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Ordered bed modular reactor design proposal
The Ordered Bed Modular Reactor (OBMR) is a design as an advanced modular HTGR in which the annular reactor core is filled with an ordered bed of fuel spheres. This arrangement allows fuel elements to be poured into the core cavity which is shaped so that an ordered bed is formed and to be discharged from the core through the opening holes in the reactor top. These operations can be performed in a shutdown shorter time. The OBMR has the most of advantages from both the pebble bed reactor and block type reactor. Its core has great structural flexibility and stability, which allow increasing reactor output power and outlet gas temperature as well as decreasing core pressure drop. This paper introduces ordered packing bed characteristics, unloading and loading technique of the fuel spheres and predicted design features of the OBMR. (authors)
Tian, J. [Inst. of Nuclear Energy Technology, Tsinghua Univ., Beijing 100084 (China)
Generic small modular reactor plant design.
This report gives an overview of expected design characteristics, concepts, and procedures for small modular reactors. The purpose of this report is to provide those who are interested in reducing the cost and improving the safety of advanced nuclear power plants with a generic design that possesses enough detail in a non-sensitive manner to give merit to their conclusions. The report is focused on light water reactor technology, but does add details on what could be different in a more advanced design (see Appendix). Numerous reactor and facility concepts were used for inspiration (documented in the bibliography). The final design described here is conceptual and does not reflect any proposed concept or sub-systems, thus any details given here are only relevant within this report. This report does not include any design or engineering calculations.
Lewis, Tom Goslee,; Cipiti, Benjamin B.; Jordan, Sabina Erteza; Baum, Gregory A.
Westinghouse Small Modular Reactor nuclear steam supply system design
The Westinghouse Small Modular Reactor (SMR) is an 800 MWt (>225 MWe) integral pressurized water reactor (iPWR), in which all of the components typically associated with the nuclear steam supply system (NSSS) of a nuclear power plant are incorporated within a single reactor pressure vessel. This paper is the first in a series of four papers which describe the design and functionality of the Westinghouse SMR. Also described in this series are the key drivers influencing the design of the Westinghouse SMR and the unique passive safety features of the Westinghouse SMR. Several critical motivators contributed to the development and integration of the Westinghouse SMR design. These design driving motivators dictated the final configuration of the Westinghouse SMR to varying degrees, depending on the specific features under consideration. These design drivers include safety, economics, AP1000{sup R} reactor expertise and experience, research and development requirements, functionality of systems and components, size of the systems and vessels, simplicity of design, and licensing requirements. The Westinghouse SMR NSSS consists of an integral reactor vessel within a compact containment vessel. The core is located in the bottom of the reactor vessel and is composed of 89 modified Westinghouse 17x17 Robust Fuel Assemblies (RFA). These modified fuel assemblies have an active core length of only 2.4 m (8 ft) long, and the entirety of the core is encompassed by a radial reflector. The Westinghouse SMR core operates on a 24 month fuel cycle. The reactor vessel is approximately 24.4 m (80 ft) long and 3.7 m (12 ft) in diameter in order to facilitate standard rail shipping to the site. The reactor vessel houses hot and cold leg channels to facilitate coolant flow, control rod drive mechanisms (CRDM), instrumentation and cabling, an intermediate flange to separate flow and instrumentation and facilitate simpler refueling, a pressurizer, a straight tube, recirculating steam generator, and eight reactor coolant pumps (RCP). The containment vessel is 27.1 m (89 ft) long and 9.8 m (32 ft) in diameter, and is designed to withstand pressures up to 1.7 MPa (250 psi). It is completely submerged in a pool of water serving as a heat sink and radiation shield. Housed within the containment are four combined core makeup tanks (CMT)/passive residual heat removal (PRHR) heat exchangers, two in-containment pools (ICP), two ICP tanks and four valves which function as the automatic depressurization system (ADS). The PRHR heat exchangers are thermally connected to two different ultimate heat sink (UHS) tanks which provide transient cooling capabilities. (authors)
Memmott, M. J.; Harkness, A. W.; Van Wyk, J. [Westinghouse Electric Company LLC, 600 Cranberry Woods Drive, Cranberry Twp. PA 16066 (United States)
The small modular reactor program at the Savannah River Site and the Savannah River National Laboratory.
The small modular reactor program at the Savannah River Site and the Savannah River National Laboratory.
Modularity in design of the MIT Pebble Bed Reactor
The future of new nuclear power plant construction will depend in large part on the ability of designers to reduce capital, operations, and maintenance costs. One of the methods proposed, is to enhance the modularity of ...
Berte, Marc Vincent, 1977-
The design of a reduced diameter Pebble Bed Modular Reactor for reactor pressure vessel transport by railcar
Many desirable locations for Pebble Bed Modular Reactors are currently out of consideration as construction sites for current designs due to limitations on the mode of transportation for large RPVs. In particular, the ...
Everson, Matthew S
Modular high temperature gas-cooled reactor plant design duty cycle. Revision 3
This document defines the Plant Design Duty Cycle (PCDC) for the Modular High Temperature Gas-cooled Reactor (MHTGR). The duty cycle is a set of events and their design number of occurrences over the life of the plant for which the MHTGR plant shall be designed to ensure that the plant meets all the top-level requirements. The duty cycle is representative of the types of events to be expected in multiple reactor module-turbine plant configurations of the MHTGR. A synopsis of each PDDC event is presented to provide an overview of the plant response and consequence. 8 refs., 1 fig., 4 tabs.
Chan, T.
Helium circulator design considerations for modular high temperature gas-cooled reactor plant
Efforts are in progress to develop a standard modular high temperature gas-cooled reactor (MHTGR) plant that is amenable to design certification and serial production. The MHTGR reference design, based on a steam cycle power conversion system, utilizes a 350 MW(t) annular reactor core with prismatic fuel elements. Flexibility in power rating is afforded by utilizing a multiplicity of the standard module. The circulator, which is an electric motor-driven helium compressor, is a key component in the primary system of the nuclear plant, since it facilitates thermal energy transfer from the reactor core to the steam generator; and, hence, to the external turbo-generator set. This paper highlights the helium circulator design considerations for the reference MHTGR plant and includes a discussion on the major features of the turbomachine concept, operational characteristics, and the technology base that exists in the U.S.
McDonald, C.F.; Nichols, M.K.
Helium circulator design considerations for modular high temperature gas-cooled reactor plant
Efforts are in progress to develop a standard modular high temperature gas-cooled reactor (MHTGR) plant that is amenable to design certification and serial production. The MHTGR reference design, based on a steam cycle power conversion system, utilizes a 350 MW(t) annular reactor core with prismatic fuel elements. Flexibility in power rating is afforded by utilizing a multiplicity of the standard module. The circulator, which is an electric motor-driven helium compressor, is a key component in the primary system of the nuclear plant, since it facilitates thermal energy transfer from the reactor core to the steam generator; and, hence, to the external turbo-generator set. This paper highlights the helium circulator design considerations for the reference MHTGR plant and includes a discussion on the major features of the turbomachine concept, operational characteristics, and the technology base that exists in the US.
McDonald, C.F.; Nichols, M.K.
Design, analysis and optimization of the power conversion system for the Modular Pebble Bed Reactor System
The Modular Pebble Bed Reactor system (MPBR) requires a gas turbine cycle (Brayton cycle) as the power conversion system for it to achieve economic competitiveness as a GenIV nuclear system. The availability of controllable ...
Wang, Chunyun, 1968-
Journal of NUCLEAR SCIENCE and TECHNOLOGY, Vol. 39, No. 11, p. 11691181 (November 2002) Conceptual Design of a Modular Island Core Fast Breeder Reactor "RAPID-M"
Journal of NUCLEAR SCIENCE and TECHNOLOGY, Vol. 39, No. 11, p. 11691181 (November 2002) Conceptual Design of a Modular Island Core Fast Breeder Reactor "RAPID-M" Mitsuru KAMBE Central Research Institute and accepted September 10, 2002) A metal fueled modular island core sodium cooled fast breeder reactor concept
Laughlin, Robert B.
Westinghouse Small Modular Reactor balance of plant and supporting systems design
The Westinghouse Small Modular Reactor (SMR) is an 800 MWt (>225 MWe) integral pressurized water reactor (iPWR), in which all of the components typically associated with the nuclear steam supply system (NSSS) of a nuclear power plant are incorporated within a single reactor pressure vessel. This paper is the second in a series of four papers which describe the design and functionality of the Westinghouse SMR. It focuses, in particular, upon the supporting systems and the balance of plant (BOP) designs of the Westinghouse SMR. Several Westinghouse SMR systems are classified as safety, and are critical to the safe operation of the Westinghouse SMR. These include the protection and monitoring system (PMS), the passive core cooling system (PXS), and the spent fuel cooling system (SFS) including pools, valves, and piping. The Westinghouse SMR safety related systems include the instrumentation and controls (I and C) as well as redundant and physically separated safety trains with batteries, electrical systems, and switch gears. Several other incorporated systems are non-safety related, but provide functions for plant operations including defense-in-depth functions. These include the chemical volume control system (CVS), heating, ventilation and cooling (HVAC) systems, component cooling water system (CCS), normal residual heat removal system (RNS) and service water system (SWS). The integrated performance of the safety-related and non-safety related systems ensures the safe and efficient operation of the Westinghouse SMR through various conditions and transients. The turbine island consists of the turbine, electric generator, feedwater and steam systems, moisture separation systems, and the condensers. The BOP is designed to minimize assembly time, shipping challenges, and on-site testing requirements for all structures, systems, and components. (authors)
Memmott, M. J.; Stansbury, C.; Taylor, C. [Westinghouse Electric Company LLC, 600 Cranberry Woods Drive, Cranberry Twp. PA 16066 (United States)
OAK B204 The overall goal of this three-year research project was to develop a new scientific design of a compact modular 200 MWe and a full size 1200 MWe simplified boiling water reactors (SBWR). Specific objectives of this research were: (1) to perform scientific designs of the core neutronics and core thermal-hydraulics for a small capacity and full size simplified boiling water reactor, (2) to develop a passive safety system design, (3) improve and validate safety analysis code, (4) demonstrate experimentally and analytically all design functions of the safety systems for the design basis accidents (DBA) and (5) to develop the final scientific design of both SBWR systems, 200 MWe (SBWR-200) and 1200 MWe (SBWR-1200). The SBWR combines the advantages of design simplicity and completely passive safety systems. These advantages fit well within the objectives of NERI and the Department of Energy's focus on the development of Generation III and IV nuclear power. The 3-year research program was structured around seven tasks. Task 1 was to perform the preliminary thermal-hydraulic design. Task 2 was to perform the core neutronic design analysis. Task 3 was to perform a detailed scaling study and obtain corresponding PUMA conditions from an integral test. Task 4 was to perform integral tests and code evaluation for the DBA. Task 5 was to perform a safety analysis for the DBA. Task 6 was to perform a BWR stability analysis. Task 7 was to perform a final scientific design of the compact modular SBWR-200 and the full size SBWR-1200. A no cost extension for the third year was requested and the request was granted and all the project tasks were completed by April 2003. The design activities in tasks 1, 2, and 3 were completed as planned. The existing thermal-hydraulic information, core physics, and fuel lattice information was collected on the existing design of the simplified boiling water reactor. The thermal-hydraulic design were developed. Based on a detailed integral system scaling analysis, design parameters were obtained and designs of the compact modular 200 MWe SBWR and the full size 1200 MWe SBWR were developed. These reactors are provided with passive safety systems. A new passive vacuum breaker check valve was designed to replace the mechanical vacuum beaker check valve. The new vacuum breaker check valve was based on a hydrostatic head, and was fail safe. The performance of this new valve was evaluated both by the thermal-hydraulic code RELAP5 and by the experiments in a scaled SBWR facility, PUMA. In the core neutronic design a core depletion model was implemented to PARCS code. A lattice design for the SBWR fuel assemblies was performed. Design improvements were made to the neutronics/thermal-hydraulics models of SBWR-200 and SBWR-1200, and design analyses of these reactors were performed. The design base accident analysis and evaluation of all the passive safety systems were completed as scheduled in tasks 4 and 5. Initial conditions for the small break loss of coolant accidents (LOCA) and large break LOCA using REALP5 code were obtained. Small and large break LOCA tests were performed and the data was analyzed. An anticipated transient with scram was simulated using the RELAP5 code for SBWR-200. The transient considered was an accidental closure of the main steam isolation valve (MSIV), which was considered to be the most significant transient. The evaluation of the RELAP5 code against experimental data for SBWR-1200 was completed. In task 6, the instability analysis for the three SBWR designs (SBWR-1200, SBWR-600 and SBWR-200) were simulated for start-up transients and the results were similar. Neither the geysering instability, nor the loop type instability was predicted by RAMONA-4B in the startup simulation following the recommended procedure by GE. The density wave oscillation was not observed at all because the power level used in the simulation was not high enough. A study was made of the potential instabilities by imposing an unrealistically high power ramp in a short time period, as suggested by GE. RAMON
M. Ishii; S. T. Revankar; T. Downar; Y. Xu, H. J. Yoon; D. Tinkler; U. S. Rohatgi
Integrating Safety, Operations, Security, and Safeguards (ISOSS) into the design of small modular reactors : a handbook.
The existing regulatory environment for nuclear reactors impacts both the facility design and the cost of operations once the facility is built. Delaying the consideration of regulatory requirements until late in the facility design - or worse, until after construction has begun - can result in costly retrofitting as well as increased operational costs to fulfill safety, security, safeguards, and emergency readiness requirements. Considering the scale and scope, as well as the latest design trends in the next generation of nuclear facilities, there is an opportunity to evaluate the regulatory requirements and optimize the design process for Small Modular Reactors (SMRs), as compared to current Light Water Reactors (LWRs). To this end, Sandia has embarked on an initiative to evaluate the interactions of regulations and operations as an approach to optimizing the design of SMR facilities, supporting operational efficiencies, as well as regulatory requirements. The early stages of this initiative consider two focus areas. The first focus area, reported by LaChance, et al. (2007), identifies the regulatory requirements established for the current fleet of LWR facilities regarding Safety, Security, Operations, Safeguards, and Emergency Planning, and evaluates the technical bases for these requirements. The second focus area, developed in this report, documents the foundations for an innovative approach that supports a design framework for SMR facilities that incorporates the regulatory environment, as well as the continued operation of the facility, into the early design stages, eliminating the need for costly retrofitting and additional operating personnel to fulfill regulatory requirements. The work considers a technique known as Integrated Safety, Operations, Security and Safeguards (ISOSS) (Darby, et al., 2007). In coordination with the best practices of industrial operations, the goal of this effort is to develop a design framework that outlines how ISOSS requirements can be incorporated into the pre-conceptual through early facility design stages, seeking a cost-effective design that meets both operational efficiencies and the regulatory environment. The larger scope of the project, i.e., in future stages, includes the identification of potentially conflicting requirements identified by the ISOSS framework, including an analysis of how regulatory requirements may be changed to account for the intrinsic features of SMRs.
Middleton, Bobby D.; Mendez, Carmen Margarita [Sociotecnia Solutions] [Sociotecnia Solutions
. The research mainly focused on producing a small modular reactor (Pebble Bed Modular Reactor) design to analyze the fuel depletion and plutonium and minor actinide accumulation with varying power densities. The reactors running at low power densities were found...
Kafle, Nischal
Small Modular Reactors: Institutional Assessment
? Objectives include, among others, a description of the basic development status of �small modular reactors� (SMRs) focused primarily on domestic activity; investigation of the domestic market appeal of modular reactors from the viewpoints of both key energy sector customers and also key stakeholders in the financial community; and consideration of how to proceed further with a pro-active "core group" of stakeholders substantially interested in modular nuclear deployment in order to provide the basis to expedite design/construction activity and regulatory approval. ? Information gathering was via available resources, both published and personal communications with key individual stakeholders; published information is limited to that already in public domain (no confidentiality); viewpoints from interviews are incorporated within. Discussions at both government-hosted and private-hosted SMR meetings are reflected herein. INL itself maintains a neutral view on all issues described. Note: as per prior discussion between INL and CAP, individual and highly knowledgeable senior-level stakeholders provided the bulk of insights herein, and the results of those interviews are the main source of the observations of this report. ? Attachment A is the list of individual stakeholders consulted to date, including some who provided significant earlier assessments of SMR institutional feasibility. ? Attachments B, C, and D are included to provide substantial context on the international status of SMR development; they are not intended to be comprehensive and are individualized due to the separate nature of the source materials. Attachment E is a summary of the DOE requirements for winning teams regarding the current SMR solicitation. Attachment F deserves separate consideration due to the relative maturity of the SMART SMR program underway in Korea. Attachment G provides illustrative SMR design features and is intended for background. Attachment H is included for overview purposes and is a sampling of advanced SMR concepts, which will be considered as part of the current DOE SMR program but whose estimated deployment time is beyond CAP�s current investment time horizon. Attachment I is the public DOE statement describing the present approach of their SMR Program.
Joseph Perkowski, Ph.D.
Small Modular Reactors (468th Brookhaven Lecture)
With good reason, much more media attention has focused on nuclear power plants than solar farms, wind farms, or hydroelectric plants during the past month and a half. But as nations around the world demand more energy to power everything from cell phone batteries to drinking water pumps to foundries, nuclear plants are the only non-greenhouse-gas producing option that can be built to operate almost anywhere, and can continue to generate power during droughts, after the sun sets, and when winds die down. To supply this demand for power, designers around the world are competing to develop more affordable nuclear reactors of the future: small modular reactors. Brookhaven Lab is working with DOE to ensure that these reactors are designed to be safe for workers, members of surrounding communities, and the environment and to ensure that the radioactive materials and technology will only be used for peaceful purposes, not weapons. In his talk, Bari will discuss the advantages and challenges of small modular reactors and what drives both international and domestic interest in them. He will also explain how Brookhaven Lab and DOE are working to address the challenges and provide a framework for small modular reactors to be commercialized.
Bari, Robert
Design, Analysis and Optimization of the Power Conversion System for the Modular Pebble Bed Reactor System
Pebble Bed Reactor system (MPBR) requires a gas turbine cycle (Brayton cycle) as the power conversion for the gas turbine cycle. The development of an initial reference design for an indirect helium cycle has for the system. Load transients simulations show that the indirect, three-shaft arrangement gas turbine power
Passive Safety Features for Small Modular Reactors
The rapid growth in the size and complexity of commercial nuclear power plants in the 1970s spawned an interest in smaller, simpler designs that are inherently or intrinsically safe through the use of passive design features. Several designs were developed, but none were ever built, although some of their passive safety features were incorporated into large commercial plant designs that are being planned or built today. In recent years, several reactor vendors are actively redeveloping small modular reactor (SMR) designs with even greater use of passive features. Several designs incorporate the ultimate in passive safety they completely eliminate specific accident initiators from the design. Other design features help to reduce the likelihood of an accident or help to mitigate the accident s consequences, should one occur. While some passive safety features are common to most SMR designs, irrespective of the coolant technology, other features are specific to water, gas, or liquid-metal cooled SMR designs. The extensive use of passive safety features in SMRs promise to make these plants highly robust, protecting both the general public and the owner/investor. Once demonstrated, these plants should allow nuclear power to be used confidently for a broader range of customers and applications than will be possible with large plants alone.
Ingersoll, Daniel T [ORNL] [ORNL
Design data needs modular high-temperature gas-cooled reactor. Revision 2
The Design Data Needs (DDNs) provide summary statements for program management, of the designer`s need for experimental data to confirm or validate assumptions made in the design. These assumptions were developed using the Integrated Approach and are tabulated in the Functional Analysis Report. These assumptions were also necessary in the analyses or trade studies (A/TS) to develop selections of hardware design or design requirements. Each DDN includes statements providing traceability to the function and the associated assumption that requires the need.
Modular Inspection System for a Complete IN-Service Examination of Nuclear Reactor Pressure Vessel, Including Beltline Region
Final Report for a DOE Phase II Contract Describing the design and fabrication of a reactor inspection modular rover prototype for reactor vessel inspection.
David H. Bothell
Modularity Approach Modular Pebble Bed Reactor (MPBR)
NED MPBR 1150 MW Combined Heat and Power Station Turbine Hall Boundary Admin Training Control Bldg material limitations #12;4/23/03 MIT NED MPBR Design Elements � Assembly � Self-locating Space
Development of a system model for advanced small modular reactors.
This report describes a system model that can be used to analyze three advance small modular reactor (SMR) designs through their lifetime. Neutronics of these reactor designs were evaluated using Monte Carlo N-Particle eXtended (MCNPX/6). The system models were developed in Matlab and Simulink. A major thrust of this research was the initial scoping analysis of Sandia's concept of a long-life fast reactor (LLFR). The inherent characteristic of this conceptual design is to minimize the change in reactivity over the lifetime of the reactor. This allows the reactor to operate substantially longer at full power than traditional light water reactors (LWRs) or other SMR designs (e.g. high temperature gas reactor (HTGR)). The system model has subroutines for lifetime reactor feedback and operation calculations, thermal hydraulic effects, load demand changes and a simplified SCO2 Brayton cycle for power conversion.
Lewis, Tom Goslee,; Holschuh, Thomas Vernon,
Passive compact molten salt reactor (PCMSR), modular thermal breeder reactor with totally passive safety system
Design Study Passive Compact Molten Salt Reactor (PCMSR) with totally passive safety system has been performed. The term of Compact in the PCMSR name means that the reactor system is designed to have relatively small volume per unit power output by using modular and integral concept. In term of modular, the reactor system consists of three modules, i.e. reactor module, turbine module and fuel management module. The reactor module is an integral design that consists of reactor, primary and intermediate heat exchangers and passive post shutdown cooling system. The turbine module is an integral design of a multi heating, multi cooling, regenerative gas turbine. The fuel management module consists of all equipments related to fuel preparation, fuel reprocessing and radioactive handling. The preliminary calculations show that the PCMSR has negative temperature and void reactivity coefficient, passive shutdown characteristic related to fuel pump failure and possibility of using natural circulation for post shutdown cooling system.
Harto, Andang Widi [Engineering Physics Department, Faculty of Engineering, Gadjah Mada University (Indonesia)
Computational Analysis of Fluid Flow in Pebble Bed Modular Reactor
High Temperature Gas-cooled Reactor (HTGR) is a Generation IV reactor under consideration by Department of Energy and in the nuclear industry. There are two categories of HTGRs, namely, Pebble Bed Modular Reactor (PBMR) and Prismatic reactor. Pebble...
Gandhir, Akshay
Modular Pebble Bed Reactor High Temperature Gas Reactor
Modular Pebble Bed Reactor High Temperature Gas Reactor Andrew C Kadak Massachusetts Institute For 1150 MW Combined Heat and Power Station Oil Refinery Hydrogen Production Desalinization Plant VHTR/Graphite Discrimination system Damaged Sphere ContainerGraphiteReturn FuelReturn Fresh Fuel Container Spent Fuel Tank #12
The Modular Helium Reactor for Hydrogen Production
For electricity and hydrogen production, an advanced reactor technology receiving considerable international interest is a modular, passively-safe version of the high-temperature, gas-cooled reactor (HTGR), known in the U.S. as the Modular Helium Reactor (MHR), which operates at a power level of 600 MW(t). For hydrogen production, the concept is referred to as the H2-MHR. Two concepts that make direct use of the MHR high-temperature process heat are being investigated in order to improve the efficiency and economics of hydrogen production. The first concept involves coupling the MHR to the Sulfur-Iodine (SI) thermochemical water splitting process and is referred to as the SI-Based H2-MHR. The second concept involves coupling the MHR to high-temperature electrolysis (HTE) and is referred to as the HTE-Based H2-MHR.
E. Harvego; M. Richards; A. Shenoy; K. Schultz; L. Brown; M. Fukuie
Advanced technologies for structural design and construction have the potential for major impact not only on nuclear power plant construction time and cost, but also on the design process and on the safety, security and reliability of next generation of nuclear power plants. In future Generation IV (Gen IV) reactors, structural and seismic design should be much more closely integrated with the design of nuclear and industrial safety systems, physical security systems, and international safeguards systems. Overall reliability will be increased, through the use of replaceable and modular equipment, and through design to facilitate on-line monitoring, in-service inspection, maintenance, replacement, and decommissioning. Economics will also receive high design priority, through integrated engineering efforts to optimize building arrangements to minimize building heights and footprints. Finally, the licensing approach will be transformed by becoming increasingly performance based and technology neutral, using best-estimate simulation methods with uncertainty and margin quantification. In this context, two structural engineering technologies, seismic base isolation and modular steel-plate/concrete composite structural walls, are investigated. These technologies have major potential to (1) enable standardized reactor designs to be deployed across a wider range of sites, (2) reduce the impact of uncertainties related to site-specific seismic conditions, and (3) alleviate reactor equipment qualification requirements. For Gen IV reactors the potential for deliberate crashes of large aircraft must also be considered in design. This report concludes that base-isolated structures should be decoupled from the reactor external event exclusion system. As an example, a scoping analysis is performed for a rectangular, decoupled external event shell designed as a grillage. This report also reviews modular construction technology, particularly steel-plate/concrete construction using factory prefabricated structural modules, for application to external event shell and base isolated structures.
E. Blanford; E. Keldrauk; M. Laufer; M. Mieler; J. Wei; B. Stojadinovic; P.F. Peterson
Small Modular Reactors Presentation to Secretary of Energy Advisory...
Broader source: Energy.gov (indexed) [DOE]
Presentation to Secretary of Energy Advisory Board - Deputy Assistant Secretary John Kelly Small Modular Reactors Presentation to Secretary of Energy Advisory Board - Deputy...
Annual Report Page ii MODULAR PEBBLE BED REACTOR ABSTRACT This project is developing a fundamental. Publication of an archival journal article covering this work is being prepared. · Detailed gas reactor Abstract
Overview of the Westinghouse Small Modular Reactor building layout
The Westinghouse Small Modular Reactor (SMR) is an 800 MWt (>225 MWe) integral pressurized water reactor (iPWR), in which all of the components typically associated with the nuclear steam supply system (NSSS) of a nuclear power plant are incorporated within a single reactor pressure vessel. This paper is the third in a series of four papers, which describe the design and functionality of the Westinghouse SMR. It focuses in particular upon the plant building layout and modular design of the Westinghouse SMR. In the development of small modular reactors, the building layout is an area where the safety of the plant can be improved by applying new design approaches. This paper will present an overview of the Westinghouse SMR building layout and indicate how the design features improve the safety and robustness of the plant. The Westinghouse SMR is designed with no shared systems between individual reactor units. The main buildings inside the security fence are the nuclear island, the rad-waste building, the annex building, and the turbine building. All safety related equipment is located in the nuclear island, which is a seismic class 1 building. To further enhance the safety and robustness of the design, the reactor, containment, and most of the safety related equipment are located below grade on the nuclear island. This reduces the possibility of severe damage from external threats or natural disasters. Two safety related ultimate heat sink (UHS) water tanks that are used for decay heat removal are located above grade, but are redundant and physically separated as far as possible for improved safety. The reactor and containment vessel are located below grade in the center of the nuclear island. The rad-waste and other radioactive systems are located on the bottom floors to limit the radiation exposure to personnel. The Westinghouse SMR safety trains are completely separated into four unconnected quadrants of the building, with access between quadrants only allowed above grade. This is an improvement to conventional reactor design since it prevents failures of multiple trains during floods or fires and other external events. The main control room is located below grade, with a remote shutdown room in a different quadrant. All defense in depth systems are placed on the nuclear island, primarily above grade, while the safety systems are located on lower floors. The economics of the Westinghouse SMR challenges the established approach of large Light Water Reactors (LWR) that utilized the economies of scale to reach economic competitiveness. To serve the market expectation of smaller capital investment and cost competitive energy, a modular design approach is implemented within the Westinghouse SMR. The Westinghouse SMR building layout integrates the three basic design constraints of modularization; transportation, handling and module-joining technology. (authors)
Cronje, J. M. [Westinghouse Electric Company LLC, Centurion (South Africa); Van Wyk, J. J.; Memmott, M. J. [Westinghouse Electric Company LLC, Cranberry Township, PA (United States)
Human Reliability Analysis for Small Modular Reactors
Because no human reliability analysis (HRA) method was specifically developed for small modular reactors (SMRs), the application of any current HRA method to SMRs represents tradeoffs. A first- generation HRA method like THERP provides clearly defined activity types, but these activity types do not map to the human-system interface or concept of operations confronting SMR operators. A second- generation HRA method like ATHEANA is flexible enough to be used for SMR applications, but there is currently insufficient guidance for the analyst, requiring considerably more first-of-a-kind analyses and extensive SMR expertise in order to complete a quality HRA. Although no current HRA method is optimized to SMRs, it is possible to use existing HRA methods to identify errors, incorporate them as human failure events in the probabilistic risk assessment (PRA), and quantify them. In this paper, we provided preliminary guidance to assist the human reliability analyst and reviewer in understanding how to apply current HRA methods to the domain of SMRs. While it is possible to perform a satisfactory HRA using existing HRA methods, ultimately it is desirable to formally incorporate SMR considerations into the methods. This may require the development of new HRA methods. More practicably, existing methods need to be adapted to incorporate SMRs. Such adaptations may take the form of guidance on the complex mapping between conventional light water reactors and small modular reactors. While many behaviors and activities are shared between current plants and SMRs, the methods must adapt if they are to perform a valid and accurate analysis of plant personnel performance in SMRs.
Ronald L. Boring; David I. Gertman
An Overview of the Safety Case for Small Modular Reactors
Several small modular reactor (SMR) designs emerged in the late 1970s and early 1980s in response to lessons learned from the many technical and operational challenges of the large Generation II light-water reactors. After the accident at the Three Mile Island plant in 1979, an ensuing reactor redesign effort spawned the term inherently safe designs, which later evolved into passively safe terminology. Several new designs were engineered to be deliberately small in order to fully exploit the benefits of passive safety. Today, new SMR designs are emerging with a similar philosophy of offering highly robust and resilient designs with increased safety margins. Additionally, because these contemporary designs are being developed subsequent to the September 11, 2001, terrorist attack, they incorporate a number of intrinsic design features to further strengthen their safety and security. Several SMR designs are being developed in the United States spanning the full spectrum of reactor technologies, including water-, gas-, and liquid-metal-cooled ones. Despite a number of design differences, most of these designs share a common set of design principles to enhance plant safety and robustness, such as eliminating plant design vulnerabilities where possible, reducing accident probabilities, and mitigating accident consequences. An important consequence of the added resilience provided by these design approaches is that the individual reactor units and the entire plant should be able to survive a broader range of extreme conditions. This will enable them to not only ensure the safety of the general public but also help protect the investment of the owner and continued availability of the power-generating asset. Examples of typical SMR design features and their implications for improved plant safety are given for specific SMR designs being developed in the United States.
Ingersoll, Daniel T [ORNL] [ORNL
Nuclear Safeguards Considerations For The Pebble Bed Modular Reactor (PBMR)
High temperature reactors (HTRs) have been considered since the 1940s, and have been constructed and demonstrated in the United Kingdom (Dragon), United States (Peach Bottom and Fort Saint Vrain), Japan (HTTR), Germany (AVR and THTR-300), and have been the subject of conceptual studies in Russia (VGM). The attraction to these reactors is that they can use a variety of reactor fuels, including abundant thorium, which upon reprocessing of the spent fuel can produce fissile U-233. Hence, they could extend the stocks of available uranium, provided the fuel is reprocessed. Another attractive attribute is that HTRs typically operate at a much higher temperature than conventional light water reactors (LWRs), because of the use of pyrolytic carbon and silicon carbide coated (TRISO) fuel particles embedded in ceramic graphite. Rather than simply discharge most of the unused heat from the working fluid in the power plant to the environment, engineers have been designing reactors for 40 years to recover this heat and make it available for district heating or chemical conversion plants. Demonstrating high-temperature nuclear energy conversion was the purpose behind Fort Saint Vrain in the United States, THTR-300 in Germany, HTTR in Japan, and HTR-10 and HTR-PM, being built in China. This resulted in nuclear reactors at least 30% or more thermodynamically efficient than conventional LWRs, especially if the waste heat can be effectively utilized in chemical processing plants. A modern variant of high temperature reactors is the Pebble Bed Modular Reactor (PBMR). Originally developed in the United States and Germany, it is now being redesigned and marketed by the Republic of South Africa and China. The team examined historical high temperature and high temperature gas reactors (HTR and HTGR) and reviewed safeguards considerations for this reactor. The following is a preliminary report on this topic prepared under the ASA-100 Advanced Safeguards Project in support of the NNSA Next Generation Safeguards Initiative (NGSI).
Phillip Casey Durst; David Beddingfield; Brian Boyer; Robert Bean; Michael Collins; Michael Ehinger; David Hanks; David L. Moses; Lee Refalo
Prognostics Health Management for Advanced Small Modular Reactor Passive Components
In the United States, sustainable nuclear power to promote energy security is a key national energy priority. Advanced small modular reactors (AdvSMR), which are based on modularization of advanced reactor concepts using non-light-water reactor (LWR) coolants such as liquid metal, helium, or liquid salt may provide a longer-term alternative to more conventional LWR-based concepts. The economics of AdvSMRs will be impacted by the reduced economy-of-scale savings when compared to traditional LWRs and the controllable day-to-day costs of AdvSMRs are expected to be dominated by operations and maintenance costs. Therefore, achieving the full benefits of AdvSMR deployment requires a new paradigm for plant design and management. In this context, prognostic health management of passive components in AdvSMRs can play a key role in enabling the economic deployment of AdvSMRs. In this paper, the background of AdvSMRs is discussed from which requirements for PHM systems are derived. The particle filter technique is proposed as a prognostics framework for AdvSMR passive components and the suitability of the particle filter technique is illustrated by using it to forecast thermal creep degradation using a physics-of-failure model and based on a combination of types of measurements conceived for passive AdvSMR components.
Meyer, Ryan M.; Ramuhalli, Pradeep; Coble, Jamie B.; Mitchell, Mark R.; Wootan, David W.; Hirt, Evelyn H.; Berglin, Eric J.; Bond, Leonard J.; Henager, Charles H.
Baseline Concept Description of a Small Modular High Temperature Reactor
The objective of this report is to provide a description of generic small modular high temperature reactors (herein denoted as an smHTR), summarize their distinguishing attributes, and lay out the research and development (R&D) required for commercialization. The generic concepts rely heavily on the modular high temperature gas-cooled reactor designs developed in the 1980s which were never built but for which pre-licensing or certification activities were conducted. The concept matured more recently under the Next Generation Nuclear Plant (NGNP) project, specifically in the areas of fuel and material qualification, methods development, and licensing. As all vendor-specific designs proposed under NGNP were all both �small� or medium-sized and �modular� by International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and Department of Energy (DOE) standards, the technical attributes, challenges, and R&D needs identified, addressed, and documented under NGNP are valid and appropriate in the context of Small Modular Reactor (SMR) applications. Although the term High Temperature Reactor (HTR) is commonly used to denote graphite-moderated, thermal spectrum reactors with coolant temperatures in excess of 650oC at the core outlet, in this report the historical term High Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor (HTGR) will be used to distinguish the gas-cooled technology described herein from its liquid salt-cooled cousin. Moreover, in this report it is to be understood that the outlet temperature of the helium in an HTGR has an upper limit of 950 degrees C which corresponds to the temperature to which certain alloys are currently being qualified under DOE�s ARC program. Although similar to the HTGR in just about every respect, the Very High Temperature Reactor (VHTR) may have an outlet temperature in excess of 950 degrees C and is therefore farther from commercialization because of the challenges posed to materials exposed to these temperatures. The VHTR is the focus of R&D under the Generation IV program and its specific R&D needs will be included in this report when appropriate for comparison. The distinguishing features of the HTGR are the refractory (TRISO) coated particle fuel, the low-power density, graphite-moderated core, and the high outlet temperature of the inert helium coolant. The low power density and fuel form effectively eliminate the possibility of core melt, even upon a complete loss of coolant pressure and flow. The graphite, which constitutes the bulk of the core volume and mass, provides a large thermal buffer that absorbs fission heat such that thermal transients occur over a timespan of hours or even days. As chemically-inert helium is already a gas, there is no coolant temperature or void feedback on the neutronics and no phase change or corrosion product that could degrade heat transfer. Furthermore, the particle coatings and interstitial graphite retain fission products such that the source terms at the plant boundary remain well below actionable levels under all anticipated nominal and off-normal operating conditions. These attributes enable the reactor to supply process heat to a collocated industrial plant with negligible risk of contamination and minimal dynamic coupling of the facilities (Figure 1). The exceptional retentive properties of coated particle fuel in a graphite matrix were first demonstrated in the DRAGON reactor, a European research facility that began operation in 1964.
Hans Gougar
Steam generator design considerations for modular HTGR plant
Studies are in progress to develop a standard High Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor (HTGR) plant design that is amenable to serial production and is licensable. Based on the results of trade studies performed in the DOE-funded HTGR program, activities are being focused to emphasize a modular concept based on a 350 MW(t) annular reactor core with prismatic fuel elements. Utilization of a multiplicity of the standard module affords flexibility in power rating for utility electricity generation. The selected modular HTGR concept has the reactor core and heat transport systems housed in separate steel vessels. This paper highlights the steam generator design considerations for the reference plant, and includes a discussion of the major features of the heat exchanger concept and the technology base existing in the US.
McDonald, C.F.; DeFur, D.D.
A design flow based on modular refinement
We propose a practical methodology based on modular refinement to design complex systems. The methodology relies on modules with latency-insensitive interfaces so that the refinements can change the timing contract of a ...
Dave, Nirav H.
