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Advanced Reactor Technology Everett Redmond, Ph.D. Nuclear Energy Institute ADVANCED REACTOR January 9, 2018 TECHNOLOGY Generation IV International Forum (GIF) website https://www.gen-4.org/. September 2015 WHAT IS AN ADVANCED REACTOR? Any reactor technology that offers new features, attributes, or capabilities above what is fleet deployed today Non-light water designs (and can include light water SMRs) Any design you can’t buy today ADVANCED REACTORS ARE NOT ‘NEW’ Peach Bottom 1 – Fermi 1 – Sodium- MSRE – EBR 1 – Sodium High Temperature cooled Fast Reactor Experimental Fast Reactor Gas-cooled Reactor (SFR) Liquid Fueled first nuclear (HTGR) Molten Salt electricity Reactor (MSR) generation HIGH OPERATING TEMPERATURES – GATEWAY TO HEAT MARKETS Source: NGNP Alliance <http://www.ngnpalliance.org/images/general_files/HTGR%204%20page%20individual%20040611.pdf> ADVANCED REACTORS BY GENERATION IV DESIGNATION Outlet Core Pressure Pressure Neutron Reactor Concept Coolant Temp. Power (MPa) Class Spectrum (oC) Density Gas-cooled fast Helium 850 7 – 10 High Fast High reactor (GFR) (13 for EM2) Lead-cooled fast Pb (metal) 500 - 800 ~0.1 Low Fast High reactor (LFR) or Pb-Bi (eutectic) Molten salt Fluoride or 700 - 1000 ~0.1 -0.17 Low Fast or High reactor (MSR) chloride Thermal salts Sodium-cooled Sodium 500 - 550 ~0.1 Low Fast High fast reactor (metal) (SFR) Supercritical- Water 500 - 625 25 Very High Fast or High water-cooled Thermal reactor (SCWR) Very-high- Helium 700 - 1000 2 - 7 High Thermal Low temperature reactor (VHTR) HIGH-TEMPERATURE GAS REACTORS (HTGRS) PRIMARY COOLANT FOR GAS REACTORS • CO2 used in UK and French fleets (Magnox, UNGG, and AGRs) a) Disassociates under irradiation b) Causes oxidation of graphite • Helium for all new designs – HTGRs a) Inert b) Second only to hydrogen in heat transfer properties (conductivity, specific heat) TRISO- COATED PARTICLE FUEL Source: INL and NGNP, 2011. www.nextgenerationnuclearplant.com TWO GENERAL REACTOR VARIANTS Prismatic Block Fuel Design Pebble-Bed Fuel Design Source: AREVA, 2014. HTGR Information Kit. HTGR - INHERENT SAFETY 1. High temperature ceramic fuel tolerates conditions anticipated for worst-case loss-of-coolant accident 2. Reactor designed to passively conduct heat to environment 3. Reactivity (and power) decreases with increasing temperature Source: IAEA ARIS database, GA Prismatic HTGR design HTGRS IN THE UNITED STATES • Peach Bottom 1 – PA • Fort St Vrain – CO 200 MWth 1967-1974 842 MWth 1979-1989 Image from U.S. Atomic Energy Commission, 1967 HTGRS IN CHINA – HTR-PM China HTGR: Installation of first HTR-PM vessel 2 x 250 MWth - 2018 SODIUM-COOLED FAST REACTORS (SFRS) FIRST NUCLEAR ELECTRICITY GENERATED BY SFR: EBR I (IDAHO) December 1953 – demonstrated first nuclear electricity generation to light four light bulbs (later whole facility) ENRICO FERMI ATOMIC POWER PLANT (FERMI 1) 1. 200 MWth, 61 MWe SFR a) Design by Atomic Power Development Associates (APDA) b) Constructed and owned by industry consortium: Power Reactor Development Corporation (PRDC) c) Operated by Detroit Edison: 1963-1966; 1970-1972 2. Experienced blockage of fuel cooling channel leading to partial core melt Image from U.S. Atomic Energy Commission, 1967 SODIUM COOLED FAST REACTORS 1. Pros: a) High thermal conductivity b) Low absorption of neutrons in fast energy spectrum c) Moderately high boiling point (882 C) I. core outlet temperatures ~ 600 C II. ambient (near atmospheric) operating pressures 2. Cons: a) chemically reactive with water and oxygen (air)! b) opaqueness makes inspection, fuel handling and maintenance difficult MOLTEN SALT REACTORS (MSRS) LIQUID FUELED MSRS ORIGINALLY DEVELOPED FOR AIRCRAFT Convair NB-36H Nuclear Test Aircraft flew with an operating reactor on board as part of X-6 Nuclear Bomber program R&D Aircraft Reactor Experiment (ARE) • steady-state Tout at 850 °C • final test operation ~1 MWth for 74 hrs 1965-69: MOLTEN SALT REACTOR EXPERIMENT (MSRE) • Focus for MSRs shifted to ground-based power reactors 7 • LiBeF4 (Flibe) salt • Graphite moderator • Hastelloy N construction • ~7 MWth with Tout at 660 °C • 20,000 hr operation incl. utilization of 233U from 232Th irradiated elsewhere MOLTEN SALT REACTORS 1. Flexible design envelope: a) Thermal or fast b) Lowest fuel inventory for any reactor design 2. Fuel is dissolved in primary coolant (molten salt) and flows through heat exchanger 3. Salts are simplest chemical compositions and are impervious to radiation damage 4. Salts have high heat capacity and high boiling temperature (> 1200 C) 5. System operation at high temperatures and near-atmospheric pressures MSRS TODAY 1. Popular design among start-ups 2. Many variants 3. Many companies, including small start ups 4. China is pursuing two variants simultaneously DEVELOPERS TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPERS • Fast Reactors ARC Westinghouse Oklo GEH General Atomics TerraPower Elysium Industries • Molten Salt Reactors Thorcon Transatomic Power TerraPower Flibe Energy Terrestrial Energy Elysium Industries Alpha-Tec Yellowstone Energy Kairos Power • High Temperature Gas Reactors AREVA StarCore Nuclear X-energy U-Battery DEVELOPER UPDATES • TerraPower signed joint venture with China National Nuclear Corporation – Oct 2017 • X-energy signs MOU with Jordan Atomic Energy Commission – Nov 2017 • Terrestrial Energy – Completed Phase 1 of Canadian Vendor Design Review – November 2017 • Oklo – in pre-application interactions with NRC.
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