s but later shelved. China revived this declassified American research and spent decades improving it.
Unlike traditional uranium-based reactors, thorium is a safer, more abundant alternative.
Molten salt reactors also offer several advantages: they can’t melt down in an accident, produce less nuclear waste, and can even use waste from older reactors as fuel.
The reactor works by heating a liquid thorium fuel mix to over 600°C, triggering fission to produce energy. If something goes wrong, the molten salt naturally cools and solidifies, halting the reaction safely.
The U.S. abandoned this technology due to technical challenges such as corrosion, but Chinese engineers persisted and seem to have overcome those hurdles.
Xu Hongjie, the project’s lead scientist, credited consistent investment and long-term commitment for their success.
China’s push for thorium reactors is tied to its carbon-neutral goal by 2060 and its vast domestic thorium reserves, which could potentially meet its energy needs for thousands of years.
With this breakthrough, China now leads global efforts to develop cleaner and safer next-generation nuclear power.