Site Suitability and Hazard Assessment Guide for Small Modular Reactors
Commercial nuclear reactor projects in the U.S. have traditionally employed large light water reactors (LWR) to generate regional supplies of electricity. Although large LWRs have consistently dominated commercial nuclear markets both domestically and abroad, the concept of small modular reactors (SMRs) capable of producing between 30 MW(t) and 900 MW(t) to generating steam for electricity is not new. Nor is the idea of locating small nuclear reactors in close proximity to and in physical connection with industrial processes to provide a long-term source of thermal energy. Growing problems associated continued use of fossil fuels and enhancements in efficiency and safety because of recent advancements in reactor technology suggest that the likelihood of near-term SMR technology(s) deployment at multiple locations within the United States is growing. Many different types of SMR technology are viable for siting in the domestic commercial energy market. However, the potential application of a particular proprietary SMR design will vary according to the target heat end-use application and the site upon which it is proposed to be located. Reactor heat applications most commonly referenced in connection with the SMR market include electric power production, district heating, desalinization, and the supply of thermal energy to various processes that require high temperature over long time periods, or a combination thereof. Indeed, the modular construction, reliability and long operational life purported to be associated with some SMR concepts now being discussed may offer flexibility and benefits no other technology can offer. Effective siting is one of the many early challenges that face a proposed SMR installation project. Site-specific factors dealing with support to facility construction and operation, risks to the plant and the surrounding area, and the consequences subsequent to those risks must be fully identified, analyzed, and possibly mitigated before a license will be granted to construct and operate a nuclear facility. Examples of significant site-related concerns include area geotechnical and geological hazard properties, local climatology and meteorology, water resource availability, the vulnerability of surrounding populations and the environmental to adverse effects in the unlikely event of radionuclide release, the socioeconomic impacts of SMR plant installation and the effects it has on aesthetics, proximity to energy use customers, the topography and area infrastructure that affect plant constructability and security, and concerns related to the transport, installation, operation and decommissioning of major plant components.
Wayne Moe
Advancing Small Modular Reactors: How We're Supporting Next-Gen...
Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) Indexed Site
Advancing Small Modular Reactors: How We're Supporting Next-Gen Nuclear Energy Technology Advancing Small Modular Reactors: How We're Supporting Next-Gen Nuclear Energy Technology...
Advanced Control and Protection system Design Methods for Modular HTGRs
The project supported the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) in identifying and evaluating the regulatory implications concerning the control and protection systems proposed for use in the Department of Energy's (DOE) Next-Generation Nuclear Plant (NGNP). The NGNP, using modular high-temperature gas-cooled reactor (HTGR) technology, is to provide commercial industries with electricity and high-temperature process heat for industrial processes such as hydrogen production. Process heat temperatures range from 700 to 950 C, and for the upper range of these operation temperatures, the modular HTGR is sometimes referred to as the Very High Temperature Reactor or VHTR. Initial NGNP designs are for operation in the lower temperature range. The defining safety characteristic of the modular HTGR is that its primary defense against serious accidents is to be achieved through its inherent properties of the fuel and core. Because of its strong negative temperature coefficient of reactivity and the capability of the fuel to withstand high temperatures, fast-acting active safety systems or prompt operator actions should not be required to prevent significant fuel failure and fission product release. The plant is designed such that its inherent features should provide adequate protection despite operational errors or equipment failure. Figure 1 shows an example modular HTGR layout (prismatic core version), where its inlet coolant enters the reactor vessel at the bottom, traversing up the sides to the top plenum, down-flow through an annular core, and exiting from the lower plenum (hot duct). This research provided NRC staff with (a) insights and knowledge about the control and protection systems for the NGNP and VHTR, (b) information on the technologies/approaches under consideration for use in the reactor and process heat applications, (c) guidelines for the design of highly integrated control rooms, (d) consideration for modeling of control and protection system designs for VHTR, and (e) input for developing the bases for possible new regulatory guidance to assist in the review of an NGNP license application. This NRC project also evaluated reactor and process heat application plant simulation models employed in the protection and control system designs for various plant operational modes and accidents, including providing information about the models themselves, and the appropriateness of the application of the models for control and protection system studies. A companion project for the NRC focused on the potential for new instrumentation that would be unique to modular HTGRs, as compared to light-water reactors (LWRs), due to both the higher temperature ranges and the inherent safety features.
Ball, Sydney J [ORNL; Wilson Jr, Thomas L [ORNL; Wood, Richard Thomas [ORNL
Hybrid energy systems (HESs) using small modular reactors (SMRs)
Large-scale nuclear reactors are traditionally operated for a singular purpose: steady-state production of dispatchable baseload electricity that is distributed broadly on the electric grid. While this implementation is key to a sustainable, reliable energy grid, small modular reactors (SMRs) offer new opportunities for increased use of clean nuclear energy for both electric and thermal ap plications in more locations � while still accommodating the desire to support renewable production sources.
S. Bragg-Sitton
Modular High Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor Safety Basis and Approach
Various international efforts are underway to assess the safety of advanced nuclear reactor designs. For example, the International Atomic Energy Agency has recently held its first Consultancy Meeting on a new cooperative research program on high temperature gas-cooled reactor (HTGR) safety. Furthermore, the Generation IV International Forum Reactor Safety Working Group has recently developed a methodology, called the Integrated Safety Assessment Methodology, for use in Generation IV advanced reactor technology development, design, and design review. A risk and safety assessment white paper is under development with respect to the Very High Temperature Reactor to pilot the Integrated Safety Assessment Methodology and to demonstrate its validity and feasibility. To support such efforts, this information paper on the modular HTGR safety basis and approach has been prepared. The paper provides a summary level introduction to HTGR history, public safety objectives, inherent and passive safety features, radionuclide release barriers, functional safety approach, and risk-informed safety approach. The information in this paper is intended to further the understanding of the modular HTGR safety approach. The paper gives those involved in the assessment of advanced reactor designs an opportunity to assess an advanced design that has already received extensive review by regulatory authorities and to judge the utility of recently proposed new methods for advanced reactor safety assessment such as the Integrated Safety Assessment Methodology.
David Petti; Jim Kinsey; Dave Alberstein
Advanced Small Modular Reactor (SMR) Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) Demonstration
A key area of the Advanced Small Modular Reactor (SMR) Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) strategy is the development of methodologies and tools that will be used to predict the safety, security, safeguards, performance, and deployment viability of SMRs. The goal of the SMR PRA activity will be to develop quantitative methods and tools and the associated analysis framework for assessing a variety of risks. Development and implementation of SMR-focused safety assessment methods may require new analytic methods or adaptation of traditional methods to the advanced design and operational features of SMRs. We will need to move beyond the current limitations such as static, logic-based models in order to provide more integrated, scenario-based models based upon predictive modeling which are tied to causal factors. The development of SMR-specific safety models for margin determination will provide a safety case that describes potential accidents, design options (including postulated controls), and supports licensing activities by providing a technical basis for the safety envelope. This report documents the progress that was made to implement the PRA framework, specifically by way of demonstration of an advanced 3D approach to representing, quantifying and understanding flooding risks to a nuclear power plant.
Curtis Smith; Steven Prescott; Tony Koonce
Modular design of biological systems
The focus of my research is the development of technology for building compound biological systems from simpler pieces. I designed BioScaffold parts, a family of variable regions that can be inserted into a DNA sequence ...
Norville, Julie Erin, 1980-
Modularity of the MIT Pebble Bed Reactor for use by the commercial power industry
The Modular Pebble Bed Reactor is a small high temperature helium cooled reactor that is being considered for both electric power and hydrogen production. Pebble bed reactors are being developed in South Africa, China and ...
Hanlon-Hyssong, Jaime E
Small Modular Nuclear Reactors | Department of Energy
Broader source: Energy.gov (indexed) [DOE]
AFDC Printable Version Share this resource Send a link to EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page to someone by E-mail Share EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page on Facebook Tweet about EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page on Twitter Bookmark EERE:1 First Use of Energy for All Purposes (Fuel and Nonfuel),Feet) Year Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul(Summary) "of EnergyEnergyENERGYWomenthe House Committee on Energy andDepartment ofAn Audience ofobjectiveReactor
Deep-Burn Modular Helium Reactor Fuel Development Plan
This document contains the workscope, schedule and cost for the technology development tasks needed to satisfy the fuel and fission product transport Design Data Needs (DDNs) for the Gas Turbine-Modular Helium Reactor (GT-MHR), operating in its role of transmuting transuranic (TRU) nuclides in spent fuel discharged from commercial light-water reactors (LWRs). In its application for transmutation, the GT-MHR is referred to as the Deep-Burn MHR (DB-MHR). This Fuel Development Plan (FDP) describes part of the overall program being undertaken by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), utilities, and industry to evaluate the use of the GT-MHR to transmute transuranic nuclides from spent nuclear fuel. The Fuel Development Plan (FDP) includes the work on fuel necessary to support the design and licensing of the DB-MHR. The FDP is organized into ten sections. Section 1 provides a summary of the most important features of the plan, including cost and schedule information. Section 2 describes the DB-MHR concept, the features of its fuel and the plan to develop coated particle fuel for transmutation. Section 3 describes the knowledge base for fabrication of coated particles, the experience with irradiation performance of coated particle fuels, the database for fission product transport in HTGR cores, and describes test data and calculations for the performance of coated particle fuel while in a repository. Section 4 presents the fuel performance requirements in terms of as-manufactured quality and performance of the fuel coatings under irradiation and accident conditions. These requirements are provisional because the design of the DB-MHR is in an early stage. However, the requirements are presented in this preliminary form to guide the initial work on the fuel development. Section 4 also presents limits on the irradiation conditions to which the coated particle fuel can be subjected for the core design. These limits are based on past irradiation experience. Section 5 describes the Design Data Needs to: (1) fabricate the coated particle fuel, (2) predict its performance in the reactor core, (3) predict the radionuclide release rates from the reactor core, and (4) predict the performance of spent fuel in a geological repository. The heart of this fuel development plan is Section 6, which describes the development activities proposed to satisfy the DDNs presented in Section 5. The development scope is divided into Fuel Process Development, Fuel Materials Development, Fission Product Transport, and Spent Fuel Disposal. Section 7 describes the facilities to be used. Generally, this program will utilize existing facilities. While some facilities will need to be modified, there is no requirement for major new facilities. Section 8 states the Quality Assurance requirements that will be applied to the development activities. Section 9 presents detailed costs organized by WBS and spread over time. Section 10 presents a list of the types of deliverables that will be prepared in each of the WBS elements. Four Appendices contain supplementary information on: (a) design data needs, (b) the interface with the separations plant, (c) the detailed development schedule, and (d) the detailed cost estimate.
McEachern, D
Reference modular High Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor Plant: Concept description report
This report provides a summary description of the Modular High Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor (MHTGR) concept and interim results of assessments of costs, safety, constructibility, operability, maintainability, and availability. Conceptual design of this concept was initiated in October 1985 and is scheduled for completion in 1987. Participating industrial contractors are Bechtel National, Inc. (BNI), Stone and Webster Engineering Corporation (SWEC), GA Technologies, Inc. (GA), General Electric Co. (GE), and Combustion Engineering, Inc. (C-E).
Not Available
Prismatic modular reactor analysis with melcor
to be validated and applied to design and evaluate VHTRs under operation conditions and accident scenarios. In this thesis, MELCOR, a severe accident code, was used to analyze one of the VHTR designs � a prismatic core Next Generation Nuclear Plant (NGNP...
Zhen, Ni
Studies on the closed-loop digital control of multi-modular reactors
This report describes the theoretical development and the evaluation via both experiment and simulation of digital methods for the closed-loop control of power, temperature, and steam generator level in multi-modular reactors. The major conclusion of the research reported here is that the technology is currently available to automate many aspects of the operation of multi-modular plants. This will in turn minimize the number of required personnel and thus contain both operating and personnel costs, allow each module to be operated at a different power level thereby staggering the times at which refuelings would be needed, and maintain the competitiveness of US industry relative to foreign vendors who are developing and applying advanced control concepts. The technology described in this report is appropriate to the proposed multi-modular reactor designs and to present-generation pressurized water reactors. Its extension to boiling water reactors is possible provided that the commitment is made to create a real-time model of a BWR. The work reported here was performed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) under contract to the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and to the United States Department of Energy (Division of Industry and University Programs, Contract No. DE-FG07-90ER12930.)
Bernard, J.A. (Massachusetts Inst. of Tech., Cambridge, MA (United States). Nuclear Reactor Lab.); Henry, A.F.; Lanning, D.D.; Meyer, J.E. (Massachusetts Inst. of Tech., Cambridge, MA (United States). Dept. of Nuclear Engineering)
Studies on the closed-loop digital control of multi-modular reactors. Final report
This report describes the theoretical development and the evaluation via both experiment and simulation of digital methods for the closed-loop control of power, temperature, and steam generator level in multi-modular reactors. The major conclusion of the research reported here is that the technology is currently available to automate many aspects of the operation of multi-modular plants. This will in turn minimize the number of required personnel and thus contain both operating and personnel costs, allow each module to be operated at a different power level thereby staggering the times at which refuelings would be needed, and maintain the competitiveness of US industry relative to foreign vendors who are developing and applying advanced control concepts. The technology described in this report is appropriate to the proposed multi-modular reactor designs and to present-generation pressurized water reactors. Its extension to boiling water reactors is possible provided that the commitment is made to create a real-time model of a BWR. The work reported here was performed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) under contract to the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and to the United States Department of Energy (Division of Industry and University Programs, Contract No. DE-FG07-90ER12930.)
Bernard, J.A. [Massachusetts Inst. of Tech., Cambridge, MA (United States). Nuclear Reactor Lab.; Henry, A.F.; Lanning, D.D.; Meyer, J.E. [Massachusetts Inst. of Tech., Cambridge, MA (United States). Dept. of Nuclear Engineering
Toward Infusing Modular and Reflective Design Learning throughout the Curriculum
Toward Infusing Modular and Reflective Design Learning throughout the Curriculum John C. Georgas intervention that cen- ters on the widespread infusion of design learning throughout the curriculum using: An emphasis on broadly infusing design learning through the curriculum using modular design challenges
Georgas, John
MHTGR (modular high-temperature gas-cooled reactor) control: A non-safety related system
The modular high-temperature gas-cooled reactor (MHTGR) design meets stringent top-level safety regulatory criteria and user requirements that call for high plant availability and no disruption of the public's day to day activities during normal and off-normal operation of the plant. These requirements lead to a plant design that relies mainly on physical properties and passive design features to ensure plant safety regardless of operator actions, plus simplicity and automation to ensure high plant availability and lower cost of operations. The plant does not require safety-related operator actions, and it does not require the control room to be safety related.
Rodriguez, C.; Swart, F.
The gas turbine-modular helium reactor (GT-MHR), high efficiency, cost competitive, nuclear energy for the next century
The Gas Turbine-Modular Helium Reactor (GT-MHR) is the result of coupling the evolution of a small passively safe reactor with key technology developments in the US during the last decade: large industrial gas turbines, large active magnetic bearings, and compact, highly effective plate-fin heat exchangers. The GT-MHR is the only reactor concept which provides a step increase in economic performance combined with increased safety. This is accomplished through its unique utilization of the Brayton cycle to produce electricity directly with the high temperature helium primary coolant from the reactor directly driving the gas turbine electrical generator. This cannot be accomplished with another reactor concept. It retains the high levels of passive safety and the standardized modular design of the steam cycle MHTGR, while showing promise for a significant reduction in power generating costs by increasing plant net efficiency to a remarkable 47%.
Zgliczynski, J.B.; Silady, F.A.; Neylan, A.J.
Effects of Levels of Automation for Advanced Small Modular Reactors: Impacts on Performance, Workload, and Situation Awareness
The Human-Automation Collaboration (HAC) research effort is a part of the Department of Energy (DOE) sponsored Advanced Small Modular Reactor (AdvSMR) program conducted at Idaho National Laboratory (INL). The DOE AdvSMR program focuses on plant design and management, reduction of capital costs as well as plant operations and maintenance costs (O&M), and factory production costs benefits.
Johanna Oxstrand; Katya Le Blanc
Johnson Noise Thermometry for Advanced Small Modular Reactors
Temperature is a key process variable at any nuclear power plant (NPP). The harsh reactor environment causes all sensor properties to drift over time. At the higher temperatures of advanced NPPs the drift occurs more rapidly. The allowable reactor operating temperature must be reduced by the amount of the potential measurement error to assure adequate margin to material damage. Johnson noise is a fundamental expression of temperature and as such is immune to drift in a sensor s physical condition. In and near core, only Johnson noise thermometry (JNT) and radiation pyrometry offer the possibility for long-term, high-accuracy temperature measurement due to their fundamental natures. Small, Modular Reactors (SMRs) place a higher value on long-term stability in their temperature measurements in that they produce less power per reactor core and thus cannot afford as much instrument recalibration labor as their larger brethren. The purpose of this project is to develop and demonstrate a drift free Johnson noise-based thermometer suitable for deployment near core in advanced SMR plants.
Britton Jr, Charles L [ORNL; Roberts, Michael [ORNL; Bull, Nora D [ORNL; Holcomb, David Eugene [ORNL; Wood, Richard Thomas [ORNL
Johnson Noise Thermometry for Advanced Small Modular Reactors
Temperature is a key process variable at any nuclear power plant (NPP). The harsh reactor environment causes all sensor properties to drift over time. At the higher temperatures of advanced NPPs the drift occurs more rapidly. The allowable reactor operating temperature must be reduced by the amount of the potential measurement error to assure adequate margin to material damage. Johnson noise is a fundamental expression of temperature and as such is immune to drift in a sensor�s physical condition. In and near the core, only Johnson noise thermometry (JNT) and radiation pyrometry offer the possibility for long-term, high-accuracy temperature measurement due to their fundamental natures. Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) place a higher value on long-term stability in their temperature measurements in that they produce less power per reactor core and thus cannot afford as much instrument recalibration labor as their larger brethren. The purpose of the current ORNL-led project, conducted under the Instrumentation, Controls, and Human-Machine Interface (ICHMI) research pathway of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Advanced SMR Research and Development (R&D) program, is to develop and demonstrate a drift free Johnson noise-based thermometer suitable for deployment near core in advanced SMR plants.
Britton, C.L.,Jr.; Roberts, M.; Bull, N.D.; Holcomb, D.E.; Wood, R.T.
Evaluation of the Gas Turbine Modular Helium Reactor
Recent advances in gas-turbine and heat exchanger technology have enhanced the potential for a Modular Helium Reactor (MHR) incorporating a direct gas turbine (Brayton) cycle for power conversion. The resulting Gas Turbine Modular Helium Reactor (GT-MHR) power plant combines the high temperature capabilities of the MHR with the efficiency and reliability of modern gas turbines. While the passive safety features of the steam cycle MHR (SC-MHR) are retained, generation efficiencies are projected to be in the range of 48% and steam power conversion systems, with their attendant complexities, are eliminated. Power costs are projected to be reduced by about 20%, relative to the SC-MHR or coal. This report documents the second, and final, phase of a two-part evaluation that concluded with a unanimous recommendation that the direct cycle (DC) variant of the GT-MHR be established as the commercial objective of the US Gas-Cooled Reactor Program. This recommendation has been endorsed by industrial and utility participants and accepted by the US Department of Energy (DOE). The Phase II effort, documented herein, concluded that the DC GT-MHR offers substantial technical and economic advantages over both the IDC and SC systems. Both the DC and IDC were found to offer safety advantages, relative to the SC, due to elimination of the potential for water ingress during power operations. This is the dominant consequence event for the SC. The IDC was judged to require somewhat less development than the direct cycle, while the SC, which has the greatest technology base, incurs the least development cost and risk. While the technical and licensing requirements for the DC were more demanding, they were judged to be incremental and feasible. Moreover, the DC offers significant performance and cost improvements over the other two concepts. Overall, the latter were found to justify the additional development needs.
Not Available
Human Factors Issues For Multi-Modular Reactor Units
Smaller and multi-modular reactor (MMR) will be highly technologically-advanced systems allowing more system flexibility to reactors configurations (e.g., addition/deletion of reactor units). While the technical and financial advantages of systems may be numerous, MMR presents many human factors challenges that may pose vulnerability to plant safety. An important human factors challenge in MMR operation and performance is the monitoring of data from multiple plants from centralized control rooms where human operators are responsible for interpreting, assessing, and responding to different system�s states and failures (e.g., simultaneously monitoring refueling at one plant while keeping an eye on another plant�s normal operating state). Furthermore, the operational, safety, and performance requirements for MMR can seriously change current staffing models and roles, the mode in which information is displayed, procedures and training to support and guide operators, and risk analysis. For these reasons, addressing human factors concerns in MMR are essential in reducing plant risk.
Tuan Q Tran; Humberto E. Garcia; Ronald L. Boring; Jeffrey C. Joe; Bruce P. Hallbert
Proliferation resistant fuel for pebble bed modular reactors
We show that it is possible to denature the Plutonium produced in Pebble Bed Modular Reactors (PBMR) by doping the nuclear fuel with either 3050 ppm of {sup 237}Np or 2100 ppm of Am vector. A correct choice of these isotopes concentration yields denatured Plutonium with isotopic ratio {sup 238}Pu/Pu {>=} 6%, for the entire fuel burnup cycle. The penalty for introducing these isotopes into the nuclear fuel is a subsequent shortening of the fuel burnup cycle, with respect to a non-doped reference fuel, by 41.2 Full Power Days (FPDs) and 19.9 FPDs, respectively, which correspond to 4070 MWd/ton and 1965 MWd/ton reduction in fuel discharge burnup. (authors)
Ronen, Y.; Aboudy, M.; Regev, D.; Gilad, E. [Dept. of Nuclear Engineering, Ben-Gurion Univ. of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 84105 (Israel)
Multi-unit Operations in Non-Nuclear Systems: Lessons Learned for Small Modular Reactors
The nuclear-power community has reached the stage of proposing advanced reactor designs to support power generation for decades to come. Small modular reactors (SMRs) are one approach to meet these energy needs. While the power output of individual reactor modules is relatively small, they can be grouped to produce reactor sites with different outputs. Also, they can be designed to generate hydrogen, or to process heat. Many characteristics of SMRs are quite different from those of current plants and may be operated quite differently. One difference is that multiple units may be operated by a single crew (or a single operator) from one control room. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is examining the human factors engineering (HFE) aspects of SMRs to support licensing reviews. While we reviewed information on SMR designs to obtain information, the designs are not completed and all of the design and operational information is not yet available. Nor is there information on multi-unit operations as envisioned for SMRs available in operating experience. Thus, to gain a better understanding of multi-unit operations we sought the lesson learned from non-nuclear systems that have experience in multi-unit operations, specifically refineries, unmanned aerial vehicles and tele-intensive care units. In this paper we report the lessons learned from these systems and the implications for SMRs.
OHara J. M.; Higgins, J.; DAgostino, A.
Thermionic Reactor Design Studies
Paper presented at the 29th IECEC in Monterey, CA in August 1994. The present paper describes some of the author's conceptual designs and their rationale, and the special analytical techniques developed to analyze their (thermionic reactor) performance. The basic designs, first published in 1963, are based on single-cell converters, either double-ended diodes extending over the full height of the reactor core or single-ended diodes extending over half the core height. In that respect they are similar to the thermionic fuel elements employed in the Topaz-2 reactor subsequently developed in the Soviet Union, copies of which were recently imported by the U.S. As in the Topaz-2 case, electrically heated steady-state performance tests of the converters are possible before fueling.
Schock, Alfred
Design of a modular motorcycle windshield wiper
Motorcycle windshield wipers are essentially non-existent in the United States. Customer and market research reveals a demand for such a product. This paper explores the product viability of a modular motorcycle windshield ...
Boyd, Robert Allen Michael
Numerical Study on Crossflow Printed Circuit Heat Exchanger for Advanced Small Modular Reactors
Various fluids such as water, gases (helium), molten salts (FLiNaK, FLiBe) and liquid metal (sodium) are used as a coolant of advanced small modular reactors (SMRs). The printed circuit heat exchanger (PCHE) has been adopted as the intermediate and/or secondary heat exchanger of SMR systems because this heat exchanger is compact and effective. The size and cost of PCHE can be changed by the coolant type of each SMR. In this study, the crossflow PCHE analysis code for advanced small modular reactor has been developed for the thermal design and cost estimation of the heat exchanger. The analytical solution of single pass, both unmixed fluids crossflow heat exchanger model was employed to calculate a two dimensional temperature profile of a crossflow PCHE. The analytical solution of crossflow heat exchanger was simply implemented by using built in function of the MATLAB program. The effect of fluid property uncertainty on the calculation results was evaluated. In addition, the effect of heat transfer correlations on the calculated temperature profile was analyzed by taking into account possible combinations of primary and secondary coolants in the SMR systems. Size and cost of heat exchanger were evaluated for the given temperature requirement of each SMR.
Su-Jong Yoon [Idaho National Laboratory (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States); Piyush Sabharwall [Idaho National Laboratory (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States); Eung-Soo Kim [Seoul National Univ., Seoul (Korea, Republic of)
Thermionic Reactor Design Studies
During the 1960's and early 70's the author performed extensive design studies, analyses, and tests aimed at thermionic reactor concepts that differed significantly from those pursued by other investigators. Those studies, like most others under Atomic Energy Commission (AEC and DOE) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) sponsorship, were terminated in the early 1970's. Some of this work was previously published, but much of it was never made available in the open literature. U.S. interest in thermionic reactors resumed in the early 80's, and was greatly intensified by reports about Soviet ground and flight tests in the late 80's. This recent interest resulted in renewed U.S. thermionic reactor development programs, primarily under Department of Defense (DOD) and Department of Energy (DOE) sponsorship. Since most current investigators have not had an opportunity to study all of the author's previous work, a review of the highlights of that work may be of value to them. The present paper describes some of the author's conceptual designs and their rationale, and the special analytical techniques developed to analyze their performance. The basic designs, first published in 1963, are based on single-cell converters, either double-ended diodes extending over the full height of the reactor core or single-ended diodes extending over half the core height. In that respect they are similar to the thermionic fuel elements employed in the Topaz-2 reactor subsequently developed in the Soviet Union, copies of which were recently imported by the U.S. As in the Topaz-2 case, electrically heated steady-state performance tests of the converters are possible before fueling. Where the author's concepts differed from the later Topaz-2 design was in the relative location of the emitter and the collector. Placing the fueled emitter on the outside of the cylindrical diodes permits much higher axial conductances to reduce ohmic losses in the electrodes of full-core-height diodes. Moreover, placing the fuel on the outside of the diode makes possible reactors with much higher fuel volume fractions, which enable power-flattened fast reactors scalable to very low power levels without the need for life-limiting hydride moderators or the use of efficiency-limiting driver fuel. In addition, with the fuel on the outside its swelling does not increase the emitter diameter or reduce the interelectrode gap. This should permit long lifetimes even with closer spacings, which can significantly improve the system efficiences. This was confirmed by coupled neutronic, thermal, thermionic, and electrical system analyses - some of which are presented in this paper - and by subsequent experiments. A companion paper presented next describes the fabrication and testing of full-scale converter elements, both fueled and unfueled, and summarizes the test results obtained. There is a duplicate copy in the file.
Schock, Alfred
A Framework to Expand and Advance Probabilistic Risk Assessment to Support Small Modular Reactors
During the early development of nuclear power plants, researchers and engineers focused on many aspects of plant operation, two of which were getting the newly-found technology to work and minimizing the likelihood of perceived accidents through redundancy and diversity. As time, and our experience, has progressed, the realization of plant operational risk/reliability has entered into the design, operation, and regulation of these plants. But, to date, we have only dabbled at the surface of risk and reliability technologies. For the next generation of small modular reactors (SMRs), it is imperative that these technologies evolve into an accepted, encompassing, validated, and integral part of the plant in order to reduce costs and to demonstrate safe operation. Further, while it is presumed that safety margins are substantial for proposed SMR designs, the depiction and demonstration of these margins needs to be better understood in order to optimize the licensing process.
Curtis Smith; David Schwieder; Robert Nourgaliev; Cherie Phelan; Diego Mandelli; Kellie Kvarfordt; Robert Youngblood
Advanced Small Modular Reactor (SMR) Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) Technical Exchange Meeting
During FY13, the INL developed an advanced SMR PRA framework which has been described in the report Small Modular Reactor (SMR) Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) Detailed Technical Framework Specification, INL/EXT-13-28974 (April 2013). In this framework, the various areas are considered: Probabilistic models to provide information specific to advanced SMRs Representation of specific SMR design issues such as having co-located modules and passive safety features Use of modern open-source and readily available analysis methods Internal and external events resulting in impacts to safety All-hazards considerations Methods to support the identification of design vulnerabilities Mechanistic and probabilistic data needs to support modeling and tools In order to describe this framework more fully and obtain feedback on the proposed approaches, the INL hosted a technical exchange meeting during August 2013. This report describes the outcomes of that meeting.
Curtis Smith
EEL 4712 Digital Design 1. Catalog Description (3 credits) Advanced modular logic design, design languages,
EEL 4712 Digital Design 1. Catalog Description (3 credits) Advanced modular logic design, design systems, using the state of the art technologies and design environments and tools. 4. Contribution containing an Altera Cyclone II EP2C8T144C8 FPGA (will be provided to you, included in lab fee) 13
Fang, Yuguang "Michael"
Small Modular Reactor: First of a Kind (FOAK) and Nth of a Kind (NOAK) Economic Analysis
Small modular reactors (SMRs) refer to any reactor design in which the electricity generated is less than 300 MWe. Often medium sized reactors with power less than 700 MWe are also grouped into this category. Internationally, the development of a variety of designs for SMRs is booming with many designs approaching maturity and even in or nearing the licensing stage. It is for this reason that a generalized yet comprehensive economic model for first of a kind (FOAK) through nth of a kind (NOAK) SMRs based upon rated power, plant configuration, and the fiscal environment was developed. In the model, a particular project�s feasibility is assessed with regards to market conditions and by commonly utilized capital budgeting techniques, such as the net present value (NPV), internal rate of return (IRR), Payback, and more importantly, the levelized cost of energy (LCOE) for comparison to other energy production technologies. Finally, a sensitivity analysis was performed to determine the effects of changing debt, equity, interest rate, and conditions on the LCOE. The economic model is primarily applied to the near future water cooled SMR designs in the United States. Other gas cooled and liquid metal cooled SMR designs have been briefly outlined in terms of how the economic model would change. FOAK and NOAK SMR costs were determined for a site containing seven 180 MWe water cooled SMRs and compared to a site containing one 1260 MWe reactor. With an equal share of debt and equity and a 10% cost of debt and equity, the LCOE was determined to be $79 $84/MWh and $80/MWh for the SMR and large reactor sites, respectively. With a cost of equity of 15%, the SMR LCOE increased substantially to $103 $109/MWh. Finally, an increase in the equity share to 70% at the 15% cost of equity resulted in an even higher LCOE, demonstrating the large variation in results due to financial and market factors. The NPV and IRR both decreased with increasing LCOE. Unless the price of electricity increases along with the LCOE, the projects may become unprofitable. This is the case at the LCOE of $103 $109/MW, in which the NPV became negative. The IRR increased with increasing electricity price. Three cases, electric only base, storage�compressed air energy storage or pumped hydro, and hydrogen production, were performed incorporating SMRs into a nuclear wind natural gas hybrid energy system for the New York West Central region. The operational costs for three cases were calculated as $27/MWh, $25/MWh, and $28/MWh, respectively. A 3% increase in profits was demonstrated for the storage case over the electric only base case.
Lauren M. Boldon; Piyush Sabharwall
Optimization of a Small Modular Lead Fast Reactor with Steam Cycle for Remote Siting
Parametric thermal-hydraulic studies needed to develop and optimize the design of a small modular 25 MWt lead-bismuth reactor plant have been performed. The starting point was the design of a liquid metal version of the secure transportable autonomous reactor (STAR-LM) plant of 300 to 400 MWt with a steam power cycle.1 The primary flow is driven entirely by natural convection. The new plant is to be extremely small so that its main components can be transported to the reactor site by truck. The analytical model includes the two major components of the primary loop, the reactor and a once-through steam generator, which is a shell-and-tube heat exchanger with straight vertical tubes. The modeling includes the changes between the beginning and the end of plant life due to the gradual buildup of a layer of magnetite on the surfaces of the fuel pins and on the outer surfaces of the steam generator tubes. Three reactor parametric studies were performed-one for each of three sets of reactor geometric parameters. In each study the pin-bundle pressure drop, the vertical height of the primary loop, the hydraulic diameter of the core, the number of fuel pins, and peak fuel and cladding temperatures were determined for a range of values of fuel pin linear power. Four steam generator parametric studies were performed. The first three have fixed tube inner diameters of 0.5, 1.0, and 1.5 cm, respectively. In the fourth study the tube inner diameter was allowed to vary and the margin to critical heat flux, CHF, was maintained at 20%. In the steam generator studies the independent parameters include tube length and tube-bundle pitch-to-diameter ratio and the dependent variables include steam generator cross-sectional area, the number of tubes, the vertical height of the primary loop, and the steam generator pressure drop. The results show that an acceptable optimum thermal-hydraulic design for a 25 MWt STAR-LM is feasible. (authors)
Feldman, Earl E.; Wei, Thomas Y. C.; Sienicki, James J. [Argonne National Laboratory, 9700 S. Cass Avenue, Argonne, Illinois 60439 (United States)
Designing Reactors to Facilitate Decommissioning
Critics of nuclear power often cite issues with tail-end-of-the-fuel-cycle activities as reasons to oppose the building of new reactors. In fact, waste disposal and the decommissioning of large nuclear reactors have proven more challenging than anticipated. In the early days of the nuclear power industry the design and operation of various reactor systems was given a great deal of attention. Little effort, however, was expended on end-of-the-cycle activities, such as decommissioning and disposal of wastes. As early power and test reactors have been decommissioned difficulties with end-of-the-fuel-cycle activities have become evident. Even the small test reactors common at the INEEL were not designed to facilitate their eventual decontamination, decommissioning, and dismantlement. The results are that decommissioning of these facilities is expensive, time consuming, relatively hazardous, and generates large volumes of waste. This situation clearly supports critics concerns about building a new generation of power reactors.
Richard H. Meservey
Technical Needs for Enhancing Risk Monitors with Equipment Condition Assessment for Advanced Small Modular Reactors
Advanced small modular reactors (aSMRs) can provide the United States with a safe, sustainable, and carbon-neutral energy source. The controllable day-to-day costs of aSMRs are expected to be dominated by operation and maintenance costs. Health and condition assessment coupled with online risk monitors can potentially enhance affordability of aSMRs through optimized operational planning and maintenance scheduling. Currently deployed risk monitors are an extension of probabilistic risk assessment (PRA). For complex engineered systems like nuclear power plants, PRA systematically combines event likelihoods and the probability of failure (POF) of key components, so that when combined with the magnitude of possible adverse consequences to determine risk. Traditional PRA uses population-based POF information to estimate the average plant risk over time. Currently, most nuclear power plants have a PRA that reflects the as-operated, as-modified plant; this model is updated periodically, typically once a year. Risk monitors expand on living PRA by incorporating changes in the day-by-day plant operation and configuration (e.g., changes in equipment availability, operating regime, environmental conditions). However, population-based POF (or population- and time-based POF) is still used to populate fault trees. Health monitoring techniques can be used to establish condition indicators and monitoring capabilities that indicate the component-specific POF at a desired point in time (or over a desired period), which can then be incorporated in the risk monitor to provide a more accurate estimate of the plant risk in different configurations. This is particularly important for active systems, structures, and components (SSCs) proposed for use in aSMR designs. These SSCs may differ significantly from those used in the operating fleet of light-water reactors (or even in LWR-based SMR designs). Additionally, the operating characteristics of aSMRs can present significantly different requirements, including the need to operate in different coolant environments, higher operating temperatures, and longer operating cycles between planned refueling and maintenance outages. These features, along with the relative lack of operating experience for some of the proposed advanced designs, may limit the ability to estimate event probability and component POF with a high degree of certainty. Incorporating real-time estimates of component POF may compensate for a relative lack of established knowledge about the long-term component behavior and improve operational and maintenance planning and optimization. The particular eccentricities of advanced reactors and small modular reactors provide unique challenges and needs for advanced instrumentation, control, and human-machine interface (ICHMI) techniques such as enhanced risk monitors (ERM) in aSMRs. Several features of aSMR designs increase the need for accurate characterization of the real-time risk during operation and maintenance activities. A number of technical gaps in realizing ERM exist, and these gaps are largely independent of the specific reactor technology. As a result, the development of a framework for ERM would enable greater situational awareness regardless of the specific class of reactor technology. A set of research tasks are identified in a preliminary research plan to enable the development, testing, and demonstration of such a framework. Although some aspects of aSMRs, such as specific operational characteristics, will vary and are not now completely defined, the proposed framework is expected to be relevant regardless of such uncertainty. The development of an ERM framework will provide one of the key technical developments necessary to ensure the economic viability of aSMRs.
Coble, Jamie B.; Coles, Garill A.; Ramuhalli, Pradeep; Meyer, Ryan M.; Berglin, Eric J.; Wootan, David W.; Mitchell, Mark R.
Depletion Analysis of Modular High Temperature Gas-cooled Reactor Loaded with LEU/Thorium Fuel
Thorium based fuel has been considered as an option to uranium-based fuel, based on considerations of resource utilization (Thorium is more widely available when compared to Uranium). The fertile isotope of Thorium (Th-232) can be converted to fissile isotope U-233 by neutron capture during the operation of a suitable nuclear reactor such as High Temperature Gas-cooled Reactor (HTGR). However, the fertile Thorium needs a fissile supporter to start and maintain the conversion process such as U-235 or Pu-239. This report presents the results of a study that analyzed the thorium utilization in a prismatic HTGR, namely Modular High Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor (MHTGR) that was designed by General Atomics (GA). The collected for the modeling of this design come from Chapter 4 of MHTGR Preliminary Safety Information Document that GA sent to Department of Energy (DOE) on 1995. Both full core and unit cell models were used to perform this analysis using SCALE 6.1 and Serpent 1.1.18. Because of the long mean free paths (and migration lengths) of neutrons in HTRs, using a unit cell to represent a whole core can be non-trivial. The sizes of these cells were set to match the spectral index between unit cell and full core domains. It was found that for the purposes of this study an adjusted unit cell model is adequate. Discharge isotopics and one-group cross-sections were delivered to the transmutation analysis team. This report provides documentation for these calculations
Sonat Sen; Gilles Youinou
Modular hybrid plasma reactor and related systems and methods
A device, method and system for generating a plasma is disclosed wherein an electrical arc is established and the movement of the electrical arc is selectively controlled. In one example, modular units are coupled to one another to collectively define a chamber. Each modular unit may include an electrode and a cathode spaced apart and configured to generate an arc therebetween. A device, such as a magnetic or electromagnetic device, may be used to selectively control the movement of the arc about a longitudinal axis of the chamber. The arcs of individual modules may be individually controlled so as to exhibit similar or dissimilar motions about the longitudinal axis of the chamber. In another embodiment, an inlet structure may be used to selectively define the flow path of matter introduced into the chamber such that it travels in a substantially circular or helical path within the chamber.
