Fundamentals of Nuclear Power
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Fundamentals of Nuclear Power Juan S. Giraldo Douglas J. Gotham David G. Nderitu Paul V. Preckel Darla J. Mize State Utility Forecasting Group December 2012 Table of Contents List of Figures .................................................................................................................................. iii List of Tables ................................................................................................................................... iv Acronyms and Abbreviations ........................................................................................................... v Glossary ........................................................................................................................................... vi Foreword ........................................................................................................................................ vii 1. Overview ............................................................................................................................. 1 1.1 Current state of nuclear power generation in the U.S. ......................................... 1 1.2 Nuclear power around the world ........................................................................... 4 2. Nuclear Energy .................................................................................................................... 9 2.1 How nuclear power plants generate electricity ..................................................... 9 2.2 Radioactive decay .................................................................................................. 9 2.3 Nuclear reaction ...................................................................................................... 9 2.4 Thermal reactors ................................................................................................... 12 2.5 Fast reactors .......................................................................................................... 12 2.6 Nuclear fuel cycle .................................................................................................. 13 2.7 Front end ............................................................................................................. 13 2.8 Service period ....................................................................................................... 16 2.9 Back end ............................................................................................................... 16 3. Nuclear Reactors .............................................................................................................. 22 3.1 Technologies being used in the U.S. .................................................................... 22 3.2 Technologies being used around the world ......................................................... 23 3.3 New nuclear technology ....................................................................................... 25 3.4 Small modular reactors ........................................................................................ 29 3.5 Generation IV reactors ......................................................................................... 34 4. Economics of new nuclear power ..................................................................................... 41 4.1 Costs of new nuclear power ................................................................................ 41 4.2 Economic competitiveness .................................................................................. 43 5. Government Regulations and Incentives ........................................................................ 48 5.1 Licensing ............................................................................................................... 48 5.2 Economic incentives ............................................................................................. 50 6. Safety ............................................................................................................................... 52 6.1 Accidents history ................................................................................................... 53 6.2 Achieving safety .................................................................................................... 58 6.3 Siting...................................................................................................................... 61 i 6.4 Industry organizations ......................................................................................... 62 6.5 International cooperation ..................................................................................... 62 6.6 Terrorism ............................................................................................................... 62 7. Decommissioning ............................................................................................................. 65 7.1 Decommissioning process .................................................................................... 65 7.2 Decommissioning costs ......................................................................................... 66 ii List of Figures 1-1 Location and years of operation for U.S. commercial power reactors ............................. 1 1-2 Capacity and generation of U.S. nuclear power plants ...................................................... 2 1-3 Number of reactors in operation worldwide ...................................................................... 6 1-4 Share of nuclear power generation in countries with nuclear power ............................... 6 2-1 Nuclear fission ................................................................................................................... 10 2-2 Nuclear chain reaction ...................................................................................................... 11 2-3 Mining via in situ leaching ................................................................................................ 14 2-4 Uranium oxide concentrate (U3O8) ................................................................................... 14 2-5 Fuel assembly ................................................................................................................... 16 2-6 Spent fuel storage pool ..................................................................................................... 17 2-7 Dry cask storage ................................................................................................................ 18 2-8 Dry storage at the Connecticut Yankee site ................................................................... 19 3-1 Pressurized water reactor ................................................................................................ 22 3-2 Boiling water reactor ....................................................................................................... 23 3-3 Advanced gas cooled reactor ........................................................................................... 24 3-4 Advanced boiling water reactor ....................................................................................... 27 3-5 AP 1000 reactor ................................................................................................................ 28 3-6 NuScale reactor ................................................................................................................. 30 3-7 NuScale multi-unit complex .............................................................................................. 31 3-8 Toshiba 4S reactor ............................................................................................................ 32 3-9 Hyperion power facility ..................................................................................................... 33 3-10 Evolution of nuclear power ............................................................................................... 35 6-1 Description of INES levels ................................................................................................ 54 6-2 Safety barriers for a boiling water reactor ....................................................................... 60 6-3 Construction of a containment wall ............................................................................... 61 iii List of Tables 1-1 Nuclear power plant applications ....................................................................................... 4 3-1 Japan’s ABWRs’ operating and capacity factors ............................................................... 26 4-1 Compilation of cost estimates .......................................................................................... 42 4-2 Operating and overnight capital costs for new sources of generation ........................... 43 4-3 Average levelized cost (2009 $/MWh) for plants entering service in 2016 ................... 45 6-1 Summary of severe accidents (>5 fatalities) that occurred in fossil, hydro, and nuclear energy chains in the period 1969-2000 ............................................................................ 52 6-2 Significant nuclear reactor accidents ............................................................................... 55 iv Acronyms and Abbreviations ABWR Advanced Boiling Water reactor AGR Advanced Gas cooled Reactor AP Advanced Passive 1000 APWR Advanced Pressurized Water Reactor BWR Boiling Water Reactor CANDU CANada Deuterium Uranium CNS Convention on Nuclear Safety CO2 Carbon