Event
Aerospace Engineering Seminar Series: Ajay Kothari
Wednesday, March 15, 2023
4:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m.
1202 Martin Hall Hybrid
Brent Barbee
bbarbee@umd.edu
https://aero.umd.edu/events/aerospace-engineering-seminar-series
SPEAKER: Dr. Ajay Kothari
President and Founder, Astrox Corporation
TITLE: Thor the Life Saver?
ABSTRACT: Thorium Molten Salt Reactors do not need the 2-300 atmosphere pressure containment vessels required by the prevalent Light (or Heavy) Water Reactors (the so-called PWRs, Pressurized Water Reactors) that have resulted in explosions such as TMI, Chernobyl and Fukushima, thus as a result being inherently safe. They work at 700-1200 C temperatures, making them more efficient for conversion to electricity. They leave only 1% waste products as opposed to about 95% for PWRs. No pollution and no CO2 during operation. Aren’t they then our ideal climate change solution? There is enough Thorium in the US to provide us electricity for 600 years, and enough in the world to provide electricity for many thousands of years.
BIO: Dr. Ajay Kothari is president and founder of Astrox Corporation, an aerospace R&D company located in suburban Washington, DC. His PhD and MS in Aerospace Engineering are from the University of Maryland and his BSc in Physics from Bombay University. He has over 45 professional publications and was awarded a National Merit Scholarship. He has been Principal Investigator on more than 30 Air Force, DARPA and NASA contracts, including for hypersonic scramjet vehicles and reusable rockets. He has been invited to speak on aerospace subjects by many entities and interviewed on television shows. His articles on space-related topics have been published by various news outlets. He is a member of the Screen Actors’ Guild having acted in Law & order, Unsolved Mysteries, The Wire and more. He and is also an artist having exhibited at New York Art Expo and various galleries.
ZOOM: https://umd.zoom.us/j/2226271754?pwd=RWhyUnUxMG1Hc2IvcHJMTWwrWXpodz09