Kong, Peter C.; Grandy, Jon D.; Detering, Brent A.
NRC Reviewer Aid for Evaluating the Human Factors Engineering Aspects of Small Modular Reactors
Small modular reactors (SMRs) are a promising approach to meeting future energy needs. Although the electrical output of an individual SMR is relatively small compared to that of typical commercial nuclear plants, they can be grouped to produce as much energy as a utility demands. Furthermore, SMRs can be used for other purposes, such as producing hydrogen and generating process heat. The design characteristics of many SMRs differ from those of current conventional plants and may require a distinct concept of operations (ConOps). The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) conducted research to examine the human factors engineering (HFE) and the operational aspects of SMRs. The research identified thirty potential human-performance issues that should be considered in the NRC's reviews of SMR designs and in future research activities. The purpose of this report is to support NRC HFE reviewers of SMR applications by identifying some of the questions that can be asked of applicants whose designs have characteristics identified in the issues. The questions for each issue were identified and organized based on the review elements and guidance contained in Chapter 18 of the Standard Review Plan (NUREG-0800), and the Human Factors Engineering Program Review Model (NUREG-0711).
OHara J. M.; Higgins, J.C.
Economic Analysis of the Modular Pebble Bed Reactor
data found inexisting cost data found in ""Evaluation of the Gas Turbine HeliumEvaluation of the Gas Turbine Helium ReactorReactor"" -- DOEDOE--HTGRHTGR--9038090380 -- Dec. 1993 and compared against an the gas prices price in 1992 was assumed constant and did not increase. This study win 1992 was assumed
Safety aspects of the Modular High-Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor (MHTGR)
The Modular High-Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor (MHTGR) is an advanced reactor concept under development through a cooperative program involving the US Government, the nuclear industry and the utilities. The design utilizes the basic high-temperature gas-cooled reactor (HTGR) features of ceramic fuel, helium coolant, and a graphite moderator. The qualitative top-level safety requirement is that the plant's operation not disturb the normal day-to-day activities of the public. The MHTGR safety response to events challenging the functions relied on to retain radionuclides within the coated fuel particles has been evaluated. A broad range of challenges to core heat removal have been examined which include a loss of helium pressure and a simultaneous loss of forced cooling of the core. The challenges to control of heat generation have considered not only the failure to insert the reactivity control systems, but the withdrawal of control rods. Finally, challenges to control chemical attack of the ceramic coated fuel have been considered, including catastrophic failure of the steam generator allowing water ingress or of the pressure vessels allowing air ingress. The plant's response to these extreme challenges is not dependent on operator action and the events considered encompass conceivable operator errors. In the same vein, reliance on radionuclide retention within the full particle and on passive features to perform a few key functions to maintain the fuel within acceptable conditions also reduced susceptibility to external events, site-specific events, and to acts of sabotage and terrorism. 4 refs., 14 figs., 1 tab.
Silady, F.A.; Millunzi, A.C.
Designing decommissioning into new reactor designs
One of the lessons learned from decommissioning of existing reactors has been that decommissioning was not given much thought when these reactors were designed some three or four decades ago. Recently, the nuclear power has seen a worldwide resurgence and many new advanced reactor designs are either on the market or nearing design completion. Most of these designs are evolutionary in nature and build on the existing and proven technologies. They also incorporate many improvements and take advantage of the substantial operating experience. Nevertheless, by and large, the main factors driving the design of new reactors are the safety features, safeguards considerations, and the economic factors. With a large decommissioning experience that already exists in the nuclear industry, and with average decommissioning costs at around six hundred million dollars for each reactor in today's dollars, it is necessary that decommissioning factors also be considered as a part of the early design effort. Even though decommissioning may be sixty years down the road from the time they go on line, it is only prudent that new designs be optimized for eventual decommissioning, along with the other major considerations. (authors)
Devgun, J.S.; CHMM, Ph.D. [Nuclear Power Technologies, Sargent and Lundy LLC, Chicago, IL (United States)
Incorporating Equipment Condition Assessment in Risk Monitors for Advanced Small Modular Reactors
Advanced small modular reactors (aSMRs) can complement the current fleet of large light-water reactors in the USA for baseload and peak demand power production and process heat applications (e.g., water desalination, shale oil extraction, hydrogen production). The day-to-day costs of aSMRs are expected to be dominated by operations and maintenance (O&M); however, the effect of diverse operating missions and unit modularity on O&M is not fully understood. These costs could potentially be reduced by optimized scheduling, with risk-informed scheduling of maintenance, repair, and replacement of equipment. Currently, most nuclear power plants have a �living� probabilistic risk assessment (PRA), which reflects the as-operated, as-modified plant and combine event probabilities with population-based probability of failure (POF) for key components. �Risk monitors� extend the PRA by incorporating the actual and dynamic plant configuration (equipment availability, operating regime, environmental conditions, etc.) into risk assessment. In fact, PRAs are more integrated into plant management in today�s nuclear power plants than at any other time in the history of nuclear power. However, population-based POF curves are still used to populate fault trees; this approach neglects the time-varying condition of equipment that is relied on during standard and non-standard configurations. Equipment condition monitoring techniques can be used to estimate the component POF. Incorporating this unit-specific estimate of POF in the risk monitor can provide a more accurate estimate of risk in different operating and maintenance configurations. This enhanced risk assessment will be especially important for aSMRs that have advanced component designs, which don�t have an available operating history to draw from, and often use passive design features, which present challenges to PRA. This paper presents the requirements and technical gaps for developing a framework to integrate unit-specific estimates of POF into risk monitors, resulting in enhanced risk monitors that support optimized operation and maintenance of aSMRs.
Coble, Jamie B.; Coles, Garill A.; Meyer, Ryan M.; Ramuhalli, Pradeep
Final report on the use of the modular-logic-nomenclature approach for the N-reactor probabilistic risk assessment
The N-Reactor probabilistic risk assessment adaption of the modular logic approach for fault tree modeling has led to the update of the master logic diagram (MLD) nomenclature to conform with a standard modular-logic-model-nomeclature format. This report describes the MLD nomenclature system and provides a listing of the updated MLD label codes, along with the original codes.
Performance and Safety Analysis of a Generic Small Modular Reactor
renewable energy sources such as, wind and solar, along with their limitations on the areas of applicability and the energy output calls for a renaissance in nuclear energy. In this second nuclear era, deliberately small reactors are poised to play a major...
Kitcher, Evans Damenortey, 1987-
Westinghouse Small Modular Reactor passive safety system response to postulated events
The Westinghouse Small Modular Reactor (SMR) is an 800 MWt (>225 MWe) integral pressurized water reactor. This paper is part of a series of four describing the design and safety features of the Westinghouse SMR. This paper focuses in particular upon the passive safety features and the safety system response of the Westinghouse SMR. The Westinghouse SMR design incorporates many features to minimize the effects of, and in some cases eliminates the possibility of postulated accidents. The small size of the reactor and the low power density limits the potential consequences of an accident relative to a large plant. The integral design eliminates large loop piping, which significantly reduces the flow area of postulated loss of coolant accidents (LOCAs). The Westinghouse SMR containment is a high-pressure, compact design that normally operates at a partial vacuum. This facilitates heat removal from the containment during LOCA events. The containment is submerged in water which also aides the heat removal and provides an additional radionuclide filter. The Westinghouse SMR safety system design is passive, is based largely on the passive safety systems used in the AP1000{sup R} reactor, and provides mitigation of all design basis accidents without the need for AC electrical power for a period of seven days. Frequent faults, such as reactivity insertion events and loss of power events, are protected by first shutting down the nuclear reaction by inserting control rods, then providing cold, borated water through a passive, buoyancy-driven flow. Decay heat removal is provided using a layered approach that includes the passive removal of heat by the steam drum and independent passive heat removal system that transfers heat from the primary system to the environment. Less frequent faults such as loss of coolant accidents are mitigated by passive injection of a large quantity of water that is readily available inside containment. An automatic depressurization system is used to reduce the reactor pressure in a controlled manner to facilitate the passive injection. Long-term decay heat removal is accomplished using the passive heat removal systems augmented by heat transfer through the containment vessel to the environment. The passive injection systems are designed so that the fuel remains covered and effectively cooled throughout the event. Like during the frequent faults, the passive systems provide effective cooling without the need for ac power for seven days following the accident. Connections are available to add additional water to indefinitely cool the plant. The response of the safety systems of the Westinghouse SMR to various initiating faults has been examined. Among them, two accidents; an extended station blackout event, and a LOCA event have been evaluated to demonstrate how the plant will remain safe in the unlikely event that either should occur. (authors)
Smith, M. C.; Wright, R. F. [Westinghouse Electric Company, 600 Cranberry Woods Drive (United States)
Population Sensitivity Evaluation of Two Proposed Hampton Roads Area Sites for a Possible Small Modular Reactor
The overall objective of this research project is to use the OR-SAGE tool to support the US Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Nuclear Energy (NE) in evaluating future electrical generation deployment options for small modular reactors (SMRs) in areas with significant energy demand from the federal sector. Deployment of SMRs in zones with high federal energy use can provide a means of meeting federal clean energy goals.
Belles, R. J. [ORNL; Omitaomu, O. A. [ORNL
Nuclear Reactor Safety Design Criteria
Broader source: Directives, Delegations, and Requirements [Office of Management (MA)]
The order establishes nuclear safety criteria applicable to the design, fabrication, construction, testing, and performance requirements of nuclear reactor facilities and safety class structures, systems, and components (SSCs) within these facilities. Cancels paragraphs 8a and 8b of DOE 5480.6. Cancels DOE O 5480.6 in part. Certified 11-18-10.
Small Modular Reactor Report (SEAB) | Department of Energy
Broader source: Energy.gov (indexed) [DOE]
AFDC Printable Version Share this resource Send a link to EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page to someone by E-mail Share EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page on Facebook Tweet about EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page on Twitter Bookmark EERE:1 First Use of Energy for All Purposes (Fuel and Nonfuel),Feet) Year Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul(Summary) "of EnergyEnergyENERGYWomenthe House Committee on Energy andDepartment ofAn Audience ofobjectiveReactorIn his
Steam generator conceptual design for the modular HTGR - Dissimilar metal weld considerations
The steam generator for the current Modular High Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor (MHTGR) has evolved from a technology basis developed in U.S. and European gas-cooled reactor programs. The MHTGR steam generator is a vertically-oriented, counterflow, shell-and-tube, once-through, non-reheat, helical heat exchanger with helium on the shell side and water/steam in the tubes. In the MHTGR applications, the normal operating temperatures of the steam generator tubes can be as high as 638/sup 0/C (1180/sup 0/F). Concerns such as cost, creep strength, steam side scaling and stress corrosion cracking often lead to a design decision to use two different tube materials, one for the evaporating portion and another for the superheating portion of the steam generator. The current MHTGR steam generator design utilizes 2 1/4 CR - 1 Mo material for the economizer/evaporator/initial superheater tube section and Alloy 800H material for the finishing superheat tube section. Therefore, a dissimilar metal weld (DMW) is incorporated in each tube circuit. This feature of the design imposes certain important constraints on the steam generator designer. This paper presents an overview of the MHTGR steam generator conceptual design, and then focuses on the DMW considerations and how these have influenced the design configuration.
Spring, A.H.; Basol, M.
Modular Hybrid Plasma Reactor for Low Cost Bulk Production of Nanomaterials
INL developed a bench scale modular hybrid plasma system for gas phase nanomaterials synthesis. The system was being optimized for WO3 nanoparticles production and scale model projection to a 300 kW pilot system. During the course of technology development many modifications had been done to the system to resolve technical issues that had surfaced and also to improve the performance. All project tasks had been completed except 2 optimization subtasks. These 2 subtasks, a 4-hour and an 8-hour continuous powder production runs at 1 lb/hr powder feeding rate, were unable to complete due to technical issues developed with the reactor system. The 4-hour run had been attempted twice and both times the run was terminated prematurely. The modular electrode for the plasma system was significantly redesigned to address the technical issues. Fabrication of the redesigned modular electrodes and additional components had been completed at the end of the project life. However, not enough resource was available to perform tests to evaluate the performance of the new modifications. More development work would be needed to resolve these problems prior to scaling. The technology demonstrated a surprising capability of synthesizing a single phase of meta-stable delta-Al2O3 from pure alpha-phase large Al2O3 powder. The formation of delta-Al2O3 was surprising because this phase is meta-stable and only formed between 973-1073 K, and delta-Al2O3 is very difficult to synthesize as a single phase. Besides the specific temperature window to form this phase, this meta-stable phase may have been stabilized by nanoparticle size formed in a high temperature plasma process. This technology may possess the capability to produce unusual meta-stable nanophase materials that would be otherwise difficult to produce by conventional methods. A 300 kW INL modular hybrid plasma pilot scale model reactor had been projected using the experimental data from PPG Industries 300 kW hot wall plasma reactor. The projected size of the INL 300 kW pilot model reactor would be about 15% that of the PPG 300 kW hot wall plasma reactor. Including the safety net factor the projected INL pilot reactor size would be 25-30% of the PPG 300 kW hot wall plasma pilot reactor. Due to the modularity of the INL plasma reactor and the energy cascading effect from the upstream plasma to the downstream plasma the energy utilization is more efficient in material processing. It is envisioning that the material through put range for the INL pilot reactor would be comparable to the PPG 300 kW pilot reactor but the energy consumption would be lower. The INL hybrid plasma technology is rather close to being optimized for scaling to a pilot system. More near term development work is still needed to complete the process optimization before pilot scaling.
Peter C. Kong
MORECA: A computer code for simulating modular high-temperature gas-cooled reactor core heatup accidents
The design features of the modular high-temperature gas-cooled reactor (MHTGR) have the potential to make it essentially invulnerable to damage from postulated core heatup accidents. This report describes the ORNL MORECA code, which was developed for analyzing postulated long-term core heatup scenarios for which active cooling systems used to remove afterheat following the accidents can be assumed to the unavailable. Simulations of long-term loss-of-forced-convection accidents, both with and without depressurization of the primary coolant, have shown that maximum core temperatures stay below the point at which any significant fuel failures and fission product releases are expected. Sensitivity studies also have been done to determine the effects of errors in the predictions due both to uncertainties in the modeling and to the assumptions about operational parameters. MORECA models the US Department of Energy reference design of a standard MHTGR.
Ball, S.J. (Oak Ridge National Lab., TN (United States))
Potential Application of Electrical Signature Analysis Methods for Monitoring Small Modular Reactor Components
This paper will describe the technical basis behind ESA and why we consider it a viable SMR condition monitoring technology. Concepts are presented of how ESA could be applied to monitor two candidate small modular reactor components: the main coolant pumps and the control rod drives. We believe the general health of these two components can be monitored and trended over time, using ESA methods. Our optimism is based on over two decades of ESA development and testing on a wide variety of components and systems, many of which have similar operational features to the main coolant pumps and control rod drives.
Damiano, Brian [ORNL] [ORNL; Tucker Jr, Raymond W [ORNL] [ORNL; Haynes, Howard D [ORNL] [ORNL
Conceptual designs for modular OTEC SKSS. Final report
This volume presents the results of the first phase of the Station Keeping Subsystem (SKSS) design study for 40 MW/sub e/ capacity Modular Experiment OTEC Platforms. The objectives of the study were: (1) establishment of basic design requirements; (2) verification of technical feasibility of SKSS designs; (3) identification of merits and demerits; (4) estimates of sizes for major components; (5) estimates of life cycle costs; (6) deployment scenarios and time/cost/risk assessments; (7) maintenance/repair and replacement scenarios; (8) identifications of interface with other OTEC subsystems; (9) recommendations for and major problems in preliminary design; and (10) applicability of concepts to commercial plant SKSS designs. A brief site suitability study was performed with the objective of determining the best possible location at the Punta Tuna (Puerto Rico) site from the standpoint of anchoring. This involved studying the vicinity of the initial location in relation to the prevailing bottom slopes and distances from shore. All subsequent studies were performed for the final selected site. The two baseline OTEC platforms were the APL BARGE and the G and C SPAR. The results of the study are presented in detail. The overall objective of developing two conceptual designs for each of the two baseline OTEC platforms has been accomplished. Specifically: (1) a methodology was developed for conceptual designs and followed to the extent possible. At this stage, a full reliability/performance/optimization analysis based on a probabilistic approach was not used due to the numerous SKSS candidates to be evaluated. A deterministic approach was used. (2) For both of the two baseline platforms, the APL BARGE and the G and C SPAR, all possible SKSS candidate concepts were considered and matrices of SKSS concepts were developed.
It is anticipated that Advanced Small Modular Reactors (AdvSMRs) will employ high degrees of automation. High levels of automation can enhance system performance, but often at the cost of reduced human performance. Automation can lead to human out-of the loop issues, unbalanced workload, complacency, and other problems if it is not designed properly. Researchers have proposed adaptive automation (defined as dynamic or flexible allocation of functions) as a way to get the benefits of higher levels of automation without the human performance costs. Adaptive automation has the potential to balance operator workload and enhance operator situation awareness by allocating functions to the operators in a way that is sensitive to overall workload and capabilities at the time of operation. However, there still a number of questions regarding how to effectively design adaptive automation to achieve that potential. One of those questions is related to how to initiate (or trigger) a shift in automation in order to provide maximal sensitivity to operator needs without introducing undesirable consequences (such as unpredictable mode changes). Several triggering mechanisms for shifts in adaptive automation have been proposed including: operator initiated, critical events, performance-based, physiological measurement, model-based, and hybrid methods. As part of a larger project to develop design guidance for human-automation collaboration in AdvSMRs, researchers at Idaho National Laboratory have investigated the effectiveness and applicability of each of these triggering mechanisms in the context of AdvSMR. Researchers reviewed the empirical literature on adaptive automation and assessed each triggering mechanism based on the human-system performance consequences of employing that mechanism. Researchers also assessed the practicality and feasibility of using the mechanism in the context of an AdvSMR control room. Results indicate that there are tradeoffs associated with each mechanism, but that some are more applicable to the AdvSMR domain. The two mechanisms that consistently improve performance in laboratory studies are operator initiated adaptive automation based on hierarchical task delegation and the Electroencephalogram(EEG) �based measure of engagement. Current EEG methods are intrusive and require intensive analysis; therefore it is not recommended for an AdvSMR control rooms at this time. Researchers also discuss limitations in the existing empirical literature and make recommendations for further research.
Katya L Le Blanc; Johanna h Oxstrand
The purpose of this research project is to develop compact (100 to 400 MWe) Generation IV nuclear power plant design and layout concepts that maximize the benefits of factory-based fabrication and optimal packaging, transportation and siting. The reactor concepts selected were compact designs under development in the 2000 to 2001 period. This interdisciplinary project was comprised of three university-led nuclear engineering teams identified by reactor coolant type (water, gas, and liquid metal) and a fourth Industrial Engineering team. The reactors included a Modular Pebble Bed helium-cooled concept being developed at MIT, the IRIS water-cooled concept being developed by a team led by Westinghouse Electric Company, and a Lead-Bismuth-cooled concept developed by UT. In addition to the design and layout concepts this report includes a section on heat exchanger manufacturing simulations and a section on construction and cost impacts of proposed modular designs.
Mynatt Fred R.; Townsend, L.W.; Williamson, Martin; Williams, Wesley; Miller, Laurence W.; Khan, M. Khurram; McConn, Joe; Kadak, Andrew C.; Berte, Marc V.; Sawhney, Rapinder; Fife, Jacob; Sedler, Todd L.; Conway, Larry E.; Felde, Dave K.
Pollution prevention through reactor design
Generation of waste in the chemical processing industries has its beginning in the heart of the process--the reaction system. Pollution prevention will have the greatest impact in minimizing the generation of waste through the design and operation of chemical reactors by reducing generation at the source--source reduction. Pollution prevention by modification of reaction parameters is defined as changing the selectivity of the reaction so that undesirable reactions which produce waste products are minimized while at the same time producing the desirable products.
Hopper, J.R. [Lamar Univ., Beaumont, TX (United States)
Assessment of passive decay heat removal in the General Atomics Modular Helium Reactor
/ATHENA. The MHR is a high temperature gas cooled reactor. It is a prismatic core concept for New Generation Nuclear Plant (NGNP). Very few reactors of that kind have been designed in the past. Furthermore, the MHR is supposed to be a highly passively safe concept...
Cocheme, Francois Guilhem
Development of the Mathematics of Learning Curve Models for Evaluating Small Modular Reactor Economics
The cost of nuclear power is a straightforward yet complicated topic. It is straightforward in that the cost of nuclear power is a function of the cost to build the nuclear power plant, the cost to operate and maintain it, and the cost to provide fuel for it. It is complicated in that some of those costs are not necessarily known, introducing uncertainty into the analysis. For large light water reactor (LWR)-based nuclear power plants, the uncertainty is mainly contained within the cost of construction. The typical costs of operations and maintenance (O&M), as well as fuel, are well known based on the current fleet of LWRs. However, the last currently operating reactor to come online was Watts Bar 1 in May 1996; thus, the expected construction costs for gigawatt (GW)-class reactors in the United States are based on information nearly two decades old. Extrapolating construction, O&M, and fuel costs from GW-class LWRs to LWR-based small modular reactors (SMRs) introduces even more complication. The per-installed-kilowatt construction costs for SMRs are likely to be higher than those for the GW-class reactors based on the property of the economy of scale. Generally speaking, the economy of scale is the tendency for overall costs to increase slower than the overall production capacity. For power plants, this means that doubling the power production capacity would be expected to cost less than twice as much. Applying this property in the opposite direction, halving the power production capacity would be expected to cost more than half as much. This can potentially make the SMRs less competitive in the electricity market against the GW-class reactors, as well as against other power sources such as natural gas and subsidized renewables. One factor that can potentially aid the SMRs in achieving economic competitiveness is an economy of numbers, as opposed to the economy of scale, associated with learning curves. The basic concept of the learning curve is that the more a new process is repeated, the more efficient the process can be made. Assuming that efficiency directly relates to cost means that the more a new process is repeated successfully and efficiently, the less costly the process can be made. This factor ties directly into the factory fabrication and modularization aspect of the SMR paradigm�manufacturing serial, standardized, identical components for use in nuclear power plants can allow the SMR industry to use the learning curves to predict and optimize deployment costs.
Harrison, T. J. [ORNL
646 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON ROBOTICS AND AUTOMATION, VOL. 13, NO. 5, OCTOBER 1997 Design of Assembly Systems for Modular Products
Systems for Modular Products David W. He and Andrew Kusiak, Member, IEEE Abstract--To respond systems. Given a family of modular products, designing low cost assembly systems is an important problem. In this paper, an approach for the design of assembly systems for modular products is proposed. The assembly
Kusiak, Andrew
Design of long span modular bridges for traffic detours
The oncoming large amount of bridge replacements in the next 10 to 20 years called for a detailed examination of available replacement schemes which can have variable impact on user costs. Detouring traffic with a modular ...
Potapova, Svetlana (Svetlana S.)
Design of electronics for a high-resolution, multi-material, and modular 3D printer
Electronics for a high-resolution, multi-material, and modular 3D printer were designed and implemented. The driver for a piezoelectric inkjet print head can fire its nozzles with one of three droplet sizes ranging from 6 ...
Kwan, Joyce G
Design and analysis of a concrete modular housing system constructed with 3D panels
An innovative modular house system design utilizing an alternative concrete residential building system called 3D panels is presented along with an overview of 3D panels as well as relevant methods and markets. The proposed ...
Sarcia, Sam Rhea, 1982-
Design principles of mammalian signaling networks : emergent properties at modular and global scales
This thesis utilizes modeling approaches rooted in statistical physics and physical chemistry to investigate several aspects of cellular signal transduction at both the modular and global levels. Design principles of ...
Locasale, Jason W
Reactor physics design of supercritical CO?-cooled fast reactors
Gas-Cooled Fast Reactors (GFRs) are among the GEN-IV designs proposed for future deployment. Driven by anticipated plant cost reduction, the use of supercritical CO? (S-CO?) as a Brayton cycle working fluid in a direct ...
Pope, Michael A. (Michael Alexander)
Reactor protection system design alternatives for sodium fast reactors
Historically, unprotected transients have been viewed as design basis events that can significantly challenge sodium-cooled fast reactors. The perceived potential consequences of a severe unprotected transient in a ...
DeWitte, Jacob D. (Jacob Dominic)
Nuclear reactor engineering: Reactor design basics. Fourth edition, Volume One
This new edition of this classic reference combines broad yet in-depth coverage of nuclear engineering principles with practical descriptions of their application in design and operation of nuclear power plants. Extensively updated, the fourth edition includes new material on reactor safety and risk analysis, regulation, fuel management, waste management, and operational aspects of nuclear power. This volume contains the following: energy from nuclear fission; nuclear reactions and radiations; neutron transport; nuclear design basics; nuclear reactor kinetics and control; radiation protection and shielding; and reactor materials.
Glasstone, S.; Sesonske, A.
Evaluation of the applicability of existing nuclear power plant regulatory requirements in the U.S. to advanced small modular reactors.
The current wave of small modular reactor (SMR) designs all have the goal of reducing the cost of management and operations. By optimizing the system, the goal is to make these power plants safer, cheaper to operate and maintain, and more secure. In particular, the reduction in plant staffing can result in significant cost savings. The introduction of advanced reactor designs and increased use of advanced automation technologies in existing nuclear power plants will likely change the roles, responsibilities, composition, and size of the crews required to control plant operations. Similarly, certain security staffing requirements for traditional operational nuclear power plants may not be appropriate or necessary for SMRs due to the simpler, safer and more automated design characteristics of SMRs. As a first step in a process to identify where regulatory requirements may be met with reduced staffing and therefore lower cost, this report identifies the regulatory requirements and associated guidance utilized in the licensing of existing reactors. The potential applicability of these regulations to advanced SMR designs is identified taking into account the unique features of these types of reactors.
LaChance, Jeffrey L.; Wheeler, Timothy A.; Farnum, Cathy Ottinger; Middleton, Bobby D.; Jordan, Sabina Erteza; Duran, Felicia Angelica; Baum, Gregory A.
Material Control and Accounting Design Considerations for High-Temperature Gas Reactors
The subject of this report is domestic safeguards and security by design (2SBD) for high-temperature gas reactors, focusing on material control and accountability (MC&A). The motivation for the report is to provide 2SBD support to the Next Generation Nuclear Plant (NGNP) project, which was launched by Congress in 2005. This introductory section will provide some background on the NGNP project and an overview of the 2SBD concept. The remaining chapters focus specifically on design aspects of the candidate high-temperature gas reactors (HTGRs) relevant to MC&A, Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) requirements, and proposed MC&A approaches for the two major HTGR reactor types: pebble bed and prismatic. Of the prismatic type, two candidates are under consideration: (1) GA's GT-MHR (Gas Turbine-Modular Helium Reactor), and (2) the Modular High-Temperature Reactor (M-HTR), a derivative of Areva's Antares reactor. The future of the pebble-bed modular reactor (PBMR) for NGNP is uncertain, as the PBMR consortium partners (Westinghouse, PBMR [Pty] and The Shaw Group) were unable to agree on the path forward for NGNP during 2010. However, during the technology assessment of the conceptual design phase (Phase 1) of the NGNP project, AREVA provided design information and technology assessment of their pebble bed fueled plant design called the HTR-Module concept. AREVA does not intend to pursue this design for NGNP, preferring instead a modular reactor based on the prismatic Antares concept. Since MC&A relevant design information is available for both pebble concepts, the pebble-bed HTGRs considered in this report are: (1) Westinghouse PBMR; and (2) AREVA HTR-Module. The DOE Office of Nuclear Energy (DOE-NE) sponsors the Fuel Cycle Research and Development program (FCR&D), which contains an element specifically focused on the domestic (or state) aspects of SBD. This Material Protection, Control and Accountancy Technology (MPACT) program supports the present work summarized in this report, namely the development of guidance to support the consideration of MC&A in the design of both pebble-bed and prismatic-fueled HTGRs. The objective is to identify and incorporate design features into the facility design that will cost effectively aid in making MC&A more effective and efficient, with minimum impact on operations. The theft of nuclear material is addressed through both MC&A and physical protection, while the threat of sabotage is addressed principally through physical protection.
Trond Bjornard; John Hockert
Representative Source Terms and the Influence of Reactor Attributes on Functional Containment in Modular High-Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactors
Modular high-temperature gas-cooled reactors (MHTGRs) offer a high degree of passive safety. The low power density of the reactor and the high heat capacity of the graphite core result in slow transients that do not challenge the integrity of the robust TRISO fuel. Another benefit of this fuel form and the surrounding graphite is their superior ability to retain fission products under all anticipated normal and off-normal conditions, which limits reactor accident source terms to very low values. In this paper, we develop estimates of the source term for a generic MHTGR to illustrate the performance of the radionuclide barriers that comprise the MHTGR functional containment. We also examine the influence of initial fuel quality, fuel performance/failure, reactor outlet temperature, and retention outside of the reactor core on the resultant source term to the environment.
D. A. Petti; Hans Gougar; Dick Hobbins; Pete Lowry
Technical Readiness and Gaps Analysis of Commercial Optical Materials and Measurement Systems for Advanced Small Modular Reactors
This report intends to support Department of Energy�s Office of Nuclear Energy (DOE-NE) Nuclear Energy Research and Development Roadmap and industry stakeholders by evaluating optical-based instrumentation and control (I&C) concepts for advanced small modular reactor (AdvSMR) applications. These advanced designs will require innovative thinking in terms of engineering approaches, materials integration, and I&C concepts to realize their eventual viability and deployability. The primary goals of this report include: 1. Establish preliminary I&C needs, performance requirements, and possible gaps for AdvSMR designs based on best available published design data. 2. Document commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) optical sensors, components, and materials in terms of their technical readiness to support essential AdvSMR in-vessel I&C systems. 3. Identify technology gaps by comparing the in-vessel monitoring requirements and environmental constraints to COTS optical sensor and materials performance specifications. 4. Outline a future research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) program plan that addresses these gaps and develops optical-based I&C systems that enhance the viability of future AdvSMR designs. The development of clean, affordable, safe, and proliferation-resistant nuclear power is a key goal that is documented in the Nuclear Energy Research and Development Roadmap. This roadmap outlines RD&D activities intended to overcome technical, economic, and other barriers, which currently limit advances in nuclear energy. These activities will ensure that nuclear energy remains a viable component to this nation�s energy security.
Anheier, Norman C.; Suter, Jonathan D.; Qiao, Hong (Amy); Andersen, Eric S.; Berglin, Eric J.; Bliss, Mary; Cannon, Bret D.; Devanathan, Ramaswami; Mendoza, Albert; Sheen, David M.
Modularity and Integration in the Design of a Socially Interactive Robot
Modularity and Integration in the Design of a Socially Interactive Robot Franc¸ois Michaud, Yannick Brosseau, Carle C^ot´e, Dominic L´etourneau, Pierre Moisan, Arnaud Ponchon, Cl´ement Ra¨ievsky, Jean:{firstname.lastname@example.com Abstract-- Designing robots that are capable of interacting with humans in real life settings
Kabanza, Froduald
Modular Dual Coolant Pb-17Li Blanket Design For ARIES-CS Compact Stellarator Power Plant
of the study. The preferred blanket concept is a dual coolant blanket with a He- cooled ferritic steel firstModular Dual Coolant Pb-17Li Blanket Design For ARIES-CS Compact Stellarator Power Plant X.R. Wanga from the engineering effort during the second phase of ARIES-CS study on the conceptual design
Raffray, A. René
Identification of Selected Areas to Support Federal Clean Energy Goals Using Small Modular Reactors
Beginning in late 2008, Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) responded to ongoing internal and external studies addressing key questions related to our national electrical energy supply. This effort has led to the development and refinement of Oak Ridge Siting Analysis for power Generation Expansion (OR-SAGE), a tool to support power plant siting evaluations. The objective in developing OR-SAGE was to use industry-accepted approaches and/or develop appropriate criteria for screening sites and employ an array of geographic information systems (GIS) data sources at ORNL to identify candidate areas for a power generation technology application. The basic premise requires the development of exclusionary, avoidance, and suitability criteria for evaluating sites for a given siting application, such as siting small modular reactors (SMRs). For specific applications of the tool, it is necessary to develop site selection and evaluation criteria (SSEC) that encompass a number of key benchmarks that essentially form the site environmental characterization for that application. These SSEC might include population density, seismic activity, proximity to water sources, proximity to hazardous facilities, avoidance of protected lands and floodplains, susceptibility to landslide hazards, and others.
Belles, R. J. [ORNL; Mays, G. T. [ORNL; Omitaomu, O. A. [ORNL; Poore, W. P. [ORNL
Identification of Selected Areas to Support Federal Clean Energy Goals Using Small Modular Reactors
This analysis identifies candidate locations, in a broad sense, where there are high concentrations of federal government agency use of electricity, which are also suitable areas for near-term SMRs. Near-term SMRs are based on light-water reactor (LWR) technology with compact design features that are expected to offer a host of safety, siting, construction, and economic benefits. These smaller plants are ideally suited for small electric grids and for locations that cannot support large reactors, thus providing utilities or governement entities with the flexibility to scale power production as demand changes by adding additional power by deploying more modules or reactors in phases. This research project is aimed at providing methodologies, information, and insights to assist the federal government in meeting federal clean energy goals.
Belles, Randy [ORNL; Mays, Gary T [ORNL; Omitaomu, Olufemi A [ORNL; Poore III, Willis P [ORNL
Modular CHP System for Utica College: Design Specification, March 2007 |
AFDC Printable Version Share this resource Send a link to EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page to someone by E-mail Share EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page on Facebook Tweet about EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page on Twitter Bookmark EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page on Google Bookmark EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page on Office of Inspector General Office0-72.pdfGeorgeDoesn't32Department of Energy Modular CHP System for Utica College:
Cost-Shared Development of Innovative Small Modular Reactor Designs |
Broader source: Energy.gov (indexed) [DOE]
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Design options for a bunsen reactor.
This work is being performed for Matt Channon Consulting as part of the Sandia National Laboratories New Mexico Small Business Assistance Program (NMSBA). Matt Channon Consulting has requested Sandia's assistance in the design of a chemical Bunsen reactor for the reaction of SO2, I2 and H2O to produce H2SO4 and HI with a SO2 feed rate to the reactor of 50 kg/hour. Based on this value, an assumed reactor efficiency of 33%, and kinetic data from the literature, a plug flow reactor approximately 1%E2%80%9D diameter and and 12 inches long would be needed to meet the specification of the project. Because the Bunsen reaction is exothermic, heat in the amount of approximately 128,000 kJ/hr would need to be removed using a cooling jacket placed around the tubular reactor. The available literature information on Bunsen reactor design and operation, certain support equipment needed for process operation and a design that meet the specification of Matt Channon Consulting are presented.
Moore, Robert Charles
A Basic LEGO Reactor Design for the Provision of Lunar Surface Power
A final design has been established for a basic Lunar Evolutionary Growth-Optimized (LEGO) Reactor using current and near-term technologies. The LEGO Reactor is a modular, fast-fission, heatpipe-cooled, clustered-reactor system for lunar-surface power generation. The reactor is divided into subcritical units that can be safely launched with lunar shipments from Earth, and then emplaced directly into holes drilled into the lunar regolith to form a critical reactor assembly. The regolith would not just provide radiation shielding, but serve as neutron-reflector material as well. The reactor subunits are to be manufactured using proven and tested materials for use in radiation environments, such as uranium-dioxide fuel, stainless-steel cladding and structural support, and liquid-sodium heatpipes. The LEGO Reactor system promotes reliability, safety, and ease of manufacture and testing at the cost of an increase in launch mass per overall rated power level and a reduction in neutron economy when compared to a single-reactor system. A single unshielded LEGO Reactor subunit has an estimated mass of approximately 448 kg and provides approximately 5 kWe. The overall envelope for a single subunit with fully extended radiator panels has a height of 8.77 m and a diameter of 0.50 m. Six subunits could provide sufficient power generation throughout the initial stages of establishing a lunar outpost. Portions of the reactor may be neutronically decoupled to allow for reduced power production during unmanned periods of base operations. During later stages of lunar-base development, additional subunits may be emplaced and coupled into the existing LEGO Reactor network, subject to lunar base power demand. Improvements in reactor control methods, fuel form and matrix, shielding, as well as power conversion and heat rejection techniques can help generate an even more competitive LEGO Reactor design. Further modifications in the design could provide power generative opportunities for use on other extraterrestrial surfaces.
John Darrell Bess
Conceptual Design of a 100 MWe Modular Molten Salt Power Tower Plant
A conceptual design of a 100 MWe modular molten salt solar power tower plant has been developed which can provide capacity factors in the range of 35 to 75%. Compared to single tower plants, the modular design provides a higher degree of flexibility in achieving the desired customer's capacity factor and is obtained simply by adjusting the number of standard modules. Each module consists of a standard size heliostat field and receiver system, hence reengineering and associated unacceptable performance uncertainties due to scaling are eliminated. The modular approach with multiple towers also improves plant availability. Heliostat field components, receivers and towers are shop assembled allowing for high quality and minimal field assembly. A centralized thermal-storage system stores hot salt from the receivers, allowing nearly continuous power production, independent of solar energy collection, and improved parity with the grid. A molten salt steam generator converts the stored thermal energy into steam, which powers a steam turbine generator to produce electricity. This paper describes the conceptual design of the plant, the advantages of modularity, expected performance, pathways to cost reductions, and environmental impact.
James E. Pacheco; Carter Moursund, Dale Rogers, David Wasyluk
Modular High-Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor short term thermal response to flow and reactivity transients
The analyses reported here have been conducted at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) for the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission's (NRC's) Division of Regulatory Applications of the Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research. The short-term thermal response of the Modular High-Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor (MHTGR) is analyzed for a range of flow and reactivity transients. These include loss of forced circulation (LOFC) without scram, moisture ingress, spurious withdrawal of a control rod group, hypothetical large and rapid positive reactivity insertion, and a rapid core cooling event. The coupled heat transfer-neutron kinetics model is also described.
Cleveland, J.C.
U.S. Department Of Energy Advanced Small Modular Reactor R&D Program: Instrumentation, Controls, and Human-Machine Interface (ICHMI) Pathway
Instrumentation, controls, and human-machine interfaces (ICHMI) are essential enabling technologies that strongly influence nuclear power plant performance and operational costs. The nuclear power industry is currently engaged in a transition from traditional analog-based instrumentation, controls, and human-machine interface systems to implementations employing digital technologies. This transition has primarily occurred in an ad hoc fashion through individual system upgrades at existing plants and has been constrained by licenseability concerns. Although the recent progress in constructing new plants has spurred design of more fully digital plant-wide ICHMI systems, the experience base in the nuclear power application domain is limited. Additionally, development of advanced reactor concepts, such as Generation IV designs and small modular reactors, introduces different plant conditions (e.g., higher temperatures, different coolants, etc.) and unique plant configurations (e.g., multiunit plants with shared systems, balance of plant architectures with reconfigurable co-generation options) that increase the need for enhanced ICHMI capabilities to fully achieve industry goals related to economic competitiveness, safety and reliability, sustainability, and proliferation resistance and physical protection. As a result, significant challenges remain to be addressed to enable the nuclear power industry to complete the transition to safe and comprehensive use of modern ICHMI technology. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has recognized that ICHMI research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) is needed to resolve the technical challenges that may compromise the effective and efficient utilization of modern ICHMI technology and consequently inhibit realization of the benefits offered by expanded utilization of nuclear power. Consequently, several DOE programs have substantial ICHMI RD&D elements within their respective research portfolios. This paper describes current ICHMI research in support of advanced small modular reactors. The objectives that can be achieved through execution of the defined RD&D are to provide optimal technical solutions to critical ICHMI issues, resolve technology gaps arising from the unique measurement and control characteristics of advanced reactor concepts, provide demonstration of needed technologies and methodologies in the nuclear power application domain, mature emerging technologies to facilitate commercialization, and establish necessary technical evidence and application experience to enable timely and predictable licensing. 1 Introduction Instrumentation, controls, and human-machine interfaces are essential enabling technologies that strongly influence nuclear power plant performance and operational costs. The nuclear power industry is currently engaged in a transition from traditional analog-based instrumentation, controls, and human-machine interface (ICHMI) systems to implementations employing digital technologies. This transition has primarily occurred in an ad hoc fashion through individual system upgrades at existing plants and has been constrained by licenseability concerns. Although the recent progress in constructing new plants has spurred design of more fully digital plant-wide ICHMI systems, the experience base in the nuclear power application domain is limited. Additionally, development of advanced reactor concepts, such as Generation IV designs and small modular reactors, introduces different plant conditions (e.g., higher temperatures, different coolants, etc.) and unique plant configurations (e.g., multiunit plants with shared systems, balance of plant architectures with reconfigurable co-generation options) that increase the need for enhanced ICHMI capabilities to fully achieve industry goals related to economic competitiveness, safety and reliability, sustainability, and proliferation resistance and physical protection. As a result, significant challenges remain to be addressed to enable the nuclear power industry to complete the transition to safe and comprehensive use of m
Holcomb, David Eugene [ORNL; Wood, Richard Thomas [ORNL
Advanced burner test reactor preconceptual design report.
The goals of the Global Nuclear Energy Partnership (GNEP) are to expand the use of nuclear energy to meet increasing global energy demand, to address nuclear waste management concerns and to promote non-proliferation. Implementation of the GNEP requires development and demonstration of three major technologies: (1) Light water reactor (LWR) spent fuel separations technologies that will recover transuranics to be recycled for fuel but not separate plutonium from other transuranics, thereby providing proliferation-resistance; (2) Advanced Burner Reactors (ABRs) based on a fast spectrum that transmute the recycled transuranics to produce energy while also reducing the long term radiotoxicity and decay heat loading in the repository; and (3) Fast reactor fuel recycling technologies to recover and refabricate the transuranics for repeated recycling in the fast reactor system. The primary mission of the ABR Program is to demonstrate the transmutation of transuranics recovered from the LWR spent fuel, and hence the benefits of the fuel cycle closure to nuclear waste management. The transmutation, or burning of the transuranics is accomplished by fissioning and this is most effectively done in a fast spectrum. In the thermal spectrum of commercial LWRs, some transuranics capture neutrons and become even heavier transuranics rather than being fissioned. Even with repeated recycling, only about 30% can be transmuted, which is an intrinsic limitation of all thermal spectrum reactors. Only in a fast spectrum can all transuranics be effectively fissioned to eliminate their long-term radiotoxicity and decay heat. The Advanced Burner Test Reactor (ABTR) is the first step in demonstrating the transmutation technologies. It directly supports development of a prototype full-scale Advanced Burner Reactor, which would be followed by commercial deployment of ABRs. The primary objectives of the ABTR are: (1) To demonstrate reactor-based transmutation of transuranics as part of an advanced fuel cycle; (2) To qualify the transuranics-containing fuels and advanced structural materials needed for a full-scale ABR; and (3) To support the research, development and demonstration required for certification of an ABR standard design by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The ABTR should also address the following additional objectives: (1) To incorporate and demonstrate innovative design concepts and features that may lead to significant improvements in cost, safety, efficiency, reliability, or other favorable characteristics that could promote public acceptance and future private sector investment in ABRs; (2) To demonstrate improved technologies for safeguards and security; and (3) To support development of the U.S. infrastructure for design, fabrication and construction, testing and deployment of systems, structures and components for the ABRs. Based on these objectives, a pre-conceptual design of a 250 MWt ABTR has been developed; it is documented in this report. In addition to meeting the primary and additional objectives listed above, the lessons learned from fast reactor programs in the U.S. and worldwide and the operating experience of more than a dozen fast reactors around the world, in particular the Experimental Breeder Reactor-II have been incorporated into the design of the ABTR to the extent possible.
Chang, Y. I.; Finck, P. J.; Grandy, C.; Cahalan, J.; Deitrich, L.; Dunn, F.; Fallin, D.; Farmer, M.; Fanning, T.; Kim, T.; Krajtl, L.; Lomperski, S.; Moisseytsev, A.; Momozaki, Y.; Sienicki, J.; Park, Y.; Tang, Y.; Reed, C.; Tzanos, C; Wiedmeyer, S.; Yang, W.; Chikazawa, Y.; JAEA
Status of fusion reactor blanket design
This paper provides a brief review of the Blanket Comparison and Selection Study (BCSS)/sup 1/ and an overview of more recent fusion reactor blanket design efforts. Specific areas covered include improvements in leading blanket concepts identified in the BCSS, viz., self-cooled liquid metal concepts, helium-cooled solid breeder concepts, and helium-cooled liquid breeder concepts. In addition, a summary of innovative blanket concepts and design features is presented. The key features and critical issues associated with these designs are identified.
Smith, D.L.; Sze, D.K.
Sandia National Laboratories: nuclear reactor design
Broader source: All U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office Webpages (Extended Search)
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Innovative design of uranium startup fast reactors
Sodium Fast Reactors are one of the three candidates of GEN-IV fast reactors. Fast reactors play an important role in saving uranium resources and reducing nuclear wastes. Conventional fast reactors rely on transuranic ...
Fei, Tingzhou
Assessment of Algal Farm Designs using a Dynamic Modular Approach
The notion of renewable energy provides an importantmechanism for diversifying an energy portfolio,which ultimately would have numerous benefits including increased energy resilience, reduced reliance on foreign energysupplies, reduced GHG emissions, development of a green energy sector that contributes to economic growth,and providing a sustainable energy supply. The conversion of autotrophic algae to liquid transportation fuels is the basis of several decades of research to competitively bring energy-scale production into reality; however, many challenges still remain for making algal biofuels economically viable. Addressing current challenges associatedwith algal production systems, in part, requires the ability to assess spatial and temporal variability, rapidly evaluate alternative algal production system designs, and perform large-scale assessments considering multiple scenarios for thousands of potential sites. We introduce the development and application of the Algae Logistics Model (ALM) which is tailored to help address these challenges. The flexible nature of the ALM architecture allows the model to: 1) interface with external biomass production and resource assessment models, as well as other relevant datasets including those with spatiotemporal granularity; 2) interchange design processes to enable operational and economic assessments ofmultiple design configurations, including the integration of current and new innovative technologies; and 3) conduct trade-off analysis to help understand the site-specific techno-economic trade-offs and inform technology decisions. This study uses the ALM to investigate a baseline open-pond production system determined by model harmonization efforts conducted by the U.S. Department of Energy. Six sites in the U.S. southern-tierwere sub-selected and assessed using daily site-specific algaebiomass productivity data to determine the economic viability of large-scale open-pond systems. Results show that costs can vary significantly depending on location and biomass productivity and that integration of novel dewatering equipment, order of operations, and equipment scaling can also have significant impacts on economics.
Jared M. Abodeely; Daniel M. Stevens; Allison E. Ray; Deborah T. Newby; Andre M. Coleman; Kara G. Cafferty
Assessment of Algal Farm Designs Using a Dynamic Modular Approach
The notion of renewable energy provides an important mechanism for diversifying an energy portfolio, which ultimately would have numerous benefits including increased energy resilience, reduction of foreign energy supplies, reduced GHG emissions, development of a green energy sector that contributes to economic growth, and providing a sustainable energy supply. The conversion of autotrophic algae to liquid transportation fuels is the basis of several decades of research to competitively bring energy-scale production into reality; however, many challenges still remain for making algal biofuels economically viable. Addressing current challenges associated with algal production systems, in part, requires the ability to assess spatial and temporal variability, rapidly evaluate alternative algal production system designs, and perform large-scale assessments considering multiple scenarios for thousands of potential sites. We introduce the Algae Logistics Model (ALM) which helps to address these challenges. The flexible nature of the ALM architecture allows the model to: 1) interface with external biomass production and resource assessment models, as well as other relevant datasets including those with spatiotemporal granularity; 2) interchange design processes to enable operational and economic assessments of multiple design configurations, including the integration of current and new innovative technologies; and 3) conduct trade-off analysis to help understand the site-specific techno-economic trade-offs and inform technology decisions. This study uses the ALM to investigate a baseline open-pond production system determined by model harmonization efforts conducted by the U.S. Department of Energy. Six sites in the U.S. southern-tier were sub-selected and assessed using daily site-specific algae biomass productivity data to determine the economic viability of large-scale open-pond systems. Results show that costs can vary significantly depending on location and biomass productivity and that integration of novel dewatering equipment, order of operations, and equipment scaling can also have significant impacts on economics.
Abodeely, Jared; Coleman, Andre M.; Stevens, Daniel M.; Ray, Allison E.; Cafferty, Kara G.; Newby, Deborah T.
MIT Modular Pebble Bed Reactor (MPBR) A Summary of Research Activities and Accomplishments
Turbine Hall Boundary Admin Training Control Bldg. Maintenance Parts / Tools 10 9 8 7 6 4 2 5 3 1 0 20 40 Independently · Indirect Gas Cycle · Real Modularity · High Automation · License by Test #12;Project Overview.71MPa 69.7 C 4.67MPa Cooling RPV #12;BOP System Analysis and Dynamic Simulation Model Development
Design, fabrication, and certification of advanced modular PV power systems. Final technical progress report
Solar Electric Specialties Company (SES) has completed a two and a half year effort under the auspices of the US Department of Energy (DOE) PVMaT (Photovoltaic Manufacturing Technology) project. Under Phase 4A1 of the project for Product Driven System and Component Technology, the SES contract ``Design, Fabrication and Certification of Advanced Modular PV Power Systems`` had the goal to reduce installed system life cycle costs through development of certified (Underwriters Laboratories or other listing) and standardized prototype products for two of the product lines, MAPPS{trademark} (Modular Autonomous PV Power Supply) and Photogensets{trademark}. MAPPS are small DC systems consisting of Photovoltaic modules, batteries and a charge controller and producing up to about a thousand watt-hours per day. Photogensets are stand-alone AC systems incorporating a generator as backup for the PV in addition to a DC-AC inverter and battery charger. The program tasks for the two-year contract consisted of designing and fabricating prototypes of both a MAPPS and a Photogenset to meet agency listing requirements using modular concepts that would support development of families of products, submitting the prototypes for listing, and performing functionality testing at Sandia and NREL. Both prototypes were candidates for UL (Underwriters Laboratories) listing. The MAPPS was also a candidate for FM (Factory Mutual) approval for hazardous (incendiary gases) locations.
Lambarski, T.; Minyard, G. [Solar Electric Specialties Co., Willits, CA (United States)
Magnitude and reactivity consequences of moisture ingress into the modular High-Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor core
Inadvertent admission of moisture into the primary system of a modular high-temperature gas-cooled reactor has been identified in US Department of Energy-sponsored studies as an important safety concern. The work described here develops an analytical methodology to quantify the pressure and reactivity consequences of steam-generator tube rupture and other moisture-ingress-related incidents. Important neutronic and thermohydraulic processes are coupled with reactivity feedback and safety and control system responses. The rate and magnitude of steam buildup are found to be dominated by major system features such as break size compared with safety valve capacity and reliability and less sensitive to factors such as heat transfer coefficients. The results indicate that ingress transients progress at a slower pace than previously predicted by bounding analyses, with milder power overshoots and more time for operator or automatic corrective actions.
Smith, O.L. (Oak Ridge National Lab., TN (United States))
Neutron transport analysis for nuclear reactor design
Replacing regular mesh-dependent ray tracing modules in a collision/transfer probability (CTP) code with a ray tracing module based upon combinatorial geometry of a modified geometrical module (GMC) provides a general geometry transfer theory code in two dimensions (2D) for analyzing nuclear reactor design and control. The primary modification of the GMC module involves generation of a fixed inner frame and a rotating outer frame, where the inner frame contains all reactor regions of interest, e.g., part of a reactor assembly, an assembly, or several assemblies, and the outer frame, with a set of parallel equidistant rays (lines) attached to it, rotates around the inner frame. The modified GMC module allows for determining for each parallel ray (line), the intersections with zone boundaries, the path length between the intersections, the total number of zones on a track, the zone and medium numbers, and the intersections with the outer surface, which parameters may be used in the CTP code to calculate collision/transfer probability and cross-section values.
Vujic, Jasmina L. (Lisle, IL)
Neutron transport analysis for nuclear reactor design
Replacing regular mesh-dependent ray tracing modules in a collision/transfer probability (CTP) code with a ray tracing module based upon combinatorial geometry of a modified geometrical module (GMC) provides a general geometry transfer theory code in two dimensions (2D) for analyzing nuclear reactor design and control. The primary modification of the GMC module involves generation of a fixed inner frame and a rotating outer frame, where the inner frame contains all reactor regions of interest, e.g., part of a reactor assembly, an assembly, or several assemblies, and the outer frame, with a set of parallel equidistant rays (lines) attached to it, rotates around the inner frame. The modified GMC module allows for determining for each parallel ray (line), the intersections with zone boundaries, the path length between the intersections, the total number of zones on a track, the zone and medium numbers, and the intersections with the outer surface, which parameters may be used in the CTP code to calculate collision/transfer probability and cross-section values. 28 figures.
Vujic, J.L.
A Methodology for the Neutronics Design of Space Nuclear Reactors
A methodology for the neutronics design of space power reactors is presented. This methodology involves balancing the competing requirements of having sufficient excess reactivity for the desired lifetime, keeping the reactor subcritical at launch and during submersion accidents, and providing sufficient control over the lifetime of the reactor. These requirements are addressed by three reactivity values for a given reactor design: the excess reactivity at beginning of mission, the negative reactivity at shutdown, and the negative reactivity margin in submersion accidents. These reactivity values define the control worth and the safety worth in submersion accidents, used for evaluating the merit of a proposed reactor type and design. The Heat Pipe-Segmented Thermoelectric Module Converters space reactor core design is evaluated and modified based on the proposed methodology. The final reactor core design has sufficient excess reactivity for 10 years of nominal operation at 1.82 MW of fission power and is subcritical at launch and in all water submersion accidents.
King, Jeffrey C.; El-Genk, Mohamed S. [Institute for Space and Nuclear Power Studies, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131 (United States); Chemical and Nuclear Engineering Department, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131 (United States)
Design of Complex Systems to Achieve Passive Safety: Natural Circulation Cooling of Liquid Salt Pebble Bed Reactors
a tool for reactor design optimization, and for design ofdesign tool for reactor design optimization, and for designdesign tool for reactor design optimization, and for design
Scarlat, Raluca Olga
Design and control of tubular autothermal reactor: An evolutionary approach
A systematic procedure for the design of a reactor system and controller for an autothermal process is proposed. Use of Structural Dominance Analysis eliminates the need for many detailed simulation runs to determine best reactor and controller configuration. Multistage wall-cooled reactors with cocurrent coolant are found to be a superior design. Reactor control is achieved using cold feed bypass gas to regulate in inlet temperature to each reactor bed. A controller is designed using the Internal Model Control structure. Performance and robustness are investigated using a first-order diagonal filter. 15 refs.
Chylla, R.W. Jr.; Adomaitis, R.A.; Cinar, A.
Fusion reactor blanket-main design aspects
The main function of the fusion reactor blanket is ensuring tritium breeding and radiation shield. The blanket version depends on the reactor type (experimental, DEMO, commercial) and its parameters. Blanket operation conditions are defined with the heat flux, neutron load/fluence, cyclic operation, dynamic heating/force loading, MHD effects etc. DEMO/commercial blanket design is distinguished e.g. by rather high heat load and neutron fluence - up to 100 W/cm{sup 2} and 7 MWa/m{sup 2} accordingly. This conditions impose specific requirements for the materials, structure, maintenance of the blanket and its most loaded components - FW and limiter. The liquid Li-Pb eutectic is one of the possible breeder for different kinds of blanket in view of its advantages one of which is the blanket convertibility that allow to have shielding blanket (borated water) or breeding one (Li-Pb eutectic). Using Li-Pb eutectic for both ITER and DEMO blankets have been considered. In the conceptual ITER design the solid eutectic blanket was carried out. The liquid eutectic breeder/coolant is suggested also for the advanced (high parameter) blanket.
Strebkov, Yu.; Sidorov, A.; Danilov, I. [Research and Development Inst. of Power Engineering, Moscow (Russian Federation)
Equipment Design and Cost Estimation for Small Modular Biomass Systems, Synthesis Gas Cleanup, and Oxygen Separation Equipment; Task 1: Cost Estimates of Small Modular Systems
This deliverable is the Final Report for Task 1, Cost Estimates of Small Modular Systems, as part of NREL Award ACO-5-44027, ''Equipment Design and Cost Estimation for Small Modular Biomass Systems, Synthesis Gas Cleanup and Oxygen Separation Equipment''. Subtask 1.1 looked into processes and technologies that have been commercially built at both large and small scales, with three technologies, Fluidized Catalytic Cracking (FCC) of refinery gas oil, Steam Methane Reforming (SMR) of Natural Gas, and Natural Gas Liquids (NGL) Expanders, chosen for further investigation. These technologies were chosen due to their applicability relative to other technologies being considered by NREL for future commercial applications, such as indirect gasification and fluidized bed tar cracking. Research in this subject is driven by an interest in the impact that scaling has on the cost and major process unit designs for commercial technologies. Conclusions from the evaluations performed could be applied to other technologies being considered for modular or skid-mounted applications.
Nexant Inc.
Advanced High Temperature Reactor Neutronic Core Design
The AHTR is a 3400 MW(t) FHR class reactor design concept intended to serve as a central generating station type power plant. While significant technology development and demonstration remains, the basic design concept appears sound and tolerant of much of the remaining performance uncertainty. No fundamental impediments have been identified that would prevent widespread deployment of the concept. This paper focuses on the preliminary neutronic design studies performed at ORNL during the fiscal year 2011. After a brief presentation of the AHTR design concept, the paper summarizes several neutronic studies performed at ORNL during 2011. An optimization study for the AHTR core is first presented. The temperature and void coefficients of reactivity are then analyzed for a few configurations of interest. A discussion of the limiting factors due to the fast neutron fluence follows. The neutronic studies conclude with a discussion of the control and shutdown options. The studies presented confirm that sound neutronic alternatives exist for the design of the AHTR to maintain full passive safety features and reasonable operation conditions.
Ilas, Dan [ORNL] [ORNL; Holcomb, David Eugene [ORNL] [ORNL; Varma, Venugopal Koikal [ORNL] [ORNL
Technical Needs for Prototypic Prognostic Technique Demonstration for Advanced Small Modular Reactor Passive Components
This report identifies a number of requirements for prognostics health management of passive systems in AdvSMRs, documents technical gaps in establishing a prototypical prognostic methodology for this purpose, and describes a preliminary research plan for addressing these technical gaps. AdvSMRs span multiple concepts; therefore a technology- and design-neutral approach is taken, with the focus being on characteristics that are likely to be common to all or several AdvSMR concepts. An evaluation of available literature is used to identify proposed concepts for AdvSMRs along with likely operational characteristics. Available operating experience of advanced reactors is used in identifying passive components that may be subject to degradation, materials likely to be used for these components, and potential modes of degradation of these components. This information helps in assessing measurement needs for PHM systems, as well as defining functional requirements of PHM systems. An assessment of current state-of-the-art approaches to measurements, sensors and instrumentation, diagnostics and prognostics is also documented. This state-of-the-art evaluation, combined with the requirements, may be used to identify technical gaps and research needs in the development, evaluation, and deployment of PHM systems for AdvSMRs. A preliminary research plan to address high-priority research needs for the deployment of PHM systems to AdvSMRs is described, with the objective being the demonstration of prototypic prognostics technology for passive components in AdvSMRs. Greater efficiency in achieving this objective can be gained through judicious selection of materials and degradation modes that are relevant to proposed AdvSMR concepts, and for which significant knowledge already exists. These selections were made based on multiple constraints including the analysis performed in this document, ready access to laboratory-scale facilities for materials testing and measurement, and potential synergies with other national laboratory and university partners.
Meyer, Ryan M.; Coble, Jamie B.; Hirt, Evelyn H.; Ramuhalli, Pradeep; Mitchell, Mark R.; Wootan, David W.; Berglin, Eric J.; Bond, Leonard J.; Henager, Charles H.
Probabilistic accident analysis of the Pebble Bed modular Reactor for use with risk informed regulation
One of the major challenges to the successful deployment of new nuclear plants in the United States is the regulatory process, which is largely based on water-reactor technology. While ongoing and expected efforts to license ...
Savkina, Marina D., 1973-
A 48-month extended fuel cycle for the B and W mPower{sup TM} small modular nuclear reactor
The B and W mPower{sup TM} reactor is a small, rail-shippable pressurized water reactor (PWR) with an integral once-through steam generator and an electric power output of 150 MW, which is intended to replace aging fossil power plants of similar output. The core is composed of 69 reduced-height, but otherwise standard, PWR assemblies with the familiar 17 x 17 fuel rod array on a 21.5 cm inter-assembly pitch. The B and W mPower core design and cycle management plan, which were performed using the Studsvik core design code suite, follow the pattern of a typical nuclear reactor fuel cycle design and analysis performed by most nuclear fuel management organizations, such as fuel vendors and utilities. However, B and W is offering a core loading and cycle management plan for four years of continuous power operations without refueling and without the hurdles of chemical shim. (authors)
Erighin, M. A. [Babcock and Wilcox Company, 109 Ramsey Place, Lynchburg, VA 24502 (United States)
Cynod: A Neutronics Code for Pebble Bed Modular Reactor Coupled Transient Analysis
The Pebble Bed Reactor (PBR) is one of the two concepts currently considered for development into the Next Generation Nuclear Plant (NGNP). This interest is due, in particular, to the concept�s inherent safety characteristics. In order to verify and confirm the design safety characteristics of the PBR computational tools must be developed that treat the range of phenomena that are expected to be important for this type of reactors. This paper presents a recently developed 2D R-Z cylindrical nodal kinetics code and shows some of its capabilities by applying it to a set of known and relevant benchmarks. The new code has been coupled to the thermal hydraulics code THERMIX/KONVEK[1] for application to the simulation of very fast transients in PBRs. The new code, CYNOD, has been written starting with a fixed source solver extracted from the nodal cylindrical geometry solver contained within the PEBBED code. The fixed source solver was then incorporated into a kinetic solver.. The new code inherits the spatial solver characteristics of the nodal solver within PEBBED. Thus, the time-dependent neutron diffusion equation expressed analytically in each node of the R-Z cylindrical geometry sub-domain (or node) is transformed into one-dimensional equations by means of the usual transverse integration procedure. The one-dimensional diffusion equations in each of the directions are then solved using the analytic Green�s function method. The resulting equations for the entire domain are then re-cast in the form of the Direct Coarse Mesh Finite Difference (D-CMFD) for convenience of solution. The implicit Euler method is used for the time variable discretization. In order to correctly treat the cusping effect for nodes that contain a partially inserted control rod a method is used that takes advantage of the Green�s function solution available in the intrinsic method. In this corrected treatment, the nodes are re-homogenized using axial flux shapes reconstructed based on the Green�s function method. The performance of the new code is demonstrated by applying it to a delayed supercritical problem and a to the OECD PBMR400 rod ejection benchmark problem. The latter makes use of the coupled CYNOD-THERMIX/KONVEK codes. A final improvement to the code is the subject of a companion paper: a heterogeneous TRISO fuel particle model was devised and incorporated into the code and used to provide an enhanced Doppler treatment. The new code is currently being coupled to the RELAP5-3D code for thermal-hydraulics. The full length paper will include extensive summaries of the equations and algorithm, descriptions of the sample and benchmark problems and details of the results. It is shown, in inter-code comparisons, that the new code correctly predicts the transient behaviors of the test problems.
Hikaru Hiruta; Abderrafi M. Ougouag; Hans D. Gougar; Javier Ortensi
Safety and core design of large liquid-metal cooled fast breeder reactors
OF LARGE FAST REACTORS Calculation examples A typicalMonte Carlo Reactor Physics Burnup Calculation Code. Tech.reactor core design from experience and coarse calculations
Qvist, Staffan Alexander
Very High Temperature Reactor (VHTR) Deep Burn Core and Fuel Analysis -- Complete Design Selection for the Pebble Bed Reactor
The Deep-Burn (DB) concept focuses on the destruction of transuranic nuclides from used light water reactor fuel. These transuranic nuclides are incorporated into TRISO coated fuel particles and used in gas-cooled reactors with the aim of a fractional fuel burnup of 60 to 70% in fissions per initial metal atom (FIMA). This high performance is expected through the use of multiple recirculation passes of the fuel in pebble form without any physical or chemical changes between passes. In particular, the concept does not call for reprocessing of the fuel between passes. In principle, the DB pebble bed concept employs the same reactor designs as the presently envisioned low-enriched uranium core designs, such as the 400 MWth Pebble Bed Modular Reactor (PBMR-400). Although it has been shown in the previous Fiscal Year (2009) that a PuO2 fueled pebble bed reactor concept is viable, achieving a high fuel burnup, while remaining within safety-imposed prescribed operational limits for fuel temperature, power peaking and temperature reactivity feedback coefficients for the entire temperature range, is challenging. The presence of the isotopes 239-Pu, 240-Pu and 241-Pu that have resonances in the thermal energy range significantly modifies the neutron thermal energy spectrum as compared to a �standard,� UO2-fueled core. Therefore, the DB pebble bed core exhibits a relatively hard neutron energy spectrum. However, regions within the pebble bed that are near the graphite reflectors experience a locally softer spectrum. This can lead to power and temperature peaking in these regions. Furthermore, a shift of the thermal energy spectrum with increasing temperature can lead to increased absorption in the resonances of the fissile Pu isotopes. This can lead to a positive temperature reactivity coefficient for the graphite moderator under certain operating conditions. The effort of this task in FY 2010 has focused on the optimization of the core to maximize the pebble discharge burnup level, while retaining its inherent safety characteristics. Using generic pebble bed reactor cores, this task will perform physics calculations to evaluate the capabilities of the pebble bed reactor to perform utilization and destruction of LWR used-fuel transuranics. The task will use established benchmarked models, and will introduce modeling advancements appropriate to the nature of the fuel considered (high TRU content and high burn-up).
B. Boer; A. M. Ougouag
Subcontract Report: Modular Combined Heat & Power System for Utica College: Design Specification
Utica College, located in Utica New York, intends to install an on-site power/cogeneration facility. The energy facility is to be factory pre-assembled, or pre- assembled in modules, to the fullest extent possible, and ready to install and interconnect at the College with minimal time and engineering needs. External connections will be limited to fuel supply, electrical output, potable makeup water as required and cooling and heat recovery systems. The proposed facility will consist of 4 self-contained, modular Cummins 330kW engine generators with heat recovery systems and the only external connections will be fuel supply, electrical outputs and cooling and heat recovery systems. This project was eventually cancelled due to changing DOE budget priorities, but the project engineers produced this system design specification in hopes that it may be useful in future endeavors.
Rouse, Greg [Gas Technology Institute
The design of a compact integral medium size PWR : the CIRIS
The International Reactor Innovative and Secure (IRIS) is an advanced medium size, modular integral light water reactor design, rated currently at 1000 MWt. IRIS design has been under development by over 20 organizations ...
Shirvan, Koroush
Design of a 25-kWe Surface Reactor System Based on SNAP Reactor Technologies
A Hastelloy-X clad, sodium-potassium (NaK-78) cooled, moderated spectrum reactor using uranium zirconium hydride (UZrH) fuel based on the SNAP program reactors is a promising design for use in surface power systems. This paper presents a 98 kWth reactor for a power system the uses multiple Stirling engines to produce 25 kWe-net for 5 years. The design utilizes a pin type geometry containing UZrHx fuel clad with Hastelloy-X and NaK-78 flowing around the pins as coolant. A compelling feature of this design is its use of 49.9% enriched U, allowing it to be classified as a category III-D attractiveness and reducing facility costs relative to highly-enriched space reactor concepts. Presented below are both the design and an analysis of this reactor's criticality under various safety and operations scenarios.
Dixon, David D. [Nuclear Systems Design Group, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM 87545 (United States); Department of Nuclear Engineering, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695 (United States); Hiatt, Matthew T. [Nuclear Systems Design Group, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM 87545 (United States); Department of Nuclear Engineering, Texas A and M University, College Station, TX 77843 (United States); Poston, David I.; Kapernick, Richard J. [Nuclear Systems Design Group, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM 87545 (United States)
Status of Preconceptual Design of the Advanced High-Temperature Reactor (AHTR)
A new reactor plant concept is presented that combines the benefits of ceramic-coated, high-temperature particle fuel with those of clean, high-temperature, low-pressure molten salt coolant. The Advanced High-Temperature Reactor (AHTR) concept is a collaboration of Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratories, and the University of California at Berkeley. The purpose of the concept is to provide an advanced design capable of satisfying the top-level functional requirements of the U.S. Department of Energy Next Generation Nuclear Plant (NGNP), while also providing a technology base that is sufficiently robust to allow future development paths to higher temperatures and larger outputs with highly competitive economics. This report summarizes the status of the AHTR preconceptual design. It captures the results from an intense effort over a period of 3 months to (1) screen and examine potential feasibility concerns with the concept; (2) refine the conceptual design of major systems; and (3) identify research, development, and technology requirements to fully mature the AHTR design. Several analyses were performed and are presented to quantify the AHTR performance expectations and to assist in the selection of several design parameters. The AHTR, like other NGNP reactor concepts, uses coated particle fuel in a graphite matrix. But unlike the other NGNP concepts, the AHTR uses molten salt rather than helium as the primary system coolant. The considerable previous experience with molten salts in nuclear environments is discussed, and the status of high-temperature materials is reviewed. The large thermal inertia of the system, the excellent heat transfer and fission product retention characteristics of molten salt, and the low-pressure operation of the primary system provide significant safety attributes for the AHTR. Compared with helium coolant, a molten salt cooled reactor will have significantly lower fuel temperatures (150-200-C lower) for the equivalent temperature of heat delivered to either the power conversion system or a hydrogen production plant. Using a comparative cost analysis, the construction costs per unit output are projected to be 50-55% of the costs for modular gas-cooled or sodium-cooled reactor systems. This is primarily a consequence of substantially larger power output and higher conversion efficiency for the AHTR. The AHTR has a number of unique technical challenges in meeting the NGNP requirements; however, it appears to offer advantages over high-temperature helium-cooled reactors and provides an alternative development path to achieve the NGNP requirements. Primary challenges include optimizing the core design for improved response to transients, designing an internal blanket to thermally protect the reactor vessel, and engineering solutions to high-temperature refueling and maintenance.
Ingersoll, D.T.
Novel Reactor Design and Metrology Study for Tungsten ALD process
species Viscous flow condition Short gas residence time Fast gas switching Reactant + carrier gas Multiple Operation Modes Exposure Purge Small reactor volume Throttle Valve 5 torr 10-5 Torr carrier gas 5 torr 10Novel Reactor Design and Metrology Study for Tungsten ALD process Laurent Henn-Lecordier, Wei Lei
Rubloff, Gary W.
HYLIFE-2 inertial confinement fusion reactor design
The HYLIFE-II inertial fusion power plant design study uses a liquid fall, in the form of jets to protect the first structural wall from neutron damage, x-rays, and blast to provide a 30-y lifetime. HYLIFE-I used liquid lithium. HYLIFE-II avoids the fire hazard of lithium by using a molten salt composed of fluorine, lithium, and beryllium (Li{sub 2}BeF{sub 4}) called Flibe. Access for heavy-ion beams is provided. Calculations for assumed heavy-ion beam performance show a nominal gain of 70 at 5 MJ producing 350 MJ, about 5.2 times less yield than the 1.8 GJ from a driver energy of 4.5 MJ with gain of 400 for HYLIFE-I. The nominal 1 GWe of power can be maintained by increasing the repetition rate by a factor of about 5.2, from 1.5 to 8 Hz. A higher repetition rate requires faster re-establishment of the jets after a shot, which can be accomplished in part by decreasing the jet fall height and increasing the jet flow velocity. Multiple chambers may be required. In addition, although not considered for HYLIFE-I, there is undoubtedly liquid splash that must be forcibly cleared because gravity is too slow, especially at high repetition rates. Splash removal can be accomplished by either pulsed or oscillating jet flows. The cost of electricity is estimated to be 0.09$/kW{center dot}h in constant 1988 dollars, about twice that of future coal and light water reactor nuclear power. The driver beam cost is about one-half the total cost. 12 refs., 9 figs., 5 tabs.
Moir, R.W.
Scaling Studies for High Temperature Test Facility and Modular High Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor
The Oregon State University (OSU) High Temperature Test Facility (HTTF) is an integral experimental facility that will be constructed on the OSU campus in Corvallis, Oregon. The HTTF project was initiated, by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), on September 5, 2008 as Task 4 of the 5-year High Temperature Gas Reactor Cooperative Agreement via NRC Contract 04-08-138. Until August, 2010, when a DOE contract was initiated to fund additional capabilities for the HTTF project, all of the funding support for the HTTF was provided by the NRC via their cooperative agreement. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) began their involvement with the HTTF project in late 2009 via the Next Generation Nuclear Plant (NGNP) project. Because the NRC's interests in HTTF experiments were only centered on the depressurized conduction cooldown (DCC) scenario, NGNP involvement focused on expanding the experimental envelope of the HTTF to include steady-state operations and also the pressurized conduction cooldown (PCC).
Richard R. Schult; Paul D. Bayless; Richard W. Johnson; James R. Wolf; Brian Woods
Modular Inverter for Advanced Control Applications In the fall of 2003, a team of graduate students was assembled to design and construct a
a set of well-documented inverters of various ratings capable of quickly implementing a new control-powernts2\\ece power design archives\\documents\\specification documents\\sd00004-001 modular inverter systemModular Inverter for Advanced Control Applications May 2006 In the fall of 2003, a team of graduate
Kimball, Jonathan W.
advanced reactor design: Topics by E-print Network
Broader source: All U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office Webpages (Extended Search)
20 21 22 23 24 25 Next Page Last Page Topic Index 1 Design and Transient Analysis of Passive Safety Cooling Systems for Advanced Nuclear Reactors University of California...
advanced reactor designs: Topics by E-print Network
Broader source: All U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office Webpages (Extended Search)
20 21 22 23 24 25 Next Page Last Page Topic Index 1 Design and Transient Analysis of Passive Safety Cooling Systems for Advanced Nuclear Reactors University of California...
Innovative fuel designs for high power density pressurized water reactor
One of the ways to lower the cost of nuclear energy is to increase the power density of the reactor core. Features of fuel design that enhance the potential for high power density are derived based on characteristics of ...
Feng, Dandong, Ph. D. Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Assessment of Materials Issues for Light-Water Small Modular Reactors
The primary objective of this report is to evaluate materials degradation issue unique to the operational environments of LWSMR. Concerns for specific primary system components and materials are identified based on the review of design information shared by mPower and NuScale. Direct comparisons are made to materials issues recognized for advanced large PWRs and research activities are recommended as needed. The issues identified are intended to improve the capability of industry to evaluate the significance of any degradation that might occur during long-term LWSMR operation and by extension affect the importance of future supporting R&D.
Sandusky, David; Lunceford, Wayne; Bruemmer, Stephen M.; Catalan, Michael A.
Energy Department Announces New Investment in U.S. Small Modular Reactor
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Energy Department Announces New Investment in U.S. Small Modular Reactor
Broader source: All U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office Webpages (Extended Search)
AFDC Printable Version Share this resource Send a link to EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page to someone by E-mail Share EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page on Facebook Tweet about EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page on Twitter Bookmark EERE:1 First Use of Energy for All Purposes (Fuel and Nonfuel),Feet) Year Jan Feb Mar Apr MayAtmospheric Optical Depth7-1D: Vegetation ProposedUsing Zirconia Nanoparticles asSecond stageNatural Gas Vehicle TechnologiesDesign and
Cogeneration of Electricity and Potable Water Using The International Reactor Innovative And Secure (IRIS) Design
The worldwide demand for potable water has been steadily growing and is projected to accelerate, driven by a continued population growth and industrialization of emerging countries. This growth is reflected in a recent market survey by the World Resources Institute, which shows a doubling in the installed capacity of seawater desalination plants every ten years. The production of desalinated water is energy intensive, requiring approximately 3-6 kWh/m3 of produced desalted water. At current U.S. water use rates, a dedicated 1000 MW power plant for every one million people would be required to meet our water needs with desalted water. Nuclear energy plants are attractive for large scale desalination application. The thermal energy produced in a nuclear plant can provide both electricity and desalted water without the production of greenhouse gases. A particularly attractive option for nuclear desalination is to couple a desalination plant with an advanced, modular, passively safe reactor design. The use of small-to-medium sized nuclear power plants allows for countries with smaller electrical grid needs and infrastructure to add new electrical and water capacity in more appropriate increments and allows countries to consider siting plants at a broader number of distributed locations. To meet these needs, a modified version of the International Reactor Innovative and Secure (IRIS) nuclear power plant design has been developed for the cogeneration of electricity and desalted water. The modular, passively safe features of IRIS make it especially well adapted for this application. Furthermore, several design features of the IRIS reactor will ensure a safe and reliable source of energy and water even for countries with limited nuclear power experience and infrastructure. The IRIS-D design utilizes low-quality steam extracted from the low-pressure turbine to boil seawater in a multi-effect distillation desalination plant. The desalination plant is based on the horizontal tube film evaporation design used successfully with the BN-350 nuclear plant in Aktau, Kazakhstan. Parametric studies have been performed to optimize the balance of plant design. Also, an economic analysis has been performed, which shows that IRIS-D should be able to provide electricity and clean water at highly competitive costs.
Ingersoll, D.T.; Binder, J.L.; Kostin, V.I.; Panov, Y.K.; Polunichev, V.; Ricotti, M.E.; Conti, D.; Alonso, G.
Safety and core design of large liquid-metal cooled fast breeder reactors
reactor core design 7 Assembly Design and Optimization codePhysics Optimization of Breed and Burn Fast Reactor Systems.OPTIMIZATION CODE (ADOPT) Table 7.4: SWR B&B Reference Reactor
Qvist, Staffan Alexander
Design, Fabrication, and Certification of Advanced Modular PV Power Systems Final Technical Progress Report
This report describes the overall accomplishments and benefits of Solar Electric Specialties Co. (SES) under this Photovoltaic Manufacturing Technology (PVMaT) subcontract. SES addressed design issues related to their modular autonomous PV power supply (MAPPS) and a mobile photogenset. MAPPS investigations included gel-cell batteries mounted horizontally; redesign of the SES power supply; modified battery enclosure for increased safety and reduced cost; programmable, interactive battery charge controllers; and UL and FM listings. The photogenset systems incorporate generators, battery storage, and PV panels for a mobile power supply. The unit includes automatic oil-change systems for the propane generators, collapsible array mounts for the PV enclosure, and internal stowage of the arrays. Standardizing the products resulted in product lines of MAPPS and Photogensets that can be produced more economically and with shorter lead times, while increasing product quality and reliability. Product assembly and quality control have also been improved and streamlined with the development of standardized assembly processes and QC testing procedures. SES offers the UL-listed MAPPS at about the same price as its previous non-standardized, unlisted products.
Lambarski, T.; Minyard, G. (Solar Electric Specialties Co., Willits, California)
An extended conventional fuel cycle for the B and W mPower{sup TM} small modular nuclear reactor
The B and W mPower{sup TM} reactor is a small pressurized water reactor (PWR) with an integral once-through steam generator and a thermal output of about 500 MW; it is intended to replace aging fossil power plants of similar output. The core is composed of 69 reduced-height PWR assemblies with the familiar 17 x 17 fuel rod array. The Babcock and Wilcox Company (B and W) is offering a core loading and cycle management plan for a four-year cycle based on its presumed attractiveness to potential customers. This option is a once-through fuel cycle in which the entire core is discharged and replaced after four years. In addition, a conventional fuel utilization strategy, employing a periodic partial reload and shuffle, was developed as an alternative to the four-year once-through fuel cycle. This study, which was performed using the Studsvik core design code suite, is a typical multi-cycle projection analysis of the type performed by most fuel management organizations such as fuel vendors and utilities. In the industry, the results of such projections are used by the financial arms of these organizations to assist in making long-term decisions. In the case of the B and W mPower reactor, this analysis demonstrates flexibility for customers who consider the once-through fuel cycle unacceptable from a fuel utilization standpoint. As expected, when compared to the once-through concept, reloads of the B and W mPower reactor will achieve higher batch average discharge exposure, will have adequate shut-down margin, and will have a relatively flat hot excess reactivity trend at the expense of slightly increased peaking. (authors)
Scarangella, M. J. [Babcock and Wilcox Company, 109 Ramsey Place, Lynchburg, VA 24502 (United States)
Design and fabrication of a modular multi-material 3D printer
This thesis presents 3DP-0, a modular, multi-material 3D printer. Currently, 3D printers available on the market are typically expensive and difficult to develop. In addition, the simultaneous use of multiple materials in ...
Lan, Justin (Justin T.)
Generation III reactors safety requirements and the design solutions
Nuclear energy's public acceptance, and hence its development, depends on its safety. As a reactor designer, we will first briefly remind the basic safety principles of nuclear reactors' design. We will then show how the industry, and in particular Areva with its EPR, made design evolution in the wake of the Three Miles Island accident in 1979. In particular, for this new generation of reactors, severe accidents are taken into account beyond the standard design basis accidents. Today, Areva's EPR meets all so-called 'generation III' safety requirements and was licensed by several nuclear safety authorities in the world. Many innovative solutions are integrated in the EPR, some of which will be introduced here.
Felten, P. [Areva NP (France)
Design study of the deep-sea reactor X
The deep-sea reactor X (DRX) is a small nuclear plant designed to provide undersea power sources. It has the full advantages of nuclear reactors and can provide large power capacity and does not require oxygen for power production. An application conceivable in the near future is that for a submersible. The Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute is conducting a design study of a 150-kW(electric) DRX plant for a deep-sea research vessel. It has a so-called integrated pressurized water reactor,'' having a steam generator inside the reactor vessel. A pressure shell includes a turbine and a generator as well as a reactor vessel, resulting in a very compact electricity producing plant. It should be easy to operate and have high passive safety characteristics; namely, a short startup time, good reactor response to power demand changes, and passive core flooding and decay heat removal in case of an accident. Transient analyses including those for load follow-up, reactor startup, and accidents have been conducted. The results show that the DRX has excellent inherent characteristics satisfying those requirements.
Iida, Hiromasa (Japan Atomic Energy Research Inst., Ibaraki (Japan)); Ishizaka, Yuichi (Mitsubishi Atomic Power Industries, Inc., Tokyo (Japan)); Kim, Y.C.; Yamaguchi, Chouichi (Japan Research Inst., Ltd., Tokyo (Japan))
Small Modular Reactors - SRSCRO
Broader source: All U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office Webpages (Extended Search)
AFDC Printable Version Share this resource Send a link to EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page to someone by E-mail Share EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page on Facebook Tweet about EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page on Twitter Bookmark EERE:1 First Use of Energy for All Purposes (Fuel and Nonfuel),Feet) Year Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul(Summary)morphinanInformation Desert Southwest RegionatSearchScheduled System Highlights Success StoriesSiteTransfersmr
Basis for NGNP Reactor Design Down-Selection
The purpose of this paper is to identify the extent of technology development, design and licensing maturity anticipated to be required to credibly identify differences that could make a technical choice practical between the prismatic and pebble bed reactor designs. This paper does not address a business decision based on the economics, business model and resulting business case since these will vary based on the reactor application. The selection of the type of reactor, the module ratings, the number of modules, the configuration of the balance of plant and other design selections will be made on the basis of optimizing the Business Case for the application. These are not decisions that can be made on a generic basis.
L.E. Demick
Basis for NGNP Reactor Design Down-Selection
The purpose of this paper is to identify the extent of technology development, design and licensing maturity anticipated to be required to credibly identify differences that could make a technical choice practical between the prismatic and pebble bed reactor designs. This paper does not address a business decision based on the economics, business model and resulting business case since these will vary based on the reactor application. The selection of the type of reactor, the module ratings, the number of modules, the configuration of the balance of plant and other design selections will be made on the basis of optimizing the Business Case for the application. These are not decisions that can be made on a generic basis.
L.E. Demick
Modular Integrated Energy Systems
Honeywell #12;Modular Integrated Energy Systems Task 5 Prototype Development Reference Design DocumentationModular Integrated Energy Systems Prepared for: Oak Ridge National Laboratory P.O. Box 2008 Building 3147 Oak Ridge, TN 37831 April 27, 2006 Prepared by: Honeywell Laboratories 3660 Technology Drive
Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Safety and core design of large liquid-metal cooled fast breeder reactors
fission gas plenum212 Conventional fast reactor core designGUPTA. �A Compact Gas-Cooled Fast Reactor with an Ultra-Longbreed and burn gas-cooled fast reactor�. Ph.D. Thesis. MIT,
Qvist, Staffan Alexander
Design of the Advanced Gas Reactor Fuel Experiments for Irradiation in the Advanced Test Reactor
The United States Department of Energy�s Advanced Gas Reactor (AGR) Fuel Development and Qualification Program will be irradiating eight particle fuel tests in the Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) located at the newly formed Idaho National Laboratory (INL) to support development of the next generation Very High Temperature Reactor (VHTR) in the United States. The ATR has a long history of irradiation testing in support of reactor development and the INL has been designated as the new United States Department of Energy�s lead laboratory for nuclear energy development. These AGR fuel experiments will be irradiated over the next ten years to demonstrate and qualify new particle fuel for use in high temperature gas reactors. The experiments will be irradiated in an inert sweep gas atmosphere with on-line temperature monitoring and control combined with on-line fission product monitoring of the sweep gas. The final design phase has just been completed on the first experiment (AGR-1) in this series and the support systems and fission product monitoring system that will monitor and control the experiment during irradiation. This paper discusses the development of the experimental hardware and support system designs and the status of the experiment.
S. Blaine Grover
Fast Reactor Subassembly Design Modifications for Increasing Electricity Generation Efficiency
Suggested for Track 7: Advances in Reactor Core Design and In-Core Management _____________________________________________________________________________________ Fast Reactor Subassembly Design Modifications for Increasing Electricity Generation Efficiency R. Wigeland and K. Hamman Idaho National Laboratory Given the ability of fast reactors to effectively transmute the transuranic elements as are present in spent nuclear fuel, fast reactors are being considered as one element of future nuclear power systems to enable continued use and growth of nuclear power by limiting high-level waste generation. However, a key issue for fast reactors is higher electricity cost relative to other forms of nuclear energy generation. The economics of the fast reactor are affected by the amount of electric power that can be produced from a reactor, i.e., the thermal efficiency for electricity generation. The present study is examining the potential for fast reactor subassembly design changes to improve the thermal efficiency by increasing the average coolant outlet temperature without increasing peak temperatures within the subassembly, i.e., to make better use of current technology. Sodium-cooled fast reactors operate at temperatures far below the coolant boiling point, so that the maximum coolant outlet temperature is limited by the acceptable peak temperatures for the reactor fuel and cladding. Fast reactor fuel subassemblies have historically been constructed using a large number of small diameter fuel pins contained within a tube of hexagonal cross-section, or hexcan. Due to this design, there is a larger coolant flow area next to the hexcan wall as compared to flow area in the interior of the subassembly. This results in a higher flow rate near the hexcan wall, overcooling the fuel pins next to the wall, and a non-uniform coolant temperature distribution. It has been recognized for many years that this difference in sodium coolant temperature was detrimental to achieving greater thermal efficiency, since it causes the fuel pins in the center of the subassembly to operate at higher temperatures than those near the hexcan walls, and it is the temperature limit(s) for those fuel pins that limits the average coolant outlet temperature. Fuel subassembly design changes are being investigated using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) to quantify the effect that the design changes have on reducing the intra-subassembly coolant flow and temperature distribution. Simulations have been performed for a 19-pin test subassembly geometry using typical fuel pin diameters and wire wrap spacers. The results have shown that it may be possible to increase the average coolant outlet temperature by 20 C or more without changing the peak temperatures within the subassembly. These design changes should also be effective for reactor designs using subassemblies with larger numbers of fuel pins. R. Wigeland, Idaho National Laboratory, P.O. Box 1625, Mail Stop 3860, Idaho Falls, ID, U.S.A., 83415-3860 email � firstname.lastname@example.com fax (U.S.) � 208-526-2930
R. Wigeland; K. Hamman
Reactor core design and modeling of the MIT research reactor for conversion to LEU
Feasibility design studies for conversion of the MIT Research Reactor (MITR) to LEU are described. Because the reactor fuel has a rhombic cross section, a special input processor was created in order to model the reactor in great detail with the REBUS-PC diffusion theory code, in 3D (triangular-z) geometry. Comparisons are made of fuel assembly power distributions and control blade worth vs. axial position, between REBUS-PC results and Monte Carlo predictions from the MCNP code. Results for the original HEU core at zero burnup are also compared with measurement. These two analysis methods showed remarkable agreement. Ongoing fuel cycle studies are summarized. A status report will be given as to results thus far that affect key design decisions. Future work plans and schedules to achieve completion of the conversion are presented. (author)
Newton, Thomas H. Jr. [Nuclear Reactor Laboratory, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 138 Albany St., Cambridge, MA 02139 (United States); Olson, Arne P.; Stillman, John A. [RERTR Program, Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, IL 60439 (United States)
Core design and reactor physics of a breed and burn gas-cooled fast reactor
In order to fulfill the goals set forth by the Generation IV International Forum, the current NERI funded research has focused on the design of a Gas-cooled Fast Reactor (GFR) operating in a Breed and Burnm (B&B) fuel cycle ...
Yarsky, Peter
Design of passive decay heat removal system for the lead cooled flexible conversion ratio fast reactor
The lead-cooled flexible conversion ratio fast reactor shows many benefits over other fast-reactor designs; however, the higher power rating and denser primary coolant present difficulties for the design of a passive decay ...
Whitman, Joshua (Joshua J.)
Thermal hydraulic design of a salt-cooled highly efficient environmentally friendly reactor
A 1 OOOMWth liquid-salt cooled thermal spectrum reactor was designed with a long fuel cycle, and high core exit temperature. These features are desirable in a reactor designed to provide process heat applications such as ...
Whitman, Joshua (Joshua J.)
Advanced Neutron Source reactor control and plant protection systems design
This paper describes the reactor control and plant protection systems' conceptual design of the Advanced Neutron Source (ANS). The Plant Instrumentation, Control, and Data Systems and the Reactor Instrumentation and Control System of the ANS are planned as an integrated digital system with a hierarchical, distributed control structure of qualified redundant subsystems and a hybrid digital/analog protection system to achieve the necessary fast response for critical parameters. Data networks transfer information between systems for control, display, and recording. Protection is accomplished by the rapid insertion of negative reactivity with control rods or other reactivity mechanisms to shut down the fission process and reduce heat generation in the fuel. The shutdown system is designed for high functional reliability by use of conservative design features and a high degree of redundance and independence to guard against single failures. Two independent reactivity control systems of different design principles are provided, and each system has multiple independent rods or subsystems to provide appropriate margin for malfunctions such as stuck rods or other single failures. Each system is capable of maintaining the reactor in a cold shutdown condition independently of the functioning of the other system. A highly reliable, redundant channel control system is used not only to achieve high availability of the reactor, but also to reduce challenges to the protection system by maintaining important plant parameters within appropriate limits. The control system has a number of contingency features to maintain acceptable, off-normal conditions in spite of limited control or plant component failures thereby further reducing protection system challenges.
Anderson, J.L.; Battle, R.E.; March-Leuba, J. (Oak Ridge National Lab., TN (United States)); Khayat, M.I. (Tennessee Univ., Knoxville, TN (United States))
Neutronic and thermal design considerations for heat-pipe reactors
SABRE (Space-Arena Baseline Reactor) is a 100-kW/sub e/, heat-pipe-cooled, beryllium-reflected, fast reactor that produces heat at a temperature of 1500/sup 0/K and radiatively transmits it to high-temperature thermoelectric (TE) conversion elements. The use of heat pipes for core heat removal eliminates single-point failure mechanisms in the reactor cooling system, and provides minimal temperature drop radiative coupling to the TE array, as well as automatic, self-actuating removal of reactor afterheat. The question of how the failure of a fuel module heat pipe will affect neighboring fuel modules in the core is discussed, as is fission density peaking that occurs at the core/reflector interface. Results of neutronic calculations of the control margin available are described. Another issue that is addressed is that of helium generation in the heat pipes from neutron reactions in the core with the heat pipe fluid. Finally, the growth potential of the SABRE design to much higher powers is examined.
Ranken, W.A.; Koenig, D.R.
Structural Design Challenges in Design Certification Applications for New Reactors
The licensing framework established by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission under Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) Part 52, �Licenses, Certifications, and Approvals for Nuclear Power Plants,� provides requirements for standard design certifications (DCs) and combined license (COL) applications. The intent of this process is the early reso- lution of safety issues at the DC application stage. Subsequent COL applications may incorporate a DC by reference. Thus, the COL review will not reconsider safety issues resolved during the DC process. However, a COL application that incorporates a DC by reference must demonstrate that relevant site-specific de- sign parameters are confined within the bounds postulated by the DC, and any departures from the DC need to be justified. This paper provides an overview of structural design chal- lenges encountered in recent DC applications under the 10 CFR Part 52 process, in which the authors have participated as part of the safety review effort.
Miranda, M.; Braverman, J.; Wei, X.; Hofmayer, C.; Xu, J.
A fusion reactor device is provided in which the magnetic fields for plasma confinement in a toroidal configuration is produced by a plurality of symmetrical modular coils arranged to form a symmetric modular torsatron referred to as a symmotron. Each of the identical modular coils is helically deformed and comprise one field period of the torsatron. Helical segments of each coil are connected by means of toroidally directed windbacks which may also provide part of the vertical field required for positioning the plasma. The stray fields of the windback segments may be compensated by toroidal coils. A variety of magnetic confinement flux surface configurations may be produced by proper modulation of the winding pitch of the helical segments of the coils, as in a conventional torsatron, winding the helix on a noncircular cross section and varying the poloidal and radial location of the windbacks and the compensating toroidal ring coils.
Rome, J.A.; Harris, J.H.
Effects of an Advanced Reactor�s Design, Use of Automation, and Mission on Human Operators
The roles, functions, and tasks of the human operator in existing light water nuclear power plants (NPPs) are based on sound nuclear and human factors engineering (HFE) principles, are well defined by the plant�s conduct of operations, and have been validated by years of operating experience. However, advanced NPPs whose engineering designs differ from existing light-water reactors (LWRs) will impose changes on the roles, functions, and tasks of the human operators. The plans to increase the use of automation, reduce staffing levels, and add to the mission of these advanced NPPs will also affect the operator�s roles, functions, and tasks. We assert that these factors, which do not appear to have received a lot of attention by the design engineers of advanced NPPs relative to the attention given to conceptual design of these reactors, can have significant risk implications for the operators and overall plant safety if not mitigated appropriately. This paper presents a high-level analysis of a specific advanced NPP and how its engineered design, its plan to use greater levels of automation, and its expanded mission have risk significant implications on operator performance and overall plant safety.
Jeffrey C. Joe; Johanna H. Oxstrand
Simulation-Based Design and Experimental Evaluation of a Spatially Controllable CVD Reactor
Simulation-Based Design and Experimental Evaluation of a Spatially Controllable CVD Reactor Jae CVD reactor system has been developed that can explicitly control the spatial profile of gas, opening the door to a new class of flexible and highly controllable CVD reactor designs. © 2005 American
Rubloff, Gary W.
OPTIMAL DESIGN OF A HIGH PRESSURE ORGANOMETALLIC CHEMICAL VAPOR DEPOSITION REACTOR K.J. BACHMANN of computer simulations as an optimal design tool which lessens the costs in time and effort in experimental vapor deposition (HPOMCVD) reactor for use in thin film crystal growth. The advantages of such a reactor
Design, optimization and evaluation of a free-fall biomass fast pyrolysis reactor and its products.
??The focus of this work is a radiatively heated, free-fall, fast pyrolysis reactor. The reactor was designed and constructed for the production of bio-oil from� (more)
Ellens, Cody James
Assessment of innovative fuel designs for high performance light water reactors
To increase the power density and maximum allowable fuel burnup in light water reactors, new fuel rod designs are investigated. Such fuel is desirable for improving the economic performance light water reactors loaded with ...
Carpenter, David Michael
NGNP Project Regulatory Gap Analysis for Modular HTGRs
The Next Generation Nuclear Plant (NGNP) Project Regulatory Gap Analysis (RGA) for High Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactors (HTGR) was conducted to evaluate existing regulatory requirements and guidance against the design characteristics specific to a generic modular HTGR. This final report presents results and identifies regulatory gaps concerning current Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) licensing requirements that apply to the modular HTGR design concept. This report contains appendices that highlight important HTGR licensing issues that were found during the RGA study. The information contained in this report will be used to further efforts in reconciling HTGR-related gaps in the NRC licensing structure, which has to date largely focused on light water reactor technology.
Wayne Moe
Fast reactor power plant design having heat pipe heat exchanger
The invention relates to a pool-type fission reactor power plant design having a reactor vessel containing a primary coolant (such as liquid sodium), and a steam expansion device powered by a pressurized water/steam coolant system. Heat pipe means are disposed between the primary and water coolants to complete the heat transfer therebetween. The heat pipes are vertically oriented, penetrating the reactor deck and being directly submerged in the primary coolant. A U-tube or line passes through each heat pipe, extended over most of the length of the heat pipe and having its walls spaced from but closely proximate to and generally facing the surrounding walls of the heat pipe. The water/steam coolant loop includes each U-tube and the steam expansion device. A heat transfer medium (such as mercury) fills each of the heat pipes. The thermal energy from the primary coolant is transferred to the water coolant by isothermal evaporation-condensation of the heat transfer medium between the heat pipe and U-tube walls, the heat transfer medium moving within the heat pipe primarily transversely between these walls.
Huebotter, P.R.; McLennan, G.A.
Fast reactor power plant design having heat pipe heat exchanger
The invention relates to a pool-type fission reactor power plant design having a reactor vessel containing a primary coolant (such as liquid sodium), and a steam expansion device powered by a pressurized water/steam coolant system. Heat pipe means are disposed between the primary and water coolants to complete the heat transfer therebetween. The heat pipes are vertically oriented, penetrating the reactor deck and being directly submerged in the primary coolant. A U-tube or line passes through each heat pipe, extended over most of the length of the heat pipe and having its walls spaced from but closely proximate to and generally facing the surrounding walls of the heat pipe. The water/steam coolant loop includes each U-tube and the steam expansion device. A heat transfer medium (such as mercury) fills each of the heat pipes. The thermal energy from the primary coolant is transferred to the water coolant by isothermal evaporation-condensation of the heat transfer medium between the heat pipe and U-tube walls, the heat transfer medium moving within the heat pipe primarily transversely between these walls.
Huebotter, Paul R. (Western Springs, IL); McLennan, George A. (Downers Grove, IL)
Preconceptual design and assessment of a Tokamak Hybrid Reactor
The preconceptual design of a commercial Tokamak Hybrid Reactor (THR) power plant has been performed. The tokamak fusion driver for this hybrid is operated in the ignition mode. The D-T fusion plasma, which produces 1140 MW of power, has a major radius of 5.4 m and a minor radius of 1.0 m with an elongation of 2.0. Double null poloidal divertors are assumed for impurity control. The confining toroidal field is maintained by D-shaped Nb/sub 3/Sn superconducting magnets with a maximum field of 12T at the coil. Three blankets with four associated fuel cycle alternatives have been combined with the ignited tokamak fusion driver. The engineering, material, and balance of plant design requirements for the THR are briefly described. Estimates of the capital, operating and maintenance, and fuel cycle costs have been made for the various driver/blanket combinations and an assessment of the market penetrability of hybrid systems is presented. An analysis has been made of the nonproliferation aspects of the hybrid and its associated fuel cycles relative to fission reactors. The current and required level of technology for both the fusion and fission components of the hybrid system has been reviewed. Licensing hybrid systems is also considered.
Teofilo, V.L.; Leonard, B.R. Jr.; Aase, D.T.
22.39 Integration of Reactor Design, Operations, and Safety, Fall 2005
This course integrates studies of reactor physics and engineering sciences into nuclear power plant design. Topics include materials issues in plant design and operations, aspects of thermal design, fuel depletion and ...
Todreas, Neil E.
Design Windows for a He Cooled Fusion Reactor* Dai-Kai Sze and Ahmed Hassanein
Design Windows for a He Cooled Fusion Reactor* Dai-Kai Sze and Ahmed Hassanein Argonne National Laboratory 9700 South Cass Avenue, Argonne, IL 60439 EQUATIONDERIVATION ABSTRACT A design window concept is developed for a He-cooled fusion reactor blanket and divertor design. This concept allows study
Harilal, S. S.
Controller design issues in the feedback control of radio frequency plasma processing reactors
Controller design issues in the feedback control of radio frequency plasma processing reactors feedback control of inductively coupled plasma processing reactors for polysilicon etching and be successfully used for feedback control of plasma processing reactors.4 There are many control strate- gies
Kushner, Mark
Robust controller design for temperature tracking problems in jacketed batch reactors
Robust controller design for temperature tracking problems in jacketed batch reactors Vishak for temperature tracking problems in batch reactors in the presence of parametric uncertainty. The controller has]. Control is achieved by manipulating the heat content from the jacket to the reactor. In the past
Palanki, Srinivas
Design of a Modular Multilevel Converter as an Active Front-End for a magnet supply application
The aim of this work is to describe the general design procedure of a Modular Multilevel Converter (MMC) applied as an Active Front-End (AFE) for a magnet supply for beam accelerators. The dimensioning criteria for the converter and the dc-link capacitance are presented and the grid transformer requirements are set. Considering the converter design, the arm inductance calculation is based on the specifications for the arm-current ripple and the DC-link fault tolerance, but, also, on the limitation of the second harmonic and the second-order LC resonance of the arm current. The module capacitance value is evaluated by focusing on the required switching dynamics and the capacitor-voltage ripple according to a newly proposed graphical method. The loading of each semiconductor in the half bridge is calculated via simulation, indicating the unsymmetrical current distribution. It is concluded that the current distribution for each semiconductor depends on the mode of operation of the converter. The different criter...
Panagiotis, Asimakopoulos; Massimo, Bongiorno
Improved Design of Nuclear Reactor Control System | U.S. DOE...
Office of Science (SC) Website
instrumentation: Improved Design of Nuclear Reactor Control System Developed at: Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Holifield Radioactive Ion Beam Facility (HRIBF) Developed...
Modular optical detector system
A modular optical detector system. The detector system is designed to detect the presence of molecules or molecular species by inducing fluorescence with exciting radiation and detecting the emitted fluorescence. Because the system is capable of accurately detecting and measuring picomolar concentrations it is ideally suited for use with microchemical analysis systems generally and capillary chromatographic systems in particular. By employing a modular design, the detector system provides both the ability to replace various elements of the detector system without requiring extensive realignment or recalibration of the components as well as minimal user interaction with the system. In addition, the modular concept provides for the use and addition of a wide variety of components, including optical elements (lenses and filters), light sources, and detection means, to fit particular needs.
Horn, Brent A. (Livermore, CA); Renzi, Ronald F. (Tracy, CA)
High Flux Isotope Reactor cold neutron source reference design concept
In February 1995, Oak Ridge National Laboratory`s (ORNL`s) deputy director formed a group to examine the need for upgrades to the High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) system in light of the cancellation of the Advanced neutron Source Project. One of the major findings of this study was that there was an immediate need for the installation of a cold neutron source facility in the HFIR complex. In May 1995, a team was formed to examine the feasibility of retrofitting a liquid hydrogen (LH{sub 2}) cold source facility into an existing HFIR beam tube. The results of this feasibility study indicated that the most practical location for such a cold source was the HB-4 beam tube. This location provides a potential flux environment higher than the Institut Laue-Langevin (ILL) vertical cold source and maximizes the space available for a future cold neutron guide hall expansion. It was determined that this cold neutron beam would be comparable, in cold neutron brightness, to the best facilities in the world, and a decision was made to complete a preconceptual design study with the intention of proceeding with an activity to install a working LH{sub 2} cold source in the HFIR HB-4 beam tube. During the development of the reference design the liquid hydrogen concept was changed to a supercritical hydrogen system for a number of reasons. This report documents the reference supercritical hydrogen design and its performance. The cold source project has been divided into four phases: (1) preconceptual, (2) conceptual design and testing, (3) detailed design and procurement, and (4) installation and operation. This report marks the conclusion of the conceptual design phase and establishes the baseline reference concept.
Selby, D.L.; Lucas, A.T.; Hyman, C.R. [and others
High flux isotope reactor cold source preconceptual design study report
In February 1995, the deputy director of Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) formed a group to examine the need for upgrades to the High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) system in light of the cancellation of the Advanced Neutron Source Project. One of the major findings of this study was that there was an immediate need for the installation of a cold neutron source facility in the HFIR complex. The anticipated cold source will consist of a cryogenic LH{sub 2} moderator plug, a cryogenic pump system, a refrigerator that uses helium gas as a refrigerant, a heat exchanger to interface the refrigerant with the hydrogen loop, liquid hydrogen transfer lines, a gas handling system that includes vacuum lines, and an instrumentation and control system to provide constant system status monitoring and to maintain system stability. The scope of this project includes the development, design, safety analysis, procurement/fabrication, testing, and installation of all of the components necessary to produce a working cold source within an existing HFIR beam tube. This project will also include those activities necessary to transport the cold neutron beam to the front face of the present HFIR beam room. The cold source project has been divided into four phases: (1) preconceptual, (2) conceptual design and research and development (R and D), (3) detailed design and procurement, and (4) installation and operation. This report marks the conclusion of the preconceptual phase and establishes the concept feasibility. The information presented includes the project scope, the preliminary design requirements, the preliminary cost and schedule, the preliminary performance data, and an outline of the various plans for completing the project.
Selby, D.L.; Bucholz, J.A.; Burnette, S.E. [and others
Boiling water neutronic reactor incorporating a process inherent safety design
A boiling-water reactor core is positioned within a prestressed concrete reactor vessel of a size which will hold a supply of coolant water sufficient to submerge and cool the reactor core by boiling for a period of at least one week after shutdown. Separate volumes of hot, clean (non-borated) water for cooling during normal operation and cool highly borated water for emergency cooling and reactor shutdown are separated by an insulated wall during normal reactor operation with contact between the two water volumes being maintained at interfaces near the top and bottom ends of the reactor vessel. Means are provided for balancing the pressure of the two volumes at the lower interface zone during normal operation to prevent entry of the cool borated water into the reactor core region, for detecting the onset of excessive power to coolant flow conditions in the reactor core and for detecting low water levels of reactor coolant. Cool borated water is permitted to flow into the reactor core when low reactor coolant levels or excessive power to coolant flow conditions are encountered.
Forsberg, Charles W. (Kingston, TN)
Boiling water neutronic reactor incorporating a process inherent safety design
A boiling-water reactor core is positioned within a prestressed concrete reactor vessel of a size which will hold a supply of coolant water sufficient to submerge and cool the reactor core by boiling for a period of at least one week after shutdown. Separate volumes of hot, clean (nonborated) water for cooling during normal operation and cool highly borated water for emergency cooling and reactor shutdown are separated by an insulated wall during normal reactor operation with contact between the two water volumes being maintained at interfaces near the top and bottom ends of the reactor vessel. Means are provided for balancing the pressure of the two water volumes at the lower interface zone during normal operation to prevent entry of the cool borated water into the reactor core region, for detecting the onset of excessive power to coolant flow conditions in the reactor core and for detecting low water levels of reactor coolant. Cool borated water is permitted to flow into the reactor core when low reactor coolant levels or excessive power to coolant flow conditions are encountered.
Forsberg, C.W.
Conceptual design of an annular-fueled superheat boiling water reactor
The conceptual design of an annular-fueled superheat boiling water reactor (ASBWR) is outlined. The proposed design, ASBWR, combines the boiler and superheater regions into one fuel assembly. This ensures good neutron ...
Ko, Yu-Chih, Ph. D. Massachusetts Institute of Technology
GCRA review and appraisal of HTGR reactor-core-design program. [HTGR-SC, -R, -NHSDR
The reactor-core-design program has as its principal objective and responsibility the design and resolution of major technical issues for the reactor core and core components on a schedule consistent with the plant licensing and construction program. The task covered in this review includes three major design areas: core physics, core thermal and hydraulic performance fuel element design, and in-core fuel performance evaluation.
Not Available
A brief history of design studies on innovative nuclear reactors
In a short period after the success of CP1, many types of nuclear reactors were proposed and investigated. However, soon only a small number of reactors were selected for practical use. Around 1970, only LWRs with small number of CANDUs were operated in the western world, and FBRs were under development. It was about the time when Apollo moon landing was accomplished. However, at the same time, the future of human being was widely considered pessimistic and Limits to Growth was published. In the end of 1970�s the TMI accident occurred and many nuclear reactor contracts were cancelled in USA and any more contracts had not been concluded until recent years. From the reflection of this accident, many Inherent Safe Reactors (ISRs) were proposed, though none of them were constructed. A common idea of ISRs is smallness of their size. Tokyo Institute of Technology (TokyoTech) held a symposium on small reactors, SR/TIT, in 1991, where many types of small ISRs were presented. Recently small reactors attract interest again. The most ideas employed in these reactors were the same discussed in SR/TIT. In 1980�s the radioactive wastes from fuel cycle became a severe problem around the world. In TokyoTech, this issue was discussed mainly from the viewpoint of nuclear transmutations. The neutron economy became inevitable for these innovative nuclear reactors especially small long-life reactors and transmutation reactors.
Sekimoto, Hiroshi, E-mail: email@example.com [Emeritus Professor, Tokyo Institute of Technology (Japan)
A Multi-Modular Neutronically Coupled Power Generation System
The High Temperature Integrated Multi-Modular Thermal Reactor is a small modular reactor that uses an enhanced conductivity BeO-UO2 fuel with supercritical CO2 coolant to drive turbo-machinery in a direct Brayton cycle. The core consists of several...
Patel, Vishal
Review of tokamak power reactor and blanket designs in the United States
The last major conceptual design study of a tokamak power reactor in the United States was STARFIRE which was carried out in 1979-1980. Since that time US studies have concentrated on engineering test reactors, demonstration reactors, parametric systems studies, scoping studies, and studies of selected critical issues such as pulsed vs. steady-state operation and blanket requirements. During this period, there have been many advancements in tokamak physics and reactor technology, and there has also been a recognition that it is desirable to improve the tokamak concept as a commercial power reactor candidate. During 1984-1985 several organizations participated in the Tokamak Power Systems Study (TPSS) with the objective of developing ideas for improving the tokamak as a power reactor. Also, the US completed a comprehensive Blanket Comparison and Selection Study which formed the basis for further studies on improved blankets for fusion reactors.
Baker, C.; Brooks, J.; Ehst, D.; Gohar, Y.; Smith, D.; Sze, D.
Equipment Design and Cost Estimation for Small Modular Biomass Systems, Synthesis Gas Cleanup, and Oxygen Separation Equipment; Task 2.3: Sulfur Primer
This deliverable is Subtask 2.3 of Task 2, Gas Cleanup Design and Cost Estimates, of NREL Award ACO-5-44027, ''Equipment Design and Cost Estimation for Small Modular Biomass Systems, Synthesis Gas Cleanup and Oxygen Separation Equipment''. Subtask 2.3 builds upon the sulfur removal information first presented in Subtask 2.1, Gas Cleanup Technologies for Biomass Gasification by adding additional information on the commercial applications, manufacturers, environmental footprint, and technical specifications for sulfur removal technologies. The data was obtained from Nexant's experience, input from GTI and other vendors, past and current facility data, and existing literature.
Nexant Inc.
Balance of Plant System Analysis and Component Design of Turbo-Machinery for High Temperature Gas Reactor Systems
The Modular Pebble Bed Reactor system (MPBR) requires a gas turbine cycle (Brayton cycle) as the power conversion system for it to achieve economic competitiveness as a Generation IV nuclear system. The availability of controllable helium turbomachinery and compact heat exchangers are thus the critical enabling technology for the gas turbine cycle. The development of an initial reference design for an indirect helium cycle has been accomplished with the overriding constraint that this design could be built with existing technology and complies with all current codes and standards. Using the initial reference design, limiting features were identified. Finally, an optimized reference design was developed by identifying key advances in the technology that could reasonably be expected to be achieved with limited R&D. This final reference design is an indirect, intercooled and recuperated cycle consisting of a three-shaft arrangement for the turbomachinery system. A critical part of the design process involved the interaction between individual component design and overall plant performance. The helium cycle overall efficiency is significantly influenced by performance of individual components. Changes in the design of one component, a turbine for example, often required changes in other components. To allow for the optimization of the overall design with these interdependencies, a detailed steady state and transient control model was developed. The use of the steady state and transient models as a part of an iterative design process represents a key contribution of this work. A dynamic model, MPBRSim, has been developed. The model integrates the reactor core and the power conversion system simultaneously. Physical parameters such as the heat exchangers; weights and practical performance maps such as the turbine characteristics and compressor characteristics are incorporated into the model. The individual component models as well as the fully integrated model of the power conversion system have been verified with an industry-standard general thermal-fluid code Flownet. With respect to the dynamic model, bypass valve control and inventory control have been used as the primary control methods for the power conversion system. By performing simulation using the dynamic model with the designed control scheme, the combination of bypass and inventory control was optimized to assure system stability within design temperature and pressure limits. Bypass control allows for rapid control system response while inventory control allows for ultimate steady state operation at part power very near the optimum operating point for the system. Load transients simulations show that the indirect, three-shaft arrangement gas turbine power conversion system is stable and controllable. For the indirect cycle the intermediate heat exchanger (IHX) is the interface between the reactor and the turbomachinery systems. As a part of the design effort the IHX was identified as the key component in the system. Two technologies, printed circuit and compact plate-fin, were investigated that have the promise of meeting the design requirements for the system. The reference design incorporates the possibility of using either technology although the compact plate-fin design was chosen for subsequent analysis. The thermal design and parametric analysis with an IHX and recuperator using the plate-fin configuration have been performed. As a three-shaft arrangement, the turbo-shaft sets consist of a pair of turbine/compressor sets (high pressure and low pressure turbines with same-shaft compressor) and a power turbine coupled with a synchronous generator. The turbines and compressors are all axial type and the shaft configuration is horizontal. The core outlet/inlet temperatures are 900/520 C, and the optimum pressure ratio in the power conversion cycle is 2.9. The design achieves a plant net efficiency of approximately 48%.
Ronald G. Ballinger Chunyun Wang Andrew Kadak Neil Todreas
Conceptual design of a new homogeneous reactor for medical radioisotope Mo-99/Tc-99m production
To partly solve the global and regional shortages of Mo-99 supply, a conceptual design of a nitrate-fuel-solution based homogeneous reactor dedicated for Mo-99/Tc-99m medical radioisotope production is proposed. The modified LEU Cintichem process for Mo-99 extraction which has been licensed and demonstrated commercially for decades by BATAN is taken into account as a key design consideration. The design characteristics and main parameters are identified and the advantageous aspects are shown by comparing with the BATAN's existing Mo-99 supply chain which uses a heterogeneous reactor (RSG GAS multipurpose reactor)
Liem, Peng Hong [Nippon Advanced Information Service (NAIS Co., Inc.) Scientific Computational Division, 416 Muramatsu, Tokaimura, Ibaraki (Japan); Tran, Hoai Nam [Chalmers University of Technology, Dept. of Applied Physics, Div. of Nuclear Engineering, SE-412 96 Gothenburg (Sweden); Sembiring, Tagor Malem [National Nuclear Energy Agency (BATAN), Center for Reactor Technology and Nuclear Safety, Kawasan Puspiptek, Serpong, Tangerang Selatan, Banten (Indonesia); Arbie, Bakri [PT MOTAB Technology, Kedoya Elok Plaza Blok DA 12, Jl. Panjang, Kebun Jeruk, Jakarta Barat (Indonesia)
Linear Parameter-Varying versus Linear Time-Invariant Control Design for a Pressurized Water Reactor
-dependent control to a nuclear pressurized water reactor is investigated and is compared to that of using an H1Linear Parameter-Varying versus Linear Time-Invariant Control Design for a Pressurized Water Reactor Pascale Bendotti y Electricit e de France Direction des Etudes et Recherches 6 Quai Watier, 78401
Bodenheimer, Bobby
HYLIFE-II inertial confinement fusion reactor design
The HYLIFE-2 inertial fusion power plant design study uses a liquid fall, in the form of jets to protect the first structural wall from neutron damage, x rays, and blast to provide a 30-y lifetime. HYLIFE-1 used liquid lithium. HYLIFE 2 avoids the fire hazard of lithium by using a molten salt composed of fluorine, lithium, and beryllium (Li{sub 2}BeF{sub 4}) called Flibe. Access for heavy-ion beams is provided. Calculations for assumed heavy-ion beam performance show a nominal gain of 70 at 5 MJ producing 350 MJ, about 5.2 times less yield than the 1.8 GJ from a driver energy of 4.5 MJ with gain of 400 for HYLIFE-1. The nominal 1 GWe of power can be maintained by increasing the repetition rate by a factor of about 5.2, from 1.5 to 8 Hz. A higher repetition rate requires faster re-establishment of the jets after a shot, which can be accomplished in part by decreasing the jet fall height and increasing the jet flow velocity. Multiple chambers may be required. In addition, although not considered for HYLIFE-1, there is undoubtedly liquid splash that must be forcibly cleared because gravity is too slow, especially at high repetition rates. Splash removal can be accomplished by either pulsed or oscillating jet flows. The cost of electricity is estimated to be 0.09 $/kW{center dot}h in constant 1988 dollars, about twice that of future coal and light water reactor nuclear power. The driver beam cost is about one-half the total cost. 15 refs., 9 figs., 3 tabs.
Moir, R.W.
Comments on: Small Modular Reactors
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Reactor Design and Decommissioning - An Overview of International Activities in Post Fukushima Era1 - 12396
Accidents at the Fukushima Dai-ichi reactors as a result of the devastating earthquake and tsunami of March 11, 2011 have not only dampened the nuclear renaissance but have also initiated a re-examination of the design and safety features for the existing and planned nuclear reactors. Even though failures of some of the key site features at Fukushima can be attributed to events that in the past would have been considered as beyond the design basis, the industry as well as the regulatory authorities are analyzing what features, especially passive features, should be designed into the new reactor designs to minimize the potential for catastrophic failures. It is also recognized that since the design of the Fukushima BWR reactors which were commissioned in 1971, many advanced safety features are now a part of the newer reactor designs. As the recovery efforts at the Fukushima site are still underway, decisions with respect to the dismantlement and decommissioning of the damaged reactors and structures have not yet been finalized. As it was with Three Mile Island, it could take several decades for dismantlement, decommissioning and clean up, and the project poses especially tough challenges. Near-term assessments have been issued by several organizations, including the IAEA, the USNRC and others. Results of such investigations will lead to additional improvements in system and site design measures including strengthening of the anti-tsunami defenses, more defense-in-depth features in reactor design, and better response planning and preparation involving reactor sites. The question also arises what would the effect be on the decommissioning scene worldwide, and what would the effect be on the new reactors when they are eventually retired and dismantled. This paper provides an overview of the US and international activities related to recovery and decommissioning including the decommissioning features in the reactor design process and examines these from a new perspective in the post Fukushima -accident era. Accidents at the Fukushima Daiichi reactors in the aftermath of the devastating earthquake and tsunami of March 11, 2011 have slowed down the nuclear renaissance world-wide and may have accelerated decommissioning either because some countries have decided to halt or reduce nuclear, or because the new safety requirements may reduce life-time extensions. Even in countries such as the UK and France that favor nuclear energy production existing nuclear sites are more likely to be chosen as sites for future NPPs. Even as the site recovery efforts continue at Fukushima and any decommissioning decisions are farther into the future, the accidents have focused attention on the reactor designs in general and specifically on the Fukushima type BWRs. The regulatory authorities in many countries have initiated a re-examination of the design of the systems, structures and components and considerations of the capability of the station to cope with beyond-design basis events. Enhancements to SSCs and site features for the existing reactors and the reactors that will be built will also impact the decommissioning phase activities. The newer reactor designs of today not only have enhanced safety features but also take into consideration the features that will facilitate future decommissioning. Lessons learned from past management and operation of reactors as well as the lessons from decommissioning are incorporated into the new designs. However, in the post-Fukushima era, the emphasis on beyond-design-basis capability may lead to significant changes in SSCs, which eventually will also have impact on the decommissioning phase. Additionally, where some countries decide to phase out the nuclear power, many reactors may enter the decommissioning phase in the coming decade. While the formal updating and expanding of existing guidance documents for accident cleanup and decommissioning would benefit by waiting until the Fukushima project has progressed sufficiently for that experience to be reliably interpreted, the development of structured on-li
Devgun, Jas S. [Nuclear Power Technologies, Sargent and Lundy LLC, Chicago, IL (United States); Laraia, Michele [private consultant, formerly from IAEA, Kolonitzgasse 10/2, 1030, Vienna (Austria); Pescatore, Claudio [OECD, Nuclear Energy Agency, Issy-les-Moulineaux, Paris (France); Dinner, Paul [International Atomic Energy Agency, Wagramerstrasse 5, A-1400 Vienna (Austria)
Aerosol engineering: design and stability of aerosol reactors
A theoretical study of the performance of aerosol reactors is presented. The goals of this study are (1) to identify the appropriate reactor types (batch, CSTR, and tubular) for production of aerosol with specific properties (for example, uniform size particles, high aerosol surface area, etc.) and (2) to investigate the effect of various process parameters on product aerosol characteristics and on the stability of operation of aerosol reactors. In all the reactors considered, the aerosol dynamics were detemined by chemical reaction, nucleation, and aerosol growth in the free molecule regime in the absence of coagulation at isothermal conditions. Formulation of the aerosol dynamics in terms of moments of the aerosol size distribution facilitated the numerical solution of the resulting systems of ordinary or partial differential equations. The stability characteristics of a continuous stirred tank aerosol reactor (CSTAR) were investigated since experimental data in the literature indicate that under certain conditions this reactor exhibits oscillatory behavior with respect to product aerosol concentration and size distribution.
Pratsinis, S.E.
Conceptual Design of Molten Salt Loop Experiment for MIT Research Reactor
Molten salt is a promising coolant candidate for Advanced High Temperature Reactor (AHTR) Gen-IV designs. The low neutron absorption, high thermal capacity, chemical inertness, and high boiling point at low pressure of ...
Bean, Malcolm K.
Power conversion system design for supercritical carbon dioxide cooled indirect cycle nuclear reactors
The supercritical carbon dioxide (S-CO?) cycle is a promising advanced power conversion cycle which couples nicely to many Generation IV nuclear reactors. This work investigates the power conversion system design and ...
Gibbs, Jonathan Paul
Design, construction and evaluation of a facility for the simulation of fast reactor blankets
A facility has been designed and constructed at the MIT Reactor for the experimental investigation of typical LMFBR breeding blankets. A large converter assembly, consisting of a 20-cm-thick layer of graphite followed by ...
Forbes, Ian Alexander
Conversion of methanol to light olefins on SAPO-34: kinetic modeling and reactor design
design of an MTO reactor, accounting for the strong exothermicity of the process. Multi-bed adiabatic and fluidized bed technologies show good potential for the industrial process for the conversion of methanol into olefins....
Al Wahabi, Saeed M. H.
The design and construction of a 10-amplifier analog computer with provisions for nuclear reactor simulation
THE DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION OF A 10-AMPLIFIER ANALOG COMPUTER WITH PROVISIONS FOR NUCLEAR REACTOR SIMULATION A Thesis by James Robert Cox Submitted to the Graduate School of the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas in partial... fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE August 1959 Major Subject: Ele ctr ical Engines r ing THE DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION OF A 10-AMPLIFIER ANALOG COMPUTER WITH PROVISIONS FOR NUCLEAR REACTOR SIMULATION A The s is by Jame...
Cox, James Robert
Inertial Fusion Energy reactor design studies: Prometheus-L, Prometheus-H. Volume 2, Final report
This report contains a review of design studies for Inertial Confinement reactor. This second of three volumes discussions is some detail the following: Objectives, requirements, and assumptions; rationale for design option selection; key technical issues and R&D requirements; and conceptual design selection and description.
Waganer, L.M.; Driemeyer, D.E.; Lee, V.D.
It is proposed that a fast-fission, heatpipe-cooled, lunar-surface power reactor system be divided into subcritical units that could be launched safely without the incorporation of additional spectral shift absorbers or other complex means of control. The reactor subunits are to be emplaced directly into the lunar regolith utilizing the regolith not just for shielding but as the reflector material to increase the neutron economy of the system. While a single subunit cannot achieve criticality by itself, coordinated placement of additional subunits will provide a critical reactor system for lunar surface power generation. A lunar regolith clustered-reactor system promotes reliability, safety, and ease of manufacture and testing at the cost of a slight increase in launch mass per rated power level and an overall reduction in neutron economy when compared to a single-reactor system. Additional subunits may be launched with future missions to increase the cluster size and power according to desired lunar base power demand and lifetime. The results address the potential uncertainties associated with the lunar regolith material and emplacement of the subunit systems. Physical distance between subunits within the clustered emplacement exhibits the most significant feedback regarding changes in overall system reactivity. Narrow, deep holes will be the most effective in reducing axial neutron leakage from the core. The variation in iron concentration in the lunar regolith can directly influence the overall system reactivity although its effects are less than the more dominant factors of subunit emplacement.
John Darrell Bess
Design and Testing of a Boron Carbide Capsule for Spectral Tailoring in Mixed-Spectrum Reactors
A boron carbide capsule has been designed and used for spectral-tailoring experiments at the TRIGA reactor at Washington State University. Irradiations were conducted in pulsed mode and in continuous operation for up to 4 hours. A cadmium cover was used to reduce thermal heating. The neutron spectrum calculated with MCNP was found to be in good agreement with reactor dosimetry measurements using the STAY'SL computer code. The neutron spectrum resembles that of a fast reactor. Design of a capsule using boron carbide enriched in {sup 10}B shows that it is possible to produce a neutron spectrum similar to {sup 235}U fission.
Greenwood, Lawrence R.; Wittman, Richard S.; Pierson, Bruce D.; Metz, Lori A.; Payne, Rosara F.; Finn, Erin C.; Friese, Judah I.
11/04/02 G. W. Rubloff AVS 2002 MS MoA5 1 Spatially Programmable Reactor Design
optimization is constrained by fixed reactor design manufacturing #12;11/04/02 G. W. Rubloff AVS 2002 MS Mo spatial conditions in programmable reactor Uniformity unacceptable Produce high uniformity with optimal11/04/02 G. W. Rubloff AVS 2002 MS MoA5 1 Spatially Programmable Reactor Design: Toward a New
Rubloff, Gary W.
Design of a nuclear reactor system for lunar base applications
disadvantages. U02 and Pu02 fuels both have extremely poor ther mal conductivities, about 4 W/m K at 500 C, which would normally limit the maximum linear power in the reactor core to unacceptably low levels. For tunately, the ver y high melting temperatur es... conversion, however, high reactor exit temperatures are both necessary and desirable. The efficiency of the power conversion cycle is directly related to the difference between the high and low temperatur es in the system. Since the heat rejection...
Griffith, Richard Odell
Development of a neutronics calculation method for designing commercial type Japanese sodium-cooled fast reactor
Under the R and D project to improve the modeling accuracy for the design of fast breeder reactors the authors are developing a neutronics calculation method for designing a large commercial type sodium- cooled fast reactor. The calculation method is established by taking into account the special features of the reactor such as the use of annular fuel pellet, inner duct tube in large fuel assemblies, large core. The Verification and Validation, and Uncertainty Qualification (V and V and UQ) of the calculation method is being performed by using measured data from the prototype FBR Monju. The results of this project will be used in the design and analysis of the commercial type demonstration FBR, known as the Japanese Sodium fast Reactor (JSFR). (authors)
Takeda, T.; Shimazu, Y.; Hibi, K.; Fujimura, K. [Research Inst. of Nuclear Engineering, Univ. of Fukui, 1cho-me 2gaiku 4, Kanawa-cho, Tsuruga-shi, Fukui 914-0055 (Japan)
Design optimization analysis of the new SPR III-M reactor
This report discusses the finite element method analysis which was used to refine the SPR III-M reactor fuel assembly mechanical design to withstand the stresses and strains of pulse-mode operation, which induces thermal shock loading in the fuel assembly components. The original reactor design was analyzed for its structural response to separate pulses at increasingly severe levels. Subsequent calculations at one consistent pulse level examined several design modifications, which will result in a significant reduction in stress in the final design.
Miller, J.D.
Design of a low enrichment, enhanced fast flux core for the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Research Reactor
Worldwide, there is limited test reactor capacity to perform the required irradiation experiments on advanced fast reactor materials and fuel designs. This is particularly true in the U.S., which no longer has an operating ...
Ellis, Tyler Shawn
Completing the Design of the Advanced Gas Reactor Fuel Development and Qualification Experiments for Irradiation in the Advanced Test Reactor
The United States Department of Energy�s Advanced Gas Reactor (AGR) Fuel Development and Qualification Program will be irradiating eight separate low enriched uranium (LEU) oxycarbide (UCO) tri-isotopic (TRISO) particle fuel (in compact form) experiments in the Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) located at the newly formed Idaho National Laboratory (INL). These irradiations and fuel development are being accomplished to support development of the next generation reactors in the United States. The ATR has a long history of irradiation testing in support of reactor development and the INL has been designated as the new United States Department of Energy�s lead laboratory for nuclear energy development. The ATR is one of the world�s premiere test reactors for performing long term, high flux, and/or large volume irradiation test programs. These AGR fuel experiments will be irradiated over the next ten years to demonstrate and qualify new particle fuel for use in high temperature gas reactors. The goals of the irradiation experiments are to provide irradiation performance data to support fuel process development, to qualify fuel for normal operating conditions, to support development and validation of fuel performance and fission product transport models and codes, and to provide irradiated fuel and materials for post irradiation examination (PIE) and safety testing. The experiments, which will each consist of six separate capsules, will be irradiated in an inert sweep gas atmosphere with individual on-line temperature monitoring and control for each capsule. The swept gas will also have on-line fission product monitoring to track performance of the fuel in each individual capsule during irradiation.
S. Blaine Grover
A Virtual Reality Framework to Optimize Design, Operation and Refueling of GEN-IV Reactors.
many GEN-IV candidate designs are currently under investigation. Technical issues related to material, safety and economics are being addressed at research laboratories, industry and in academia. After safety, economic feasibility is likely to be the most important crterion in the success of GEN-IV design(s). Lessons learned from the designers and operators of GEN-II (and GEN-III) reactors must play a vital role in achieving both safety and economic feasibility goals.
Rizwan-uddin; Nick Karancevic; Stefano Markidis; Joel Dixon; Cheng Luo; Jared Reynolds
XAUV : modular high maneuverability autonomous underwater vehicle
The design and construction of a modular test bed autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) is analyzed. Although a relatively common stacked-hull design is used, the state of the art is advanced through an aggressive power ...
Walker, Daniel G. (Daniel George)
Design of a 2400MW liquid-salt cooled flexible conversion ratio reactor
A 2400MWth liquid-salt cooled flexible conversion ratio reactor was designed, utilizing the ternary chloride salt NaCl-KCl-MgCI2 (30%-20%-50%) as coolant. The reference design uses a wire-wrapped, hex lattice core, and is ...
Petroski, Robert C
Energy Department Announces New Investment in U.S. Small Modular...
Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) Indexed Site
role to play in America's energy future," said Secretary Chu. "Restarting the nation's nuclear industry and advancing small modular reactor technologies will help create new...
Standard Practice for Design of Surveillance Programs for Light-Water Moderated Nuclear Power Reactor Vessels
1.1 This practice covers procedures for designing a surveillance program for monitoring the radiation-induced changes in the mechanical properties of ferritic materials in light-water moderated nuclear power reactor vessels. This practice includes the minimum requirements for the design of a surveillance program, selection of vessel material to be included, and the initial schedule for evaluation of materials. 1.2 This practice was developed for all light-water moderated nuclear power reactor vessels for which the predicted maximum fast neutron fluence (E > 1 MeV) at the end of license (EOL) exceeds 1 � 1021 neutrons/m2 (1 � 1017 n/cm2) at the inside surface of the reactor vessel. 1.3 This practice applies only to the planning and design of surveillance programs for reactor vessels designed and built after the effective date of this practice. Previous versions of Practice E185 apply to earlier reactor vessels. 1.4 This practice does not provide specific procedures for monitoring the radiation induced cha...
American Society for Testing and Materials. Philadelphia
Risk-informed design guidance for a Generation-IV gas-cooled fast reactor emergency core cooling system
Fundamental objectives of sustainability, economics, safety and reliability, and proliferation resistance, physical protection and stakeholder relations must be considered during the design of an advanced reactor. However, ...
Delaney, Michael J. (Michael James), 1979-
High Temperature Reactor (HTR) Deep Burn Core and Fuel Analysis: Design Selection for the Prismatic Block Reactor
The Deep Burn (DB) Project is a U.S. Department of Energy sponsored feasibility study of Transuranic Management using high burnup fuel in the high temperature helium cooled reactor (HTR). The DB Project consists of seven tasks: project management, core and fuel analysis, spent fuel management, fuel cycle integration, TRU fuel modeling, TRU fuel qualification, and HTR fuel recycle. In the Phase II of the Project, we conducted nuclear analysis of TRU destruction/utilization in the HTR prismatic block design (Task 2.1), deep burn fuel/TRISO microanalysis (Task 2.3), and synergy with fast reactors (Task 4.2). The Task 2.1 covers the core physics design, thermo-hydraulic CFD analysis, and the thermofluid and safety analysis (low pressure conduction cooling, LPCC) of the HTR prismatic block design. The Task 2.3 covers the analysis of the structural behavior of TRISO fuel containing TRU at very high burnup level, i.e. exceeding 50% of FIMA. The Task 4.2 includes the self-cleaning HTR based on recycle of HTR-generated TRU in the same HTR. Chapter IV contains the design and analysis results of the 600MWth DB-HTR core physics with the cycle length, the average discharged burnup, heavy metal and plutonium consumptions, radial and axial power distributions, temperature reactivity coefficients. Also, it contains the analysis results of the 450MWth DB-HTR core physics and the analysis of the decay heat of a TRU loaded DB-HTR core. The evaluation of the hot spot fuel temperature of the fuel block in the DB-HTR (Deep-Burn High Temperature Reactor) core under full operating power conditions are described in Chapter V. The investigated designs are the 600MWth and 460MWth DB-HTRs. In Chapter VI, the thermo-fluid and safety of the 600MWth DB-HTRs has been analyzed to investigate a thermal-fluid design performance at the steady state and a passive safety performance during an LPCC event. Chapter VII describes the analysis results of the TRISO fuel microanalysis of the 600MWth and 450MWth DB-HTRs. The TRISO fuel microanalysis covers the gas pressure buildup in a coated fuel particle including helium production, the thermo-mechanical behavior of a CFP, the failure probabilities of CFPs, the temperature distribution in a CPF, and the fission product (FP) transport in a CFP and a graphite. In Chapter VIII, it contains the core design and analysis of sodium cooled fast reactor (SFR) with deep burn HTR reactor. It considers a synergistic combination of the DB-MHR and an SFR burner for a safe and efficient transmutation of the TRUs from LWRs. Chapter IX describes the design and analysis results of the self-cleaning (or self-recycling) HTR core. The analysis is considered zero and 5-year cooling time of the spent LWR fuels.
Francesco Venneri; Chang-Keun Jo; Jae-Man Noh; Yonghee Kim; Claudio Filippone; Jonghwa Chang; Chris Hamilton; Young-Min Kim; Ji-Su Jun; Moon-Sung Cho; Hong-Sik Lim; MIchael A. Pope; Abderrafi M. Ougouag; Vincent Descotes; Brian Boer
Space nuclear-power reactor design based on combined neutronic and thermal-fluid analyses
The design and performance analysis of a space nuclear-power system requires sophisticated analytical capabilities such as those developed during the nuclear rocket propulsion (Rover) program. In particular, optimizing the size of a space nuclear reactor for a given power level requires satisfying the conflicting requirements of nuclear criticality and heat removal. The optimization involves the determination of the coolant void (volume) fraction for which the reactor diameter is a minimum and temperature and structural limits are satisfied. A minimum exists because the critical diameter increases with increasing void fraction, whereas the reactor diameter needed to remove a specified power decreases with void fraction. The purpose of this presentation is to describe and demonstrate our analytical capability for the determination of minimum reactor size. The analysis is based on combining neutronic criticality calculations with OPTION-code thermal-fluid calculations.
Koenig, D.R.; Gido, R.G.; Brandon, D.I.
Nuclear Systems Enhanced Performance Program, Maintenance Cycle Extension in Advanced Light Water Reactor Design
A renewed interest in new nuclear power generation in the US has spurred interest in developing advanced reactors with features which will address the public's concerns regarding nuclear generation. However, it is economic performance which will dictate whether any new orders for these plants will materialize. Economic performance is, to a great extent, improved by maximizing the time that the plant is on-line generating electricity relative to the time spent off-line conducting maintenance and refueling. Indeed, the strategy for the advanced light water reactor plant IRIS (International Reactor, Innovative and Secure) is to utilize an eight year operating cycle. This report describes a formalized strategy to address, during the design phase, the maintenance-related barriers to an extended operating cycle. The top-level objective of this investigation was to develop a methodology for injecting component and system maintainability issues into the reactor plant design process to overcome these barriers. A primary goal was to demonstrate the applicability and utility of the methodology in the context of the IRIS design. The first step in meeting the top-level objective was to determine the types of operating cycle length barriers that the IRIS design team is likely to face. Evaluation of previously identified regulatory and investment protection surveillance program barriers preventing a candidate operating PWR from achieving an extended (48 month) cycle was conducted in the context of the IRIS design. From this analysis, 54 known IRIS operating cycle length barriers were identified. The resolution methodology was applied to each of these barriers to generate design solution alternatives for consideration in the IRIS design. The methodology developed has been demonstrated to narrow the design space to feasible design solutions which enable a desired operating cycle length, yet is general enough to have broad applicability. Feedback from the IRIS design team indicates that the proposed solutions to the investigated operating cycle length barriers are both feasible and consistent with sound design practice.
Professor Neill Todreas
Modular Isotopic Thermoelectric Generator (MITG) Design and Development, Part A-E. Original was presented at 1983 Intersociety Energy Conversion Engineering Conference (IECEC)
Advanced RTG concepts utilizing improved thermoelectric materials and converter concepts are under study at Fairchild for DOE. The design described here is based on DOE's newly developed radioisotope heat source, and on an improved silicon-germanium material and a multicouple converter module under development at Syncal. Fairchild's assignment was to combine the above into an attractive power system for use in space, and to assess the specific power and other attributes of that design. The resultant design is highly modular, consisting of standard RTG slices, each producing 24 watts at the desired output voltage of 28 volt. Thus, the design could be adapted to various space missions over a wide range of power levels, with little or no redesign. Each RTG slice consists of a 250-watt heat source module, eight multicouple thermoelectric modules, and standard sections of insulator, housing, radiator fins, and electrical circuit. The design makes it possible to check each thermoelectric module for electrical performance, thermal contact, leaktightness, and performance stability, after the generator is fully assembled; and to replace any deficient modules without disassembling the generator or perturbing the others. The RTG end sections provide the spring-loaded supports required to hold the free-standing heat source stack together during launch vibration. Detailed analysis indicates that the present generation of RTGs, using the same heat source modules. There is a duplicate copy of this document. OSTI has a copy of this paper.
Schock, A.
Thermal Response of the Hybrid Loop-Pool Design for Sodium Cooled Faster Reactors
An innovative hybrid loop-pool design for the sodium cooled fast reactor (SFR) has been recently proposed with the primary objective of achieving cost reduction and safety enhancement. With the hybrid loop-pool design, closed primary loops are immersed in a secondary buffer tank. This design takes advantage of features from conventional both pool and loop designs to further improve economics and safety. This paper will briefly introduce the hybrid loop-pool design concept and present the calculated thermal responses for unproctected (without reactor scram) loss of forced circulation (ULOF) transients using RELAP5-3D. The analyses examine both the inherent reactivity shutdown capability and decay heat removal performance by passive safety systems.
Zhang, Hongbin; Zhao, Haihua; Davis, Cliff
Recommended practices in elevated temperature design: A compendium of breeder reactor experiences (1970-1986): An overview
Significant experiences have been accumulated in the establishment of design methods and criteria applicable to the design of Liquid Metal Fast Breeder Reactor (LMFBR) components. The Subcommittee of the Elevated Temperature Design under the Pressure Vessel Research Council (PVRC) has undertaken to collect, on an international basis, design experience gained, and the lessons learned, to provide guidelines for next generation advanced reactor designs. This paper shall present an overview and describe the highlights of the work.
Wei, B.C.; Cooper, W.L. Jr.; Dhalla, A.K.
A modular robot may comprise a main body having a structure defined by a plurality of stackable modules. The stackable modules may comprise a manifold, a valve module, and a control module. The manifold may comprise a top surface and a bottom surface having a plurality of fluid passages contained therein, at least one of the plurality of fluid passages terminating in a valve port located on the bottom surface of the manifold. The valve module is removably connected to the manifold and selectively fluidically connects the plurality of fluid passages contained in the manifold to a supply of pressurized fluid and to a vent. The control module is removably connected to the valve module and actuates the valve module to selectively control a flow of pressurized fluid through different ones of the plurality of fluid passages in the manifold. The manifold, valve module, and control module are mounted together in a sandwich-like manner and comprise a main body. A plurality of leg assemblies are removably connected to the main body and are removably fluidically connected to the fluid passages in the manifold so that each of the leg assemblies can be selectively actuated by the flow of pressurized fluid in different ones of the plurality of fluid passages in the manifold. 12 figs.
Ferrante, T.A.
Validation of FSP Reactor Design with Sensitivity Studies of Beryllium-Reflected Critical Assemblies
The baseline design for space nuclear power is a fission surface power (FSP) system: sodium-potassium (NaK) cooled, fast spectrum reactor with highly-enriched-uranium (HEU)-O2 fuel, stainless steel (SS) cladding, and beryllium reflectors with B4C control drums. Previous studies were performed to evaluate modeling capabilities and quantify uncertainties and biases associated with analysis methods and nuclear data. Comparison of Zero Power Plutonium Reactor (ZPPR)-20 benchmark experiments with the FSP design indicated that further reduction of the total design model uncertainty requires the reduction in uncertainties pertaining to beryllium and uranium cross-section data. Further comparison with three beryllium-reflected HEU-metal benchmark experiments performed at the Oak Ridge Critical Experiments Facility (ORCEF) concluded the requirement that experimental validation data have similar cross section sensitivities to those found in the FSP design. A series of critical experiments was performed at ORCEF in the 1960s to support the Medium Power Reactor Experiment (MPRE) space reactor design. The small, compact critical assembly (SCCA) experiments were graphite- or beryllium-reflected assemblies of SS-clad, HEU-O2 fuel on a vertical lift machine. All five configurations were evaluated as benchmarks. Two of the five configurations were beryllium reflected, and further evaluated using the sensitivity and uncertainty analysis capabilities of SCALE 6.1. Validation of the example FSP design model was successful in reducing the primary uncertainty constituent, the Be(n,n) reaction, from 0.28 %dk/k to 0.0004 %dk/k. Further assessment of additional reactor physics measurements performed on the SCCA experiments may serve to further validate FSP design and operation.
John D. Bess; Margaret A. Marshall
Design and Status of RERTR Irradiation Tests in the Advanced Test Reactor
Irradiation testing of U-Mo based fuels is the central component of the Reduced Enrichment for Research and Test Reactors (RERTR) program fuel qualification plan. Several RERTR tests have recently been completed or are planned for irradiation in the Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) located at the Idaho National Laboratory in Idaho Falls, ID. Four mini-plate experiments in various stages of completion are described in detail, including the irradiation test design, objectives, and irradiation conditions. Observations made during and after the in-reactor RERTR-7A experiment breach are summarized. The irradiation experiment design and planned irradiation conditions for full-size plate test are described. Progress toward element testing will be reviewed.
Daniel M. Wachs; Richard G. Ambrosek; Gray Chang; Mitchell K. Meyer
Exploratory Design of a Reactor/Fuel Cycle Using Spent Nuclear Fuel Without Conventional Reprocessing - 13579
General Atomics has started design of a waste to energy nuclear reactor (EM2) that can use light water reactor (LWR) spent nuclear fuel (SNF). This effort addresses two problems: using an advanced small reactor with long core life to reduce nuclear energy overnight cost and providing a disposal path for LWR SNF. LWR SNF is re-fabricated into new EM2 fuel using a dry voloxidation process modeled on AIROX/ OREOX processes which remove some of the fission products but no heavy metals. By not removing all of the fission products the fuel remains self-protecting. By not separating heavy metals, the process remains proliferation resistant. Implementation of Energy Multiplier Module (EM2) fuel cycle will provide low cost nuclear energy while providing a long term LWR SNF disposition path which is important for LWR waste confidence. With LWR waste confidence recent impacts on reactor licensing, an alternate disposition path is highly relevant. Centered on a reactor operating at 250 MWe, the compact electricity generating system design maximizes site flexibility with truck transport of all system components and available dry cooling features that removes the need to be located near a body of water. A high temperature system using helium coolant, electricity is efficiently produced using an asynchronous high-speed gas turbine while the LWR SNF is converted to fission products. Reactor design features such as vented fuel and silicon carbide cladding support reactor operation for decades between refueling, with improved fuel utilization. Beyond the reactor, the fuel cycle is designed so that subsequent generations of EM2 reactor fuel will use the previous EM2 discharge, providing its own waste confidence plus eliminating the need for enrichment after the first generation. Additional LWR SNF is added at each re-fabrication to replace the removed fission products. The fuel cycle uses a dry voloxidation process for both the initial LWR SNF re-fabrication and later for EM2 discharge reuse. The EM2 waste disposal profile is effectively only fission products, which reduces the mass (about 3% vs LWR), average half life, heat and long term radio-toxicity of the disposal. Widespread implementation of EM2 fuel cycle is highly significant as it would increase world energy reserves; the remaining energy in U.S. LWR SNF alone exceeds that in the U.S. natural gas reserves. Unlike many LWR SNF disposition concepts, the EM2 fuel cycle conversion of SNF produces energy and associated revenue such that the overall project is cost effective. By providing conversion of SNF to fission products the fuel cycle is closed and a non-repository LWR SNF disposition path is created and overall repository requirements are significantly reduced. (authors)
Bertch, Timothy C.; Schleicher, Robert W.; Rawls, John D. [General Atomics 3550 General Atomics Court San Diego, CA 92130 (United States)] [General Atomics 3550 General Atomics Court San Diego, CA 92130 (United States)
Conceptual design of a pressure tube light water reactor with variable moderator control
This paper presents the development of innovative pressure tube light water reactor with variable moderator control. The core layout is derived from a CANDU line of reactors in general, and advanced ACR-1000 design in particular. It should be stressed however, that while some of the ACR-1000 mechanical design features are adopted, the core design basics of the reactor proposed here are completely different. First, the inter fuel channels spacing, surrounded by the calandria tank, contains a low pressure gas instead of heavy water moderator. Second, the fuel channel design features an additional/external tube (designated as moderator tube) connected to a separate moderator management system. The moderator management system is design to vary the moderator tube content from 'dry' (gas) to 'flooded' (light water filled). The dynamic variation of the moderator is a unique and very important feature of the proposed design. The moderator variation allows an implementation of the 'breed and burn' mode of operation. The 'breed and burn' mode of operation is implemented by keeping the moderator tube empty ('dry' filled with gas) during the breed part of the fuel depletion and subsequently introducing the moderator by 'flooding' the moderator tube for the 'burn' part. This paper assesses the conceptual feasibility of the proposed concept from a neutronics point of view. (authors)
Rachamin, R.; Fridman, E. [Reactor Safety Div., Inst. of Resource Ecology, Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf, POB 51 01 19, 01314 Dresden (Germany); Galperin, A. [Dept. of Nuclear Engineering, Ben-Gurion Univ. of the Negev, POB 653, Beer Sheva 84105 (Israel)
Spring design for use in the core of a nuclear reactor
A spring design particularly suitable for use in the core of a nuclear reactor includes one surface having a first material oriented in a longitudinal direction, and another surface having a second material oriented in a transverse direction. The respective surfaces exhibit different amounts of irraditation induced strain.
Willard, Jr., H. James (Bethel Park, PA)
have validated their correctness and function safety. This paper proposes a behaviorA BEHAVIOR-PRESERVING TRANSLATION FROM FBD DESIGN TO C IMPLEMENTATION FOR REACTOR PROTECTION SYSTEM for Publication February 12, 2013 1. INTRODUCTION Safety [1] is an important property for nuclear power plants
Plasma engineering design of a compact reversed-field pinch reactor (CRFPR)
The rationale for and the characteristics of the high-power-density Compact Reversed-Field Pinch Reactor (CRFPR) are discussed. Particular emphasis is given to key plasma engineering aspects of the conceptual design, including plasma operations, current drive, and impurity/ash control by means of pumped limiters or magnetic divertors. A brief description of the Fusion-Power-Core integration is given.
Bathke, C.G.; Embrechts, M.J.; Hagenson, R.L.; Krakowski, R.A.; Miller, R.L.
Design modification for the modular helium reactor for higher temperature operation and reliability studies for nuclear hydrogen production processes
of these modifications together, the PVT is reduced to ~350 0C while keeping the outlet temperature at 950 0C and maintaining the PFT within acceptable limits. The vessel and fuel temperatures during low pressure conduction cooldown and high pressure conduction cooldown...
Reza, S.M. Mohsin
Options Study Documenting the Fast Reactor Fuels Innovative Design Activity
This document provides presentation and general analysis of innovative design concepts submitted to the FCRD Advanced Fuels Campaign by nine national laboratory teams as part of the Innovative Transmutation Fuels Concepts Call for Proposals issued on October 15, 2009 (Appendix A). Twenty one whitepapers were received and evaluated by an independent technical review committee.
Jon Carmack; Kemal Pasamehmetoglu
11/04/02 G. W. Rubloff AVS 2002 MS MoA5 1 Spatially Programmable Reactor Design
) reactor design · Process change impacts (often degrades) uniformity · Process optimization is constrained11/04/02 G. W. Rubloff AVS 2002 MS MoA5 1 Spatially Programmable Reactor Design: Toward a New recipe logic and timingProcess optimization requiresProcess optimization requires tradeoffs between
Rubloff, Gary W.
Design of irradiation rig for reactor testing of prototype bolometers for ITER
We describe the design of an experimental rig, which was developed to allow reactor testing at relevant conditions, i.e. vacuum and {approx}400 deg.C temperature, of prototype resistive bolometers, which will be used in ITER to acquire information on the radiated power distribution from the main plasma and in the diverter region. The main feature of the design is that the rig has no active temperature control. (authors)
Gusarov, A.; Huysmans, S. [SCK.CEN Belgian Nucrear Research Center, 2400 Mol (Belgium); Meister, H. [Max-Planck-Institut fuer Plasmaphysik, Boltzmannstr. 2, D-85748 Garching b. Muenchen (Germany); Hodgson, E. [Euratom/CIEMAT Fusion Association, Avenida Complutense 22, 28040 Madrid (Spain)
A helium-cooled blanket design of the low aspect ratio reactor
An aggressive low aspect ratio scoping fusion reactor design indicated that a 2 GW(e) reactor can have a major radius as small as 2.9 m resulting in a device with competitive cost of electricity at 49 mill/kWh. One of the technology requirements of this design is a high performance high power density first wall and blanket system. A 15 MPa helium-cooled, V-alloy and stagnant LiPb breeder first wall and blanket design was utilized. Due to the low solubility of tritium in LiPb, there is the concern of tritium migration and the formation of V-hydride. To address these issues, a lithium breeder system with high solubility of tritium has been evaluated. Due to the reduction of blanket energy multiplication to 1.2, to maintain a plant Q of > 4, the major radius of the reactor has to be increased to 3.05 m. The inlet helium coolant temperature is raised to 436 C in order to meet the minimum V-alloy temperature limit everywhere in the first wall and blanket system. To enhance the first wall heat transfer, a swirl tape coolant channel design is used. The corresponding increase in friction factor is also taken into consideration. To reduce the coolant system pressure drop, the helium pressure is increased from 15 to 18 MPa. Thermal structural analysis is performed for a simple tube design. With an inside tube diameter of 1 cm and a wall thickness of 1.5 mm, the lithium breeder can remove an average heat flux and neutron wall loading of 2 and 8 MW/m(2), respectively. This reference design can meet all the temperature and material structural design limits, as well as the coolant velocity limits. Maintaining an outlet coolant temperature of 650 C, one can expect a gross closed cycle gas turbine thermal efficiency of 45%. This study further supports the use of helium coolant for high power density reactor design. When used with the low aspect ratio reactor concept a competitive fusion reactor can be projected at 51.9 mill/kWh.
Wong, C.P.; Baxi, C.B.; Reis, E.E. [General Atomics, San Diego, CA (United States); Cerbone, R.; Cheng, E.T. [TSI Research, Solana Beach, CA (United States)
Innovative safety features of the modular HTGR
The Modular High Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor (MHTGR) is an advanced reactor concept under development through a cooperative program involving the US Government, the nuclear industry, and the utilities. Near-term development is focused on electricity generation. The top-level safety requirement is that the plant's operation not disturb the normal day-to-day activities of the public. Quantitatively, this requires that the design meet the US Environmental Protection Agency's Protective Action Guides at the site boundary and hence preclude the need for sheltering or evacuation of the public. To meet these stringent safety requirements and at the same time provide a cost competitive design requires the innovative use of the basic high temperature gas-cooled reactor features of ceramic fuel, helium coolant, and a graphite moderator. The specific fuel composition and core size and configuration have been selected to the use the natural characteristics of these materials to develop significantly higher margins of safety. In this document the innovative safety features of the MHTGR are reviewed by examining the safety response to events challenging the functions relied on to retain radionuclides within the coated fuel particles. A broad range of challenges to core heat removal are examined, including a loss of helium pressure of a simultaneous loss of forced cooling of the core. The challenges to control of heat generation consider not only the failure to insert the reactivity control systems but also the withdrawal of control rods. Finally, challenges to control of chemical attack of the ceramic-coated fuel are considered, including catastrophic failure of the steam generator, which allows water ingress, or failure of the pressure vessels, which allows air ingress. The plant's response to these extreme challenges is not dependent on operator action, and the events considered encompass conceivable operator errors.
Silady, F.A.; Simon, W.A.
Innovative safety features of the modular HTGR
The Modular High Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor (MHTGR) is an advanced reactor concept under development through a cooperative program involving the US Government, the nuclear industry, and the utilities. Near-term development is focused on electricity generation. The top-level safety requirement is that the plant`s operation not disturb the normal day-to-day activities of the public. Quantitatively, this requires that the design meet the US Environmental Protection Agency`s Protective Action Guides at the site boundary and hence preclude the need for sheltering or evacuation of the public. To meet these stringent safety requirements and at the same time provide a cost competitive design requires the innovative use of the basic high temperature gas-cooled reactor features of ceramic fuel, helium coolant, and a graphite moderator. The specific fuel composition and core size and configuration have been selected to the use the natural characteristics of these materials to develop significantly higher margins of safety. In this document the innovative safety features of the MHTGR are reviewed by examining the safety response to events challenging the functions relied on to retain radionuclides within the coated fuel particles. A broad range of challenges to core heat removal are examined, including a loss of helium pressure of a simultaneous loss of forced cooling of the core. The challenges to control of heat generation consider not only the failure to insert the reactivity control systems but also the withdrawal of control rods. Finally, challenges to control of chemical attack of the ceramic-coated fuel are considered, including catastrophic failure of the steam generator, which allows water ingress, or failure of the pressure vessels, which allows air ingress. The plant`s response to these extreme challenges is not dependent on operator action, and the events considered encompass conceivable operator errors.
Silady, F.A.; Simon, W.A.
Role of Nuclear Grade Graphite in Oxidation in Modular HTGRs
The passively safe High Temperature Gas-cooled Reactor (HTGR) design is one of the primary concepts considered for Generation IV and Small Modular Reactor (SMR) programs. The helium cooled, nuclear grade graphite moderated core achieves extremely high operating temperatures allowing either industrial process heat or electricity generation at high efficiencies. In addition to their neutron moderating properties, nuclear grade graphite core components provide excellent high temperature stability, thermal conductivity, and chemical compatibility with the high temperature nuclear fuel form. Graphite has been continuously used in nuclear reactors since the 1940�s and has performed remarkably well over a wide range of core environments and operating conditions. Graphite moderated, gas-cooled reactor designs have been safely used for research and power production purposes in multiple countries since the inception of nuclear energy development. However, graphite is a carbonaceous material, and this has generated a persistent concern that the graphite components could actually burn during either normal or accident conditions [ , ]. The common assumption is that graphite, since it is ostensibly similar to charcoal and coal, will burn in a similar manner. While charcoal and coal may have the appearance of graphite, the internal microstructure and impurities within these carbonaceous materials are very different. Volatile species and trapped moisture provide a source of oxygen within coal and charcoal allowing them to burn. The fabrication process used to produce nuclear grade graphite eliminates these oxidation enhancing impurities, creating a dense, highly ordered form of carbon possessing high thermal diffusivity and strongly (covalently) bonded atoms.
Willaim Windes; G. Strydom; J. Kane; R. Smith
Overview of Fusion-Fission Hybrid Reactor Design Study in China
The motivation for developing fusion-fission hybrid reactors is discussed in the context of electricity power requirements by 2050 in China. A detailed conceptual design of the Fusion Experimental Breeder (FEB) was developed from 1986-1995. The FEB has a subignited tokamak fusion core with a major radius of 4.0 m, a fusion power of 145 MW, and a fusion energy gain Q of 3. Based on this, an engineering outline design study of the FEB, FEB-E, has been performed. This design study is a transition from conceptual to engineering design in this research. The main results beyond that given in the detailed conceptual design are included in this paper, namely, the design studies of the blanket, divertor, test blanket, and tritium and environment issues. In-depth analyses have been performed to support the design. Studies of related advanced concepts such as the waste transmutation blanket concept and the spherical tokamak core concept are also presented.
Huang Jinhua [Southwestern Institute of Physics (China); Feng Kaiming [Southwestern Institute of Physics (China); Deng Baiquan [Southwestern Institute of Physics (China); Deng, P.Zh. [Southwestern Institute of Physics (China); Zhang Guoshu [Southwestern Institute of Physics (China); Hu Gang [Southwestern Institute of Physics (China); He Kaihui [Southwestern Institute of Physics (China); Wu Yican [Institute of Plasma Physics (China); Qiu Lijian [Institute of Plasma Physics (China); Huang Qunying [Institute of Plasma Physics (China); Xiao Bingjia [Institute of Plasma Physics (China); Liu Xiaoping [Institute of Plasma Physics (China); Chen Yixue [Institute of Plasma Physics (China); Kong, M.H. [Institute of Plasma Physics (China)
A graphical operations interface for modular surface systems
This paper presents the design and implementation of algorithms for a new graphical operations interface system specifically adapted to operating modular reconfigurable articulated surface systems. Geometric models of ...
Vona, Marsette A.
Seismic Analysis Issues in Design Certification Applications for New Reactors
The licensing framework established by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission under Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) Part 52, �Licenses, Certifications, and Approvals for Nuclear Power Plants,� provides requirements for standard design certifications (DCs) and combined license (COL) applications. The intent of this process is the early reso- lution of safety issues at the DC application stage. Subsequent COL applications may incorporate a DC by reference. Thus, the COL review will not reconsider safety issues resolved during the DC process. However, a COL application that incorporates a DC by reference must demonstrate that relevant site-specific de- sign parameters are within the bounds postulated by the DC, and any departures from the DC need to be justified. This paper provides an overview of several seismic analysis issues encountered during a review of recent DC applications under the 10 CFR Part 52 process, in which the authors have participated as part of the safety review effort.
Miranda, M.; Morante, R.; Xu, J.
SCW Pressure-Channel Nuclear Reactors: Some Design Features and Concepts
Concepts of nuclear reactors cooled with water at supercritical pressures were studied as early as the 1950's and 1960's in the USA and Russia. After a 30-year break, the idea of developing nuclear reactors cooled with supercritical water (SCW) became attractive again as the ultimate development path for water-cooling. The main objectives of using SCW in nuclear reactors are 1) to increase the thermal efficiency of modern nuclear power plants (NPPs) from 33 -- 35% to about 40 -- 45%, and 2) to decrease capital and operational costs and hence decrease electrical energy costs ({approx}$ 1000 US/kW). SCW NPPs will have much higher operating parameters compared to modern NPPs (pressure about 25 MPa and outlet temperature up to 625 deg. C), and a simplified flow circuit, in which steam generators, steam dryers, steam separators, etc., can be eliminated. Also, higher SCW temperatures allow direct thermo-chemical production of hydrogen at low cost, due to increased reaction rates. Pressure-channel SCW nuclear reactor concepts are being developed in Canada and Russia. Design features related to both channels and fuel bundles are discussed in this paper. Also, Russian experience with operating supercritical steam heaters at NPP is presented. The main conclusion is that development of SCW pressure-channel nuclear reactors is feasible and significant benefits can be expected over other thermal energy systems. (authors)
Duffey, R.B.; Pioro, I.L. [Atomic Energy of Canada, Ltd. (Canada); Gabaraev, B.A.; Kuznetsov, Yu. N. [Research and Development Institute of Power Engineering, ul.M. Krasnoselskaya, 2/8 Moscow, Moscow 107140 (Russian Federation)
Key requirements that affect the design of the high temperature gas-cooled reactor nuclear heat supply system (HTGR-NHSS) as the NGNP Project progresses through the design, licensing, construction and testing of the first of a kind HTGR based plant are summarized. These requirements derive from pre-conceptual design development completed to-date by HTGR Suppliers, collaboration with potential end users of the HTGR technology to identify energy needs, evaluation of integration of the HTGR technology with industrial processes and recommendations of the NGNP Project Senior Advisory Group.
L.E. Demick
ORIGEN-ARP Cross-Section Libraries for Magnox, Advanced Gas-Cooled, and VVER Reactor Designs
Cross-section libraries for the ORIGEN-ARP system were extended to include four non-U.S. reactor types: the Magnox reactor, the Advanced Gas-Cooled Reactor, the VVER-440, and the VVER-1000. Typical design and operational parameters for these four reactor types were determined by an examination of a variety of published information sources. Burnup simulation models of the reactors were then developed using the SAS2H sequence from the Oak Ridge National Laboratory SCALE code system. In turn, these models were used to prepare the burnup-dependent cross-section libraries suitable for use with ORIGEN-ARP. The reactor designs together with the development of the SAS2H models are described, and a small number of validation results using spent-fuel assay data are reported.
Murphy, BD
Advanced tokamak reactors based on the spherical torus (ATR/ST). Preliminary design considerations
Preliminary design results relating to an advanced magnetic fusion reactor concept based on the high-beta, low-aspect-ratio, spherical-torus tokamak are summarized. The concept includes resistive (demountable) toroidal-field coils, magnetic-divertor impurity control, oscillating-field current drive, and a flowing liquid-metal breeding blanket. Results of parametric tradeoff studies, plasma engineering modeling, fusion-power-core mechanical design, neutronics analyses, and blanket thermalhydraulics studies are described. The approach, models, and interim results described here provide a basis for a more detailed design. Key issues quantified for the spherical-torus reactor center on the need for an efficient drive for this high-current (approx.40 MA) device as well as the economic desirability to increase the net electrical power from the nominal 500-MWe(net) value adopted for the baseline system. Although a direct extension of present tokamak scaling, the stablity and transport of this high-beta (approx.0.3) plasma is a key unknown that is resoluble only by experiment. The spherical torus generally provides a route to improved tokamak reactors as measured by considerably simplified coil technology in a configuration that allows a realistic magnetic divertor design, both leading to increased mass power density and reduced cost.
Miller, R.L.; Krakowski, R.A.; Bathke, C.G.; Copenhaver, C.; Schnurr, N.M.; Engelhardt, A.G.; Seed, T.J.; Zubrin, R.M.
Evaluation of a Business Case for Safeguards by Design in Nuclear Power Reactors
Safeguards by Design (SbD) is a well-known paradigm for consideration and incorporation of safeguards approaches and associated design features early in the nuclear facility development process. This paradigm has been developed as part of the Next Generation Safeguards Initiative (NGSI), and has been accepted as beneficial in many discussions and papers on NGSI or specific technologies under development within NGSI. The Office of Nuclear Safeguards and Security funded the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory to examine the business case justification of SbD for nuclear power reactors. Ultimately, the implementation of SbD will rely on the designers of nuclear facilities. Therefore, it is important to assess the incentives which will lead designers to adopt SbD as a standard practice for nuclear facility design. This report details the extent to which designers will have compelling economic incentives to adopt SbD.
Wood, Thomas W.; Seward, Amy M.; Lewis, Valerie A.; Gitau, Ernest TN; Zentner, Michael D.
E-Print Network 3.0 - argonne heavy water reactor Sample Search...
Broader source: All U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office Webpages (Extended Search)
electrolysis LHV Low heating value LWR Light water reactor MHR Modular helium reactor Q Heat SOEC Solid oxide... electrolysis cell SOFC Solid oxide fuel cell SCWR Super critical...
Design and Transient Analysis of Passive Safety Cooling Systems for Advanced Nuclear Reactors
L. J. Hamilton Nuclear Reactor Analysis John Wiley and Sons,R. J. Neuhold, Introductury Nuclear Reactor Dynamics. ANSL. J. Hamilton Nuclear Reactor Analysis John Wiley and Sons,
Galvez, Cristhian
Modular Isotopic Thermoelectric Generator
Advanced RTG concepts utilizing improved thermoelectric materials and converter concepts are under study at Fairchild for DOE. The design described here is based on DOE's newly developed radioisotope heat source, and on an improved silicon-germanium material and a multicouple converter module under development at Syncal. Fairchild's assignment was to combine the above into an attractive power system for use in space, and to assess the specific power and other attributes of that design. The resultant design is highly modular, consisting of standard RTG slices, each producing ~24 watts at the desired output voltage of 28 volt. Thus, the design could be adapted to various space missions over a wide range of power levels, with little or no redesign. Each RTG slice consists of a 250-watt heat source module, eight multicouple thermoelectric modules, and standard sections of insulator, housing, radiator fins, and electrical circuit. The design makes it possible to check each thermoelectric module for electrical performance, thermal contact, leaktightness, and performance stability, after the generator is fully assembled; and to replace any deficient modules without disassembling the generator or perturbing the others. The RTG end sections provide the spring-loaded supports required to hold the free-standing heat source stack together during launch vibration. Details analysis indicates that the design offers a substantial improvement in specific power over the present generator of RTGs, using the same heat source modules. There are three copies in the file.
Schock, Alfred
Analysis of the conceptual shielding design for the upflow Gas-Cooled Fast Breeder Reactor
Conceptual Shielding Configuration III for the Gas-Cooled Fast Breeder Reactor (GCFR) was analyzed by performing global calculations of neutron and gamma-ray fluences and correcting the results as appropriate with bias factors from localized calculations. Included among the localized calculations were the radial and axial cell streaming calculations, plus extensive preliminary calculations and three final confirmation calculations of the plenum flow-through shields. The global calculations were performed on the GCFR mid-level and the lower and upper plenum regions. Calculated activities were examined with respect to the design constraint, if any, imposed on the particular activity. The spatial distributions of several activities of interest were examined with the aid of isoplots (i.e., symbols are used to describe a surface on which the activity level is everywhere the same). In general the results showed that most activities were below the respective design constraints. Only the total neutron fluence in the core barrel appeared to be marginal with the present reactor design. Since similar results were obtained for an earlier design, it has been proposed that the core barrel be cooled with inlet plenum gas to maintain it at a temperature low enough that it can withstand a higher fluence limit. Radiation levels in the prestressed concrete reactor vessel (PCRV) and liner appeared to be sufficiently below the design constraint that expected results from the Radial Shield Heterogeneity Experiment should not force any levels above the design constraint. A list was also made of a number of issues which should be examined before completion of the final shielding design.
Slater, C.O.; Reed, D.A.; Cramer, S.N.; Emmett, M.B.; Tomlinson, E.T.
Seismicity and seismic response of the Soviet-designed VVER (Water-cooled, Water moderated Energy Reactor) reactor plants
On March 4, 1977, a strong earthquake occurred at Vrancea, Romania, about 350 km from the Kozloduy plant in Bulgaria. Subsequent to this event, construction of the unit 2 of the Armenia plant was delayed over two years while seismic features were added. On December 7, 1988, another strong earthquake struck northwest Armenia about 90 km north of the Armenia plant. Extensive damage of residential and industrial facilities occurred in the vicinity of the epicenter. The earthquake did not damage the Armenia plant. Following this event, the Soviet government announced that the plant would be shutdown permanently by March 18, 1989, and the station converted to a fossil-fired plant. This paper presents the results of the seismic analyses of the Soviet-designed VVER (Water-cooled, Water moderated Energy Reactor) plants. Also presented is the information concerning seismicity in the regions where VVERs are located and information on seismic design of VVERs. The reference units are the VVER-440 model V230 (similar to the two units of the Armenia plant) and the VVER-1000 model V320 units at Kozloduy in Bulgaria. This document provides an initial basis for understanding the seismicity and seismic response of VVERs under seismic events. 1 ref., 9 figs., 3 tabs.
Ma, D.C.; Gvildys, J.; Wang, C.Y.; Spencer, B.W.; Sienicki, J.J.; Seidensticker, R.W.; Purvis, E.E. III
Development and evaluation of two reactor designs for desulfurization of Texas lignites
exhibited can be given at this time, but this behavior may be indicative of transformations of inorganic matter, changes in the forms of sulfur present in the lignite, and the overall composition. The results of this test series show a need for further...DEVELOPMENT AND EVALUATION OF TWO REACTOR DESIGNS FOR DESULFURIZATION OF TEXAS LIGNITES A Thesis by STANLEY DUANE MERRITT Submitted to the Office of Graduate Studies of Texas A&M University in partial fulfillment of the requirements...
Merritt, Stanley Duane
Design, Test and Demonstration of Saturable Reactor High-Temperature Superconductor Fault Current Limiters
Zenergy Power has successfully designed, built, tested, and installed in the US electrical grid a saturable reactor Fault Current Limiter. Beginning in 2007, first as SC Power Systems and from 2008 as Zenergy Power, Inc., ZP used DOE matching grant and ARRA funds to help refine the design of the saturated reactor fault current limiter. ZP ultimately perfected the design of the saturated reactor FCL to the point that ZP could reliably design a suitable FCL for most utility applications. Beginning with a very basic FCL design using 1G HTS for a coil housed in a LN2 cryostat for the DC bias magnet, the technology progressed to a commercial system that was offered for sale internationally. Substantial progress was made in two areas. First, the cryogenics cooling system progressed from a sub-cooled liquid nitrogen container housing the HTS coils to cryostats utilizing dry conduction cooling and reaching temperatures down to less than 20 degrees K. Large, round cryostats with �??warm bore�?� diameters of 1.7 meters enabled the design of large tanks to hold the AC components. Second, the design of the AC part of the FCL was refined from a six legged �??spider�?� design to a more compact and lighter design with better fault current limiting capability. Further refinement of the flux path and core shape led to an efficient saturated reactor design requiring less Ampere-turns to saturate the core. In conclusion, the development of the saturable reactor FCL led to a more efficient design not requiring HTS magnets and their associated peripheral equipment, which yielded a more economical product in line with the electric utility industry expectations. The original goal for the DOE funding of the ZP project �??Design, Test and Demonstration of Saturable Reactor High-Temperature Superconductor Fault Current Limiters�?� was to stimulate the HTS wire industry with, first 1G, then 2G, HTS wire applications. Over the approximately 5 years of ZP�??s product development program, the amount of HTS wire employed per FCL and its cost as a percentage of the total FCL product content had not dropped substantially from an unsustainable level of more than 50% of the total cost of the FCL, nor had the availability increased (today the availability of 2G wire for commercial applications outside of specific partnerships with the leading 2G wire manufacturers is extremely limited). ZP had projected a very significant commercial potential for FCLs with higher performance and lower costs compared to the initial models built with 1G wire, which would come about from the widespread availability of low-cost, high-performance 2G HTS wire. The potential for 2G wires at greatly reduced performance-based prices compared to 1G HTS conductor held out the potential for the commercial production of FCLs at price and performance levels attractive to the utility industry. However, the price of HTS wire did not drop as expected and today the available quantities of 2G wire are limited, and the price is higher than the currently available supplies of 1G wire. The commercial option for ZP to provide a reliable and reasonably priced FCL to the utility industry is to employ conventional resistive conductor DC electromagnets to bias the FCL. Since the premise of the original funding was to stimulate the HTS wire industry and ZP concluded that copper-based magnets were more economical for the foreseeable future, DOE and ZP decided to mutually terminate the project.
Frank Darmann; Robert Lombaerde; Franco Moriconi; Albert Nelson
A Study of Fast Reactor Fuel Transmutation in a Candidate Dispersion Fuel Design
Dispersion fuels represent a significant departure from typical ceramic fuels to address swelling and radiation damage in high burnup fuel. Such fuels use a manufacturing process in which fuel particles are encapsulated within a non-fuel matrix. Dispersion fuels have been studied since 1997 as part of an international effort to develop and test very high density fuel types for the Reduced Enrichment for Research and Test Reactors (RERTR) program.[1] The Idaho National Laboratory is performing research in the development of an innovative dispersion fuel concept that will meet the challenges of transuranic (TRU) transmutation by providing an integral fission gas plenum within the fuel itself, to eliminate the swelling that accompanies the irradiation of TRU. In this process, a metal TRU vector produced in a separations process is atomized into solid microspheres. The dispersion fuel process overcoats the microspheres with a mixture of resin and hollow carbon microspheres to create a TRUC. The foam may then be heated and mixed with a metal power (e.g., Zr, Ti, or Si) and resin to form a matrix metal carbide, that may be compacted and extruded into fuel elements. In this paper, we perform reactor physics calculations for a core loaded with the conceptual fuel design. We will assume a �typical� TRU vector and a reference matrix density. We will employ a fuel and core design based on the Advanced Burner Test Reactor (ABTR) design.[2] Using the CSAS6 and TRITON modules of the SCALE system [3] for preliminary scoping studies, we will demonstrate the feasibility of reactor operations. This paper will describe the results of these analyses.
Mark DeHart; Hongbin Zhang; Eric Shaber; Matthew Jesse
Investigation and design of a secure, transportable fluoride-salt-cooled high-temperature reactor (TFHR) for isolated locations
In this work we describe a preliminary design for a transportable fluoride salt cooled high temperature reactor (TFHR) intended for use as a variable output heat and electricity source for off-grid locations. The goals of ...
Macdonald, Ruaridh (Ruaridh R.)
Analysis of Reference Design for Nuclear-Assisted Hydrogen Production at 750�C Reactor Outlet Temperature
The use of High Temperature Electrolysis (HTE) for the efficient production of hydrogen without the greenhouse gas emissions associated with conventional fossil-fuel hydrogen production techniques has been under investigation at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INL) for the last several years. The activities at the INL have included the development, testing and analysis of large numbers of solid oxide electrolysis cells, and the analyses of potential plant designs for large scale production of hydrogen using a high-temperature gas-cooled reactor (HTGR) to provide the process heat and electricity to drive the electrolysis process. The results of this research led to the selection in 2009 of HTE as the preferred concept in the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) hydrogen technology down-selection process. However, the down-selection process, along with continued technical assessments at the INL, has resulted in a number of proposed modifications and refinements to improve the original INL reference HTE design. These modifications include changes in plant configuration, operating conditions and individual component designs. This report describes the resulting new INL reference design coupled to two alternative HTGR power conversion systems, a Steam Rankine Cycle and a Combined Cycle (a Helium Brayton Cycle with a Steam Rankine Bottoming Cycle). Results of system analyses performed to optimize the design and to determine required plant performance and operating conditions when coupled to the two different power cycles are also presented. A 600 MWt high temperature gas reactor coupled with a Rankine steam power cycle at a thermal efficiency of 44.4% can produce 1.85 kg/s of hydrogen and 14.6 kg/s of oxygen. The same capacity reactor coupled with a combined cycle at a thermal efficiency of 42.5% can produce 1.78 kg/s of hydrogen and 14.0 kg/s of oxygen.
Michael G. McKellar; Edwin A. Harvego
Light Water Breeder Reactor fuel rod design and performance characteristics (LWBR Development Program)
Light Water Breeder Reactor (LWBR) fuel rods were designed to provide a reliable fuel system utilizing thorium/uranium-233 mixed-oxide fuel while simultaneously minimizing structural material to enhance fuel breeding. The fuel system was designed to be capable of operating successfully under both load follow and base load conditions. The breeding objective required thin-walled, low hafnium content Zircaloy cladding, tightly spaced fuel rods with a minimum number of support grid levels, and movable fuel rod bundles to supplant control rods. Specific fuel rod design considerations and their effects on performance capability are described. Successful completion of power operations to over 160 percent of design lifetime including over 200 daily load follow cycles has proven the performance capability of the fuel system. 68 refs., 19 figs., 44 tabs.
Campbell, W.R.; Giovengo, J.F.
Advanced Core Design And Fuel Management For Pebble-Bed Reactors
A method for designing and optimizing recirculating pebble-bed reactor cores is presented. At the heart of the method is a new reactor physics computer code, PEBBED, which accurately and efficiently computes the neutronic and material properties of the asymptotic (equilibrium) fuel cycle. This core state is shown to be unique for a given core geometry, power level, discharge burnup, and fuel circulation policy. Fuel circulation in the pebble-bed can be described in terms of a few well?defined parameters and expressed as a recirculation matrix. The implementation of a few heat?transfer relations suitable for high-temperature gas-cooled reactors allows for the rapid estimation of thermal properties critical for safe operation. Thus, modeling and design optimization of a given pebble-bed core can be performed quickly and efficiently via the manipulation of a limited number key parameters. Automation of the optimization process is achieved by manipulation of these parameters using a genetic algorithm. The end result is an economical, passively safe, proliferation-resistant nuclear power plant.
Hans D. Gougar; Abderrafi M. Ougouag; William K. Terry
Low-Enriched Fuel Design Concept for the Prismatic Very High Temperature Reactor Core
A new non-TRISO fuel and clad design concept is proposed for the prismatic, heliumcooled Very High Temperature Reactor core. The new concept could substantially reduce the current 10-20 wt% TRISO uranium enrichments down to 4-6 wt% for both initial and reload cores. The proposed fuel form would be a high-temperature, high-density uranium ceramic, for example UO2, configured into very small diameter cylindrical rods. The small diameter fuel rods significantly increase core reactivity through improved neutron moderation and fuel lumping. Although a high-temperature clad system for the concept remains to be developed, recent success in tube fabrication and preliminary irradiation testing of silicon carbide (SiC) cladding for light water reactor applications offers good potential for this application, and for future development of other carbide clad designs. A high-temperature ceramic fuel, together with a high-temperature clad material, could also lead to higher thermal safety margins during both normal and transient reactor conditions relative to TRISO fuel. The calculated neutronic results show that the lowenrichment, small diameter fuel rods and low thermal neutron absorbing clad retain the strong negative Doppler fuel temperature coefficient of reactivity that ensures inherent safe operation of the VHTR, and depletion studies demonstrate that an 18-month power cycle can be achieved with the lower enrichment fuel.
Sterbentz, James W
Design of a Gas Test Loop Facility for the Advanced Test Reactor
The Office of Nuclear Energy within the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE-NE) has identified the need for irradiation testing of nuclear fuels and materials, primarily in support of the Generation IV (Gen-IV) and Advanced Fuel Cycle Initiative (AFCI) programs. These fuel development programs require a unique environment to test and qualify potential reactor fuel forms. This environment should combine a high fast neutron flux with a hard neutron spectrum and high irradiation temperature. An effort is presently underway at the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) to modify a large flux trap in the Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) to accommodate such a test facility [1,2]. The Gas Test Loop (GTL) Project Conceptual Design was initiated to determine basic feasibility of designing, constructing, and installing in a host irradiation facility, an experimental vehicle that can replicate with reasonable fidelity the fast-flux test environment needed for fuels and materials irradiation testing for advanced reactor concepts. Such a capability will be needed if programs such as the AFCI, Gen-IV, the Next Generation Nuclear Plant (NGNP), and space nuclear propulsion are to meet development objectives and schedules. These programs are beginning some irradiations now, but many call for fast flux testing within this decade.
C. A. Wemple
Design and analysis of megawatt-class heat-pipe reactor concepts
There is growing interest in finding an alternative to diesel-powered systems at locations removed from a reliable electrical grid. One promising option is a 1- to 10-MW mobile reactor system, that could provide robust, self-contained, and long-term ({>=} 5 years) power in any environment. The reactor and required infrastructure could be transported to any location within one or a few standard transport containers. Heat pipe reactors, using alkali metal heat pipes, are perfectly suited for mobile applications because their nature is inherently simpler, smaller, and more reliable than 'traditional' reactors that rely on pumped coolant through the core. This paper examines a heat pipe reactor that is fabricated and shipped as six identical core segments. Each core segment includes a heat-pipe-to-gas heat exchanger that is coupled to the condenser end of the heat pipes. The reference power conversion system is a CO{sub 2}-Brayton system. The segments by themselves are deeply subcritical during transport, and they would be locked into an operating configuration (with control inserted) at the final destination. Two design options are considered: a near-term option and an advanced option. The near-term option is a 5-MWt concept that uses uranium-dioxide fuel, a stainless-steel structure, and potassium as the heat-pipe working fluid. The advanced option is a 15-MWt concept that uses uranium-nitride fuel, a molybdenum/TZM structure, and sodium as the heat-pipe working fluid. The materials used in the advanced option allow for higher temperatures and power densities, and enhanced power throughput in the heat pipes. Higher powers can be obtained from both concepts by increasing the core size and the number of heat pipes. (authors)
Poston, D.; Kapernick, R. [Los Alamos National Laboratory, MS C921, Los Alamos, NM 87545 (United States)
The Neutronics Design and Analysis of a 200-MW(electric) Simplified Boiling Water Reactor Core
A 200-MW(electric) simplified boiling water reactor (SBWR) was designed and analyzed under sponsorship of the U.S. Department of Energy Nuclear Energy Research Initiative program. The compact size of a 200-MW(electric) reactor makes it attractive for countries with a less well developed engineering infrastructure, as well as for developed countries seeking to tailor generation capacity more closely to the growth of their electricity demand. The 200-MW(electric) core design reported here is based on the 600-MW(electric) General Electric SBWR core, which was first analyzed in the work performed here in order to qualify the computer codes used in the analysis. Cross sections for the 8 x 8 fuel assembly design were generated with the HELIOS lattice physics code, and core simulation was performed with the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission codes RELAP5/PARCS. In order to predict the critical heat flux, the Hench-Gillis correlation was implemented in the RELAP5 code. An equilibrium cycle was designed for the 200-MW(electric) core, which provided a cycle length of more than 2 yr and satisfied the minimum critical power ratio throughout the core life.
Tinkler, Daniel R.; Downar, Thomas J. [Purdue University (United States)
Design of a Simplified Closed Brayton Cycle for a Space Reactor Application
The Nuclear Energy Division (ENU) of the Institute for Advanced Studies (IEAv) has started a preliminary design study for a Closed Brayton Cycle Loop (CBCL) aimed at a space reactor application. The main objectives of the study are: 1) to establish a starting concept for the CBCL components specifications, and 2) to build a demonstrative simulator of CBCL. This preliminary design study is been developed around the NOELLE 60290 turbo machine. The actual nuclear reactor study is being conducted independently. Because of that, a conventional heat source is being used for the CBCL, in this preliminary design phase. This paper describes details of the CBCL mechanical design and the steady state simulator of the CBCL operating with NOELLE 60290 turbo machine. In principle, several gases are being considered as working fluid, as for instance: air, helium, nitrogen, CO2 and gas mixtures such as helium and xenon. However, for this first application pure helium will be used as working fluid. Simplified models of heat and mass transfer were developed to simulate thermal components. A new graphical interface was developed for the simulator to display the thermal process variables in steady state and to keep track of the modifications being implemented at the NOELLE 60290 turbo machine in order to build the CBCL. A set of new results are being produced. These new results help to establish the hot and cold source geometry allowing for price estimating costs for building the actual device. These fresh new results will be presented and discussed.
Guimaraes, Lamartine N. F. [Institute for Advanced Studies-IEAv, Rodovia dos Tamoios, km 5.5, Putim, 12228-001 Sao Jose dos Campos, SP (Brazil); Faculdade de Tecnologia Sao Francisco Jacarei, SP, Brazil 55-12-3947-5474 (Brazil); Camillo, Giannino Ponchio [Institute for Advanced Studies-IEAv, Rodovia dos Tamoios, km 5.5, Putim, 12228-001 Sao Jose dos Campos, SP (Brazil); Placco, Guilherme Moreira [Faculdade de Tecnologia Sao Francisco Jacarei, SP, Brazil 55-12-3947-5474 (Brazil)
Steady state temperature profiles in two simulated liquid metal reactor fuel assemblies with identical design specifications
Temperature data from steady state tests in two parallel, simulated liquid metal reactor fuel assemblies with identical design specifications have been compared to determine the extent to which they agree. In general, good agreement was found in data at low flows and in bundle-center data at higher flows. Discrepancies in the data wre noted near the bundle edges at higher flows. An analysis of bundle thermal boundary conditions showed that the possible eccentric placement of one bundle within the housing could account for these discrepancies.
Levin, A.E.; Carbajo, J.J.; Lloyd, D.B.; Montgomery, B.H.; Rose, S.D.; Wantland, J.L.
The heat transport system and plant design for the HYLIFE-2 fusion reactor
HYLIFE is the name given to a family of self-healing liquid-wall reactor concepts for inertial confinement fusion. This HYLIFE-II concept employs the molten salt, Flibe, for the liquid jets instead of liquid lithium used in the original HYLIFE-I study. A preliminary conceptual design study of the heat transport system and the balance of plant of the HYLIFE-II fusion power plant is described in this paper with special emphasis on a scoping study to determine the best intermediate heat exchanger geometry and flow conditions for minimum cost of electricity. 11 refs., 8 figs.
Hoffman, M.A.
Use of freeze-casting in advanced burner reactor fuel design
This paper will detail the modeling of a fast reactor with fuel pins created using a freeze-casting process. Freeze-casting is a method of creating an inert scaffold within a fuel pin. The scaffold is created using a directional solidification process and results in open porosity for emplacement of fuel, with pores ranging in size from 300 microns to 500 microns in diameter. These pores allow multiple fuel types and enrichments to be loaded into one fuel pin. Also, each pore could be filled with varying amounts of fuel to allow for the specific volume of fission gases created by that fuel type. Currently fast reactors, including advanced burner reactors (ABR's), are not economically feasible due to the high cost of operating the reactors and of reprocessing the fuel. However, if the fuel could be very precisely placed, such as within a freeze-cast scaffold, this could increase fuel performance and result in a valid design with a much lower cost per megawatt. In addition to competitive costs, freeze-cast fuel would also allow for selective breeding or burning of actinides within specific locations in fast reactors. For example, fast flux peak locations could be utilized on a minute scale to target specific actinides for transmutation. Freeze-cast fuel is extremely flexible and has great potential in a variety of applications. This paper performs initial modeling of freeze-cast fuel, with the generic fast reactor parameters for this model based on EBR-II. The core has an assumed power of 62.5 MWt. The neutronics code used was Monte Carlo N-Particle (MCNP5) transport code. Uniform pore sizes were used in increments of 100 microns. Two different freeze-cast scaffold materials were used: ceramic (MgO-ZrO{sub 2}) and steel (SS316L). Separate models were needed for each material because the freeze-cast ceramic and metal scaffolds have different structural characteristics and overall porosities. Basic criticality results were compiled for the various models. Preliminary results show that criticality is achievable with freeze-cast fuel pins despite the significant amount of inert fuel matrix. Freeze casting is a promising method to achieve very precise fuel placement within fuel pins. (authors)
Lang, A. L.; Yablinsky, C. A.; Allen, T. R. [Dept. of Engineering Physics, Univ. of Wisconsin Madison, 1500 Engineering Drive, Madison, WI 53711 (United States); Burger, J.; Hunger, P. M.; Wegst, U. G. K. [Thayer School of Engineering, Dartmouth College, 8000 Cummings Hall, Hanover, NH 03755 (United States)
Research reactors - an overview
A broad overview of different types of research and type reactors is provided in this paper. Reactor designs and operating conditions are briefly described for four reactors. The reactor types described include swimming pool reactors, the High Flux Isotope Reactor, the Mark I TRIGA reactor, and the Advanced Neutron Source reactor. Emphasis in the descriptions is placed on safety-related features of the reactors. 7 refs., 7 figs., 2 tabs.
West, C.D.
Design and Transient Analysis of Passive Safety Cooling Systems for Advanced Nuclear Reactors
systems for the Gas Cooled Fast Reactor (GCFR) includes theThey are 1) gas cooled fast reactors (GFR), 2) very high
Galvez, Cristhian
Small Reactor Designs Suitable for Direct Nuclear Thermal Propulsion: Interim Report
Advancement of U.S. scientific, security, and economic interests requires high performance propulsion systems to support missions beyond low Earth orbit. A robust space exploration program will include robotic outer planet and crewed missions to a variety of destinations including the moon, near Earth objects, and eventually Mars. Past studies, in particular those in support of both the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) and the Space Exploration Initiative (SEI), have shown nuclear thermal propulsion systems provide superior performance for high mass high propulsive delta-V missions. In NASA's recent Mars Design Reference Architecture (DRA) 5.0 study, nuclear thermal propulsion (NTP) was again selected over chemical propulsion as the preferred in-space transportation system option for the human exploration of Mars because of its high thrust and high specific impulse ({approx}900 s) capability, increased tolerance to payload mass growth and architecture changes, and lower total initial mass in low Earth orbit. The recently announced national space policy2 supports the development and use of space nuclear power systems where such systems safely enable or significantly enhance space exploration or operational capabilities. An extensive nuclear thermal rocket technology development effort was conducted under the Rover/NERVA, GE-710 and ANL nuclear rocket programs (1955-1973). Both graphite and refractory metal alloy fuel types were pursued. The primary and significantly larger Rover/NERVA program focused on graphite type fuels. Research, development, and testing of high temperature graphite fuels was conducted. Reactors and engines employing these fuels were designed, built, and ground tested. The GE-710 and ANL programs focused on an alternative ceramic-metallic 'cermet' fuel type consisting of UO2 (or UN) fuel embedded in a refractory metal matrix such as tungsten. The General Electric program examined closed loop concepts for space or terrestrial applications as well as open loop systems for direct nuclear thermal propulsion. Although a number of fast spectrum reactor and engine designs suitable for direct nuclear thermal propulsion were proposed and designed, none were built. This report summarizes status results of evaluations of small nuclear reactor designs suitable for direct nuclear thermal propulsion.
Bruce G. Schnitzler
US ITER (International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor) shield and blanket design activities
This paper summarizes nuclear-related work in support of the US effort for the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) Study. Primary tasks carried out during the past year include design improvements of the inboard shield developed for the TIBER concept, scoping studies of a variety of tritium breeding blanket options, development of necessary design guidelines and evaluation criteria for the blanket options, further safety considerations related to nuclear components, and issues regarding structural materials for an ITER device. The blanket concepts considered are the aqueous/Li salt solution, a water-cooled, solid breeder blanket, a helium-cooled, solid-breeder blanket, a blanket cooled by helium containing lithium-bearing particulates, and a blanket concept based on breeding tritium from He/sup 3/. 1 ref., 2 tabs.
Baker, C.C.
The role of risk management in the design of diagnostics for fusion reactors
A project-oriented approach is beneficial for the selection and design of viable diagnostics for fusion reactors because of the associated complex physical and organizational environment. The project-oriented approach includes rigorous risk management. The nature and impact of risks related to technical, organizational and commercial aspects in relation to the development of ITER diagnostics under EU responsibility are analyzed. The majority of risks are related to organizational aspects and technical feasibility issues. The experience with ITER is extrapolated to DEMO and beyond. It should not be taken for granted that technical solutions will be found, while a risk analysis of various diagnostic techniques with quantitative assessments undertaken early in the design of DEMO would be beneficial.
Ingesson, L. C. [Fusion for Energy, Josep Pla 2, Torres Diagonal Litoral B3, 08019 Barcelona (Spain); Collaboration: F4E Diagnostic Project Team
A review of existing gas-cooled reactor circulators with application of the lessons learned to the new production reactor circulators
This report presents the results of a study of the lessons learned during the design, testing, and operation of gas-cooled reactor coolant circulators. The intent of this study is to identify failure modes and problem areas of the existing circulators so this information can be incorporated into the design of the circulators for the New Production Reactor (NPR)-Modular High-Temperature Gas Cooled Reactor (MHTGR). The information for this study was obtained primarily from open literature and includes data on high-pressure, high-temperature helium test loop circulators as well as the existing gas cooled reactors worldwide. This investigation indicates that trouble free circulator performance can only be expected when the design program includes a comprehensive prototypical test program, with the results of this test program factored into the final circulator design. 43 refs., 7 tabs.
White, L.S.
Safety Design Strategy for the Advanced Test Reactor Diesel Bus (E-3) and Switchgear Replacement Project
In accordance with the requirements of U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Order 413.3B, �Program and Project Management for the Acquisition of Capital Assets,� safety must be integrated into the design process for new or major modifications to DOE Hazard Category 1, 2, and 3 nuclear facilities. The intended purpose of this requirement involves the handling of hazardous materials, both radiological and chemical, in a way that provides adequate protection to the public, workers, and the environment. Requirements provided in DOE Order 413.3B and DOE Order 420.1B, �Facility Safety,� and the expectations of DOE-STD-1189-2008, �Integration of Safety into the Design Process,� provide for identification of hazards early in the project and use of an integrated team approach to design safety into the facility. This safety design strategy provides the basic safety-in-design principles and concepts that will be used for the Advanced Test Reactor Reliability Sustainment Project. While this project does not introduce new hazards to the ATR, it has the potential for significant impacts to safety-related systems, structures, and components that are credited in the ATR safety basis and are being replaced. Thus the project has been determined to meet the definition of a major modification and is being managed accordingly.
Noel Duckwitz
Safety Design Strategy for the Advanced Test Reactor Emergency Firewater Injection System Replacement Project
In accordance with the requirements of U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Order 413.3B, �Program and Project Management for the Acquisition of Capital Assets,� safety must be integrated into the design process for new or major modifications to DOE Hazard Category 1, 2, and 3 nuclear facilities. The intended purpose of this requirement involves the handling of hazardous materials, both radiological and chemical, in a way that provides adequate protection to the public, workers, and the environment. Requirements provided in DOE Order 413.3B and DOE Order 420.1B, �Facility Safety,� and the expectations of DOE-STD-1189-2008, �Integration of Safety into the Design Process,� provide for identification of hazards early in the project and use of an integrated team approach to design safety into the facility. This safety design strategy provides the basic safety-in-design principles and concepts that will be used for the Advanced Test Reactor Reliability Sustainment Project. While this project does not introduce new hazards to the ATR, it has the potential for significant impacts to safety-related systems, structures, and components that are credited in the ATR safety basis and are being replaced. Thus the project has been determined to meet the definition of a major modification and is being managed accordingly.
Noel Duckwitz
Safety Design Strategy for the Advanced Test Reactor Primary Coolant Pump and Motor Replacement Project
In accordance with the requirements of U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Order 413.3B, �Program and Project Management for the Acquisition of Capital Assets,� safety must be integrated into the design process for new or major modifications to DOE Hazard Category 1, 2, and 3 nuclear facilities. The intended purpose of this requirement involves the handling of hazardous materials, both radiological and chemical, in a way that provides adequate protection to the public, workers, and the environment. Requirements provided in DOE Order 413.3B and DOE Order 420.1B, �Facility Safety,� and the expectations of DOE-STD-1189-2008, �Integration of Safety into the Design Process,� provide for identification of hazards early in the project and use of an integrated team approach to design safety into the facility. This safety design strategy provides the basic safety-in-design principles and concepts that will be used for the Advanced Test Reactor Reliability Sustainment Project. While this project does not introduce new hazards to the ATR, it has the potential for significant impacts to safety-related systems, structures, and components that are credited in the ATR safety basis and are being replaced. Thus the project has been determined to meet the definition of a major modification and is being managed accordingly.
Noel Duckwitz
Safety and core design of large liquid-metal cooled fast breeder reactors
breeder reactors typically operate with an inner core of high fissile content surrounded by breeding blankets
Qvist, Staffan Alexander
High-temperature gas-cooled reactor safety studies for the Division of Accident Evaluation quarterly progress report, January 1-March 31, 1985
Modeling, code development, and analyses of the modular High-Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor (HTGR) continued with work on the side-by-side design. Fission-product release and transport experiments were completed. A description and assessment report on Oak Ridge National Laboratory HTGR safety codes was issued.
Ball, S.J.; Cleveland, J.C.; Harrington, R.M.; Weber, C.F.; Wilson, J.H.
A Design Study for Thermal Control of a CVD Reactor for YBCO Martha A. Gallivan, David G. Goodwin, and Richard M. Murray
A Design Study for Thermal Control of a CVD Reactor for YBCO Martha A. Gallivan, David G. Goodwin, CA 91125 Email: firstname.lastname@example.com Abstract Active thermal control of a reactor for YBa2Cu3O7-x, and linear feedback control methods are used to assess the reactor's thermal re- sponse. Performance
Gallivan, Martha A.
Low-Enriched Uranium Fuel Design with Two-Dimensional Grading for the High Flux Isotope Reactor
An engineering design study of the conversion of the High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) from high-enriched uranium (HEU) to low-enriched uranium (LEU) fuel is ongoing at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The computational models developed during fiscal year 2010 to search for an LEU fuel design that would meet the requirements for the conversion and the results obtained with these models are documented and discussed in this report. Estimates of relevant reactor performance parameters for the LEU fuel core are presented and compared with the corresponding data for the currently operating HEU fuel core. The results obtained indicate that the LEU fuel design would maintain the current performance of the HFIR with respect to the neutron flux to the central target region, reflector, and beam tube locations under the assumption that the operating power for the reactor fueled with LEU can be increased from the current value of 85 MW to 100 MW.
Ilas, Germina [ORNL; Primm, Trent [ORNL
The Gas-Cooled Fast Reactor: Report on Safety System Design for Decay Heat Removal
The gas-cooled fast reactor (GFR) was chosen as one of the Generation IV nuclear reactor systems to be developed based on its excellent potential for sustainability through reduction of the volume and radiotoxicity of both its own fuel and other spent nuclear fuel, and for extending/utilizing uranium resources orders of magnitude beyond what the current open fuel cycle can realize. In addition, energy conversion at high thermal efficiency is possible with the current designs being considered, thus increasing the economic benefit of the GFR. However, research and development challenges include the ability to use passive decay heat removal systems during accident conditions, survivability of fuels and in-core materials under extreme temperatures and radiation, and economical and efficient fuel cycle processes. This report addresses/discusses the decay heat removal options available to the GFR, and the current solutions. While it is possible to design a GFR with complete passive safety (i.e., reliance solely on conductive and radiative heat transfer for decay heat removal), it has been shown that the low power density results in unacceptable fuel cycle costs for the GFR. However, increasing power density results in higher decay heat rates, and the attendant temperature increase in the fuel and core. Use of active movers, or blowers/fans, is possible during accident conditions, which only requires 3% of nominal flow to remove the decay heat. Unfortunately, this requires reliance on active systems. In order to incorporate passive systems, innovative designs have been studied, and a mix of passive and active systems appears to meet the requirements for decay heat removal during accident conditions.
K. D. Weaver; T. Marshall; T. Y. C. Wei; E. E. Feldman; M. J. Driscoll; H. Ludewig
Safeguards-by-Design: Guidance for High Temperature Gas Reactors (HTGRs) With Pebble Fuel
The following is a guidance document from a series prepared for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), under the Next Generation Safeguards Initiative (NGSI), to assist facility designers and operators in implementing international Safeguards-by-Design (SBD). SBD has two main objectives: (1) to avoid costly and time consuming redesign work or retrofits of new nuclear fuel cycle facilities and (2) to make the implementation of international safeguards more effective and efficient at such facilities. In the long term, the attainment of these goals would save industry and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) time, money, and resources and be mutually beneficial. This particular safeguards guidance document focuses on pebble fuel high temperature gas reactors (HTGR). The purpose of the IAEA safeguards system is to provide credible assurance to the international community that nuclear material and other specified items are not diverted from peaceful nuclear uses. The safeguards system consists of the IAEA�s statutory authority to establish safeguards; safeguards rights and obligations in safeguards agreements and additional protocols; and technical measures implemented pursuant to those agreements. Of foremost importance is the international safeguards agreement between the country and the IAEA, concluded pursuant to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT). According to a 1992 IAEA Board of Governors decision, countries must: notify the IAEA of a decision to construct a new nuclear facility as soon as such decision is taken; provide design information on such facilities as the designs develop; and provide detailed design information based on construction plans at least 180 days prior to the start of construction, and on "as-built" designs at least 180 days before the first receipt of nuclear material. Ultimately, the design information will be captured in an IAEA Design Information Questionnaire (DIQ), prepared by the facility operator, typically with the support of the facility designer. The IAEA will verify design information over the life of the project. This design information is an important IAEA safeguards tool. Since the main interlocutor with the IAEA in each country is the State Regulatory Authority/SSAC (or Regional Regulatory Authority, e.g. EURATOM), the responsibility for conveying this design information to the IAEA falls to the State Regulatory Authority/SSAC.
Philip Casey Durst; Mark Schanfein
Thermally Simulated 32kW Direct-Drive Gas-Cooled Reactor: Design, Assembly, and Test
One of the power systems under consideration for nuclear electric propulsion is a direct-drive gas-cooled reactor coupled to a Brayton cycle. In this system, power is transferred from the reactor to the Brayton system via a circulated closed loop gas. To allow early utilization, system designs must be relatively simple, easy to fabricate, and easy to test using non-nuclear heaters to closely mimic heat from fission. This combination of attributes will allow pre-prototypic systems to be designed, fabricated, and tested quickly and affordably. The ability to build and test units is key to the success of a nuclear program, especially if an early flight is desired. The ability to perform very realistic non-nuclear testing increases the success probability of the system. In addition, the technologies required by a concept will substantially impact the cost, time, and resources required to develop a successful space reactor power system. This paper describes design features, assembly, and test matrix for the testing of a thermally simulated 32kW direct-drive gas-cooled reactor in the Early Flight Fission - Test Facility (EFF-TF) at Marshall Space Flight Center. The reactor design and test matrix are provided by Los Alamos National Laboratories.
Godfroy, Thomas J.; Bragg-Sitton, Shannon M. [NASA Marshall Space Flight Center, TD40, Huntsville, Alabama, 35812 (United States); University of Michgan, Dept. of Nuclear Engineering and Radiological Sciences, Ann Arbor MI 48109 (United States); Kapernick, Richard J. [Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM 87545 (United States)
Nuclear design of small-sized high temperature gas-cooled reactor for developing countries
Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) has started a conceptual design of a small-sized HTGR with 50 MW thermal power (HTR50S), which is a first-of-a-kind commercial or demonstration plant of a small-sized HTGR to be deployed in developing countries such as Kazakhstan in the 2020's. The nuclear design of the HTR50S is performed by upgrading the proven technology of the High Temperature Engineering Test Reactor (HTTR) to reduce the cost for the construction. In the HTTR design, twelve kinds of fuel enrichment was used to optimize the power distribution, which is required to make the maximum fuel temperature below the thermal limitation during the burn-up period. However, manufacture of many kinds of fuel enrichment causes increase of the construction cost. To solve this problem, the present study challenges the nuclear design by reducing the number of fuel enrichment to as few as possible. The nuclear calculations were performed with SRAC code system whose validity was proven by the HTTR burn-up data. The calculation results suggested that the optimization of the power distribution was reasonably achieved and the maximum fuel temperature was kept below the limitation by using three kinds of fuel enrichment. (authors)
Goto, M.; Seki, Y.; Inaba, Y.; Ohashi, H.; Sato, H.; Fukaya, Y.; Tachibana, Y. [Japan Atomic Energy Agency, 4002, Oarai-machi, Higashi Ibaraki-gun, Ibaraki-ken 311-1394 (Japan)
Preliminary core design studies for the advanced burner reactor over a wide range of conversion ratios.
A consistent set of designs for 1000 MWt commercial-scale sodium-cooled Advance Burner Reactors (ABR) have been developed for both metal and oxide-fueled cores with conversion ratios from breakeven (CR=1.0) to fertile-free (CR=0.0). These designs are expected to satisfy thermal and irradiation damage limits based on the currently available data. The very low conversion ratio designs require fuel that is beyond the current fuel database, which is anticipated to be qualified by and for the Advanced Burned Test Reactor. Safety and kinetic parameters were calculated, but a safety analysis was not performed. Development of these designs was required to achieve the primary goal of this study, which was to generate representative fuel cycle mass flows for system studies of ABRs as part of the Global Nuclear Energy Partnership (GNEP). There are slight variations with conversion ratio but the basic ABR configuration consists of 144 fuel assemblies and between 9 and 22 primary control assemblies for both the metal and oxide-fueled cores. Preliminary design studies indicated that it is feasible to design the ABR to accommodate a wide range of conversion ratio by employing different assembly designs and including sufficient control assemblies to accommodate the large reactivity swing at low conversion ratios. The assemblies are designed to fit within the same geometry, but the size and number of fuel pins within each assembly are significantly different in order to achieve the target conversion ratio while still satisfying thermal limits. Current irradiation experience would allow for a conversion ratio of somewhat below 0.75. The fuel qualification for the first ABR should expand this experience to allow for much lower conversion ratios and higher bunrups. The current designs were based on assumptions about the performance of high and very high enrichment fuel, which results in significant uncertainty about the details of the designs. However, the basic fuel cycle performance trends such as conversion ratio and mass flow parameters are less sensitive to these parameters and the current results should provide a good basis for static and dynamic system analysis. The conversion ratio is fundamentally a ratio of the macroscopic cross section of U-238 capture to that of TRU fission. Since the microscopic cross sections only change moderately with fuel design and isotopic concentration for the fast reactor, a specific conversion ratio requires a specific enrichment. The approximate average charge enrichment (TRU/HM) is 14%, 21%, 33%, 56%, and 100% for conversion ratios of 1.0, 0.75, 0.50, 0.25, and 0.0 for the metal-fueled cores. The approximate average charge enrichment is 17%, 25%, 38%, 60%, and 100% for conversion ratios of 1.0, 0.75, 0.50, 0.25, and 0.0 for the oxide-fueled core. For the split batch cores, the maximum enrichment will be somewhat higher. For both the metal and oxide-fueled cores, the reactivity feedback coefficients and kinetics parameters seem reasonable. The maximum single control assembly reactivity faults may be too large for the low conversion ratio designs. The average reactivity of the primary control assemblies was increased, which may cause the maximum reactivity of the central control assembly to be excessive. The values of the reactivity coefficients and kinetics parameters show that some values appear to improve significantly at lower conversion ratios while others appear far less favorable. Detailed safety analysis is required to determine if these designs have adequate safety margins or if appropriate design modifications are required. Detailed system analysis data has been generated for both metal and oxide-fueled core designs over the entire range of potential burner reactors. Additional data has been calculated for a few alternative fuel cycles. The systems data has been summarized in this report and the detailed data will be provided to the systems analysis team so that static and dynamic system analyses can be performed.
Hoffman, E. A.; Yang, W. S.; Hill, R. N.; Nuclear Engineering Division
Conceptual Design of a Reactor Pressure Vessel and its Internals for a HPLWR
A design for the Reactor Pressure Vessel (RPV) and its internals for a HPLWR (High Performance Light Water Reactor) is presented. The RPV has been dimensioned using the pressure vessel code for nuclear power plants in Germany. In order to use conventional vessel materials such as 20 MnMoNi 5 5 (United States: SA 508), the vessel inner wall has to be kept only in contact with coolant at inlet temperature. Therefore, the hot coolant pipe connection from the steam plenum to the outlet is separated from the RPV inner wall using a thermal sleeve. The core inside the vessel rests on a support plate which is connected to the core barrel. The steam plenum is fixed on top of the core using support brackets which are attached to the adjustable steam outlet pipes. This way, the steam plenum rests on the outlet flanges of the lower vessel, while the core barrel is suspended at the closure head flange of the vessel to control thermal expansions between the internals and the RPV and to minimize thermal stresses. Both, inlet and outlet mass flows are separated via C-ring seals to prevent mixing. The control rod guides in the upper plenum are also suspended at the vessel flange and aligned inside the core barrel using centering pins. (authors)
Fischer, Kai [EnBW Kraftwerke AG, Kernkraftwerk Philippsburg, Rheinschanzinsel D-76661 Philippsburg (Germany); Starflinger, Joerg; Schulenberg, Thomas [Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe GmbH, Institute for Nuclear and Energy Technologies P.O. Box 3640, D-76021 Karlsruhe (Germany)
Design, development, and applications of a low-cost, dynamic neutron radiography system utilizing the TAMU NSC TRIGA reactor
partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF SC'IENCE May 1990 Major Subject: Nuclear Engineering DESIGN, DEVELOPMENT. AND APPLICATIONS OF A LOW ? COST, DYNAMIC NEUTRON RADIOGRAPHY SYSTEM UTILIZING THE TAMU NSC TRIGA REACTOR A...DESIGN, DEVELOPMENT. AND APPLICATIONS OF A LOW ? COST, DYNAMIC NEUTRON RADIOGRAPHY SYSTEM UTILIZING THE TAMU NSC TRIGA REACTOR A Thesis SC'OTT PATRIC'If ItIIDGETT Submitted to the Ofhce of Graduate Studies of Texas AklVI I!niversity rn...
Midgett, Scott Patrick
1 5-9.2002 . We report the core and reflector design parameters of reactor PIK needed for neutronic calculations.
PIK, needed for the reactor neutronic calculation. All up-to-date design modifications are taken÷òåíû ïîñëåäíèå èçìåíåíèÿ â êîíñòðóêöèè. Abstract We report the core and reflector design parameters of reactor PIK needed for neutronic calculations. The recent changes are taken into account. Ïðåïðèíò ¹2472, 12
Titov, Anatoly
Fuel and cladding nano-technologies based solutions for long life heat-pipe based reactors
A novel nuclear reactor concept, unifying the fuel pipe with fuel tube functionality has been developed. The structure is a quasi-spherical modular reactor, designed for a very long life. The reactor module unifies the fuel tube with the heat pipe and a graphite beryllium reflector. It also uses a micro-hetero-structure that allows the fission products to be removed in the heat pipe flow and deposited in a getter area in the cold zone of the heat pipe, but outside the neutron flux. The reactor operates as a breed and burn reactor - it contains the fuel pipe with a variable enrichment, starting from the hot-end of the pipe, meant to assure the initial criticality, and reactor start-up followed by area with depleted uranium or thorium that get enriched during the consumption of the first part of the enriched uranium. (authors)
Popa-Simil, L. [LAVM LLC, Los Alamos (United States)
Burnup concept for a long-life fast reactor core using MCNPX.
This report describes a reactor design with a burnup concept for a long-life fast reactor core that was evaluated using Monte Carlo N-Particle eXtended (MCNPX). The current trend in advanced reactor design is the concept of a small modular reactor (SMR). However, very few of the SMR designs attempt to substantially increase the lifetime of a reactor core, especially without zone loading, fuel reshuffling, or other artificial mechanisms in the core that %E2%80%9Cflatten%E2%80%9D the power profile, including non-uniform cooling, non-uniform moderation, or strategic poison placement. Historically, the limitations of computing capabilities have prevented acceptable margins in the temporal component of the spatial excess reactivity in a reactor design, due primarily to the error in burnup calculations. This research was performed as an initial scoping analysis into the concept of a long-life fast reactor. It can be shown that a long-life fast reactor concept can be modeled using MCNPX to predict burnup and neutronics behavior. The inherent characteristic of this conceptual design is to minimize the change in reactivity over the lifetime of the reactor. This allows the reactor to operate substantially longer at full power than traditional Light Water Reactors (LWRs) or other SMR designs. For the purpose of this study, a single core design was investigated: a relatively small reactor core, yielding a medium amount of power (~200 to 400 MWth). The results of this scoping analysis were successful in providing a preliminary reactor design involving metal U-235/U-238 fuel with HT-9 fuel cladding and sodium coolant at a 20% volume fraction.
Holschuh, Thomas Vernon,; Lewis, Tom Goslee,; Parma, Edward J.,
Core design study of a supercritical light water reactor with double row fuel rods
An equilibrium core for supercritical light water reactor has been designed. A novel type of fuel assembly with dual rows of fuel rods between water rods is chosen and optimized to get more uniform assembly power distributions. Stainless steel is used for fuel rod cladding and structural material. Honeycomb structure filled with thermal isolation is introduced to reduce the usage of stainless steel and to keep moderator temperature below the pseudo critical temperature. Water flow scheme with ascending coolant flow in inner regions is carried out to achieve high outlet temperature. In order to enhance coolant outlet temperature, the radial power distributions needs to be as flat as possible through operation cycle. Fuel loading pattern and control rod pattern are optimized to flatten power distribution at inner regions. Axial fuel enrichment is divided into three parts to control axial power peak, which affects maximum cladding surface temperature. (authors)
Zhao, C.; Wu, H.; Cao, L.; Zheng, Y. [School of Nuclear Science and Technology, Xi'an Jiaotong Univ., No. 28, Xianning West Road, Xi'an, ShannXi, 710049 (China); Yang, J.; Zhang, Y. [China Nuclear Power Technology Research Inst., Yitian Road, ShenZhen, GuangDong, 518026 (China)
Review of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) detailed design report
Dr. Martha Krebs, Director, Office of Energy Research at the US Department of Energy (DOE), wrote to the Fusion Energy Sciences Advisory Committee (FESAC), in letters dated September 23 and November 6, 1996, requesting that FESAC review the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) Detailed Design Report (DDR) and provide its view of the adequacy of the DDR as part of the basis for the United States decision to enter negotiations with the other interested Parties regarding the terms and conditions for an agreement for the construction, operations, exploitation and decommissioning of ITER. The letter from Dr. Krebs, referred to as the Charge Letter, provided context for the review and a set of questions of specific interest.
A Comparison of the Performance of Compact Neutrino Detector Designs for Nuclear Reactor Safeguards and Monitoring
There has been an increasing interest in the monitoring of nuclear fuel for power reactors by detecting the anti-neutrinos produced during operation. Small liquid scintillator detectors have already demonstrated sensitivity to operational power levels, but more sensitive monitoring requires improvements in the efficiency and uniformity of these detectors. In this work, we use a montecarlo simulation to investigate the detector performance of four different detector configurations. Based on the analysis of neutron detection efficiency and positron energy response, we find that the optimal detector design will depend on the goals and restrictions of the specific installation or application. We have attempted to present the relevant information so that future detector development can proceed in a profitable direction.
McKeown, R W
Comparison of a NuScale SMR conceptual core design using CASMO5/simulate5 and MCNP5
A key issue during the initial start-ups of new Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) is the lack of operational data for reactor model validation. To help better understand the accuracy of the reactor analysis codes CASMO5 and SIMULATE5, higher order comparisons to MCNP5 have been performed. These comparisons are for an initial core conceptual design of the NuScale reactor. The data have been evaluated at Hot Zero Power (HZP) conditions. Comparisons of core reactivity, fuel temperature coefficient (FTC), and moderator temperature coefficients (MTC) have been performed. Comparison results show good agreement between CASMO5/SIMULATE5 and MCNP5 for the conceptual initial core design. (authors)
Haugh, B. [Studsvik Scandpower Inc., 1015 Ashes Drive, Wilmington, NC 28405 (United States); Mohamed, A. [NuScale Power Inc., 1100 NE Circle Blvd, Corvallis, OR 97330 (United States)
Energy Department Announces Small Modular Reactor Technology...
of Agreement (MOA) will help leverage Savannah River's land assets, energy facilities and nuclear expertise to support potential private sector development, testing and licensing...
Modular Pebble Bed Reactor March 22, 2000
Action #12;Thermal Hydraulics #12;Major Components IHX Compressors HP Turbine LP Turbine Gene of Control Rods 6 Number of Absorber Ball Systems 18 #12;Turbine Hall Boundary Admin Training Control Bldg
SEAB Subcommittee on Small Modular Reactors (SMR)
Broader source: Energy.gov (indexed) [DOE]
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Sandia National Laboratories: Small Modular Reactors
Broader source: All U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office Webpages (Extended Search)
AFDC Printable Version Share this resource Send a link to EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page to someone by E-mail Share EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page on Facebook Tweet about EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page on Twitter Bookmark EERE:1 First Use of Energy for All Purposes (Fuel and Nonfuel),Feet) Year Jan Feb Mar Apr MayAtmosphericNuclear Security Administration the1 -theErikGroundbreaking WorkTransformationSiting Siting At
Design and optimization of a high thermal flux research reactor via Kriging-based algorithm
In response to increasing demands for the services of research reactors, a 5 MW LEU-fueled research reactor core is developed and optimized to provide high thermal flux within specified limits upon thermal hydraulic ...
Kempf, Stephanie Anne
An autonomous long-term fast reactor system and the principal design limitations of the concept
Actinides MOX Mixed OXide MSR Molten-Salt Reactors NERI Nuclear Energy Research Initiative vii PWR Pressurized Water Reactor RGPu Reactor-Grade Plutonium SCNES Self-Consistent Nuclear Energy System STAR Secure Transportable Autonomous Reactor... of LWR?s, the drastic increase of Am and Cm inventories are observed after uranium fuel irradiation and the second recycling of MOX fuel.1 Therefore, partitioning and transmutation of the recovered MA?s could significantly reduce the long...
Tsvetkova, Galina Valeryevna
Eisen, Michael
Fusion reactor theory and conceptual design. (Latest citations from the INSPEC: Information Services for the Physics and Engineering Communities database). Published Search
The bibliography contains citations concerning theoretical and conceptual aspects of fusion reactor physics and designs. A variety of fusion reactors is discussed, including Tokamak, experimental, commercial, tandem mirror, and superconducting magnetic. Topics also include fusion reactor materials, Tokamak devices, blanket design, divertors, fusion plasma production, superconducting magnets, and cryogenic systems. (Contains a minimum of 159 citations and includes a subject term index and title list.)
Not Available
Preliminary neutronics design of china lead-alloy cooled demonstration reactor (CLEAR-III) for nuclear waste transmutation
China Lead-Alloy cooled Demonstration Reactor (CLEAR-III), which is the concept of lead-bismuth cooled accelerator driven sub-critical reactor for nuclear waste transmutation, was proposed and designed by FDS team in China. In this study, preliminary neutronics design studies have primarily focused on three important performance parameters including Transmutation Support Ratio (TSR), effective multiplication factor and blanket thermal power. The constraint parameters, such as power peaking factor and initial TRU loading, were also considered. In the specific design, uranium-free metallic dispersion fuel of (TRU-Zr)-Zr was used as one of the CLEAR-III fuel types and the ratio between MA and Pu was adjusted to maximize transmutation ratio. In addition, three different fuel zones differing in the TRU fraction of the fuel were respectively employed for this subcritical reactor, and the zone sizes and TRU fractions were determined such that the linear powers of these zones were close to each other. The neutronics calculations and analyses were performed by using Multi-Functional 4D Neutronics Simulation System named VisualBUS and nuclear data library HENDL (Hybrid Evaluated Nuclear Data Library). In the preliminary design, the maximum TSRLLMA was {approx}11 and the blanket thermal power was {approx}1000 MW when the effective multiplication factor was 0.98. The results showed that good performance of transmutation could be achieved based on the subcritical reactor loaded with uranium-free fuel. (authors)
Chen, Z. [Inst. of Nuclear Energy Safety Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei, Anhui, 230031 (China); Southwest Science and Technology Univ., No.350 Shushanhu Road, Shushan District, Hefei, Anhui, 230031 (China); Chen, Y.; Bai, Y.; Wang, W.; Chen, Z.; Hu, L.; Long, P. [Inst. of Nuclear Energy Safety Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei, Anhui, 230031 (China); School of Nuclear Science and Technology, Univ. of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui, 230031 (China)
Computer analyses for the design, operation and safety of new isotope production reactors: A technology status review
A review is presented on the currently available technologies for nuclear reactor analyses by computer. The important distinction is made between traditional computer calculation and advanced computer simulation. Simulation needs are defined to support the design, operation, maintenance and safety of isotope production reactors. Existing methods of computer analyses are categorized in accordance with the type of computer involved in their execution: micro, mini, mainframe and supercomputers. Both general and special-purpose computers are discussed. Major computer codes are described, with regard for their use in analyzing isotope production reactors. It has been determined in this review that conventional systems codes (TRAC, RELAP5, RETRAN, etc.) cannot meet four essential conditions for viable reactor simulation: simulation fidelity, on-line interactive operation with convenient graphics, high simulation speed, and at low cost. These conditions can be met by special-purpose computers (such as the AD100 of ADI), which are specifically designed for high-speed simulation of complex systems. The greatest shortcoming of existing systems codes (TRAC, RELAP5) is their mismatch between very high computational efforts and low simulation fidelity. The drift flux formulation (HIPA) is the viable alternative to the complicated two-fluid model. No existing computer code has the capability of accommodating all important processes in the core geometry of isotope production reactors. Experiments are needed (heat transfer measurements) to provide necessary correlations. It is important for the nuclear community, both in government, industry and universities, to begin to take advantage of modern simulation technologies and equipment. 41 refs.
Wulff, W.
Retroactivity, modularity, and insulation in synthetic biology circuits
A central concept in synthetic biology is the reuse of well-characterized modules. Modularity simplifies circuit design by allowing for the decomposition of systems into separate modules for individual construction. Complex ...
Lin, Allen
Analysis and design of a saturable reactor assisted soft-switching full-bridge dc-dc converter
Analysis and design considerations for a saturable reactor assisted soft-switching full-bridge dc-dc converter are presented. The converter has advantages such as low switching losses with no substantial increase in conduction losses, wide load range, and constant frequency operation. To show how to utilize the analysis results, a 350-W, 500-kHz converter is chosen as a design example. The results are verified experimentally on a prototype converter.
Hamada, Satoshi (Sansha Electric Manufacturing Co., Ltd., Osaka (Japan)); Nakaoka, Mutsuo (Kobe Univ. (Japan). Dept. of Electrical and Electronics Engineering)
Neutronic Analysis of an Advanced Fuel Design Concept for the High Flux Isotope Reactor
This study presents the neutronic analysis of an advanced fuel design concept for the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) that could significantly extend the current fuel cycle length under the existing design and safety criteria. A key advantage of the fuel design herein proposed is that it would not require structural changes to the present HFIR core, in other words, maintaining the same rated power and fuel geometry (i.e., fuel plate thickness and coolant channel dimensions). Of particular practical importance, as well, is the fact that the proposed change could be justified within the bounds of the existing nuclear safety basis. The simulations herein reported employed transport theory-based and exposure-dependent eigenvalue characterization to help improve the prediction of key fuel cycle parameters. These parameters were estimated by coupling a benchmarked three-dimensional MCNP5 model of the HFIR core to the depletion code ORIGEN via the MONTEBURNS interface. The design of an advanced HFIR core with an improved fuel loading is an idea that evolved from early studies by R. D. Cheverton, formerly of ORNL. This study contrasts a modified and increased core loading of 12 kg of 235U against the current core loading of 9.4 kg. The simulations performed predict a cycle length of 39 days for the proposed fuel design, which represents a 50% increase in the cycle length in response to a 25% increase in fissile loading, with an average fuel burnup increase of {approx}23%. The results suggest that the excess reactivity can be controlled with the present design and arrangement of control elements throughout the core's life. Also, the new power distribution is comparable or even improved relative to the current power distribution, displaying lower peak to average fission rate densities across the inner fuel element's centerline and bottom cells. In fact, the fission rate density in the outer fuel element also decreased at these key locations for the proposed design. Overall, it is estimated that the advanced core design could increase the availability of the HFIR facility by {approx}50% and generate {approx}33% more neutrons annually, which is expected to yield sizeable savings during the remaining life of HFIR, currently expected to operate through 2014. This study emphasizes the neutronics evaluation of a new fuel design. Although a number of other performance parameters of the proposed design check favorably against the current design, and most of the core design features remain identical to the reference, it is acknowledged that additional evaluations would be required to fully justify the thermal-hydraulic and thermal-mechanical performance of a new fuel design, including checks for cladding corrosion performance as well as for industrial and economic feasibility.
Xoubi, Ned [ORNL; Primm, Trent [ORNL; Maldonado, G. Ivan [University of Tennessee, Knoxville (UTK)
Design of the Next Generation Nuclear Plant Graphite Creep Experiments for Irradiation in the Advanced Test Reactor
The United States Department of Energy�s Next Generation Nuclear Plant (NGNP) Program will be irradiating six gas reactor graphite creep experiments in the Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) located at the Idaho National Laboratory (INL). The ATR has a long history of irradiation testing in support of reactor development and the INL has been designated as the new United States Department of Energy�s lead laboratory for nuclear energy development. The ATR is one of the world�s premiere test reactors for performing long term, high flux, and/or large volume irradiation test programs. These graphite irradiations are being accomplished to support development of the next generation reactors in the United States. The graphite experiments will be irradiated over the next six to eight years to support development of a graphite irradiation performance data base on the new nuclear grade graphites now available for use in high temperature gas reactors. The goals of the irradiation experiments are to obtain irradiation performance data at different temperatures and loading conditions to support design of the Next Generation Nuclear Plant Very High Temperature Gas Reactor, as well as other future gas reactors. The experiments will each consist of a single capsule that will contain seven separate stacks of graphite specimens. Six of the specimen stacks will have half of their graphite specimens under a compressive load, while the other half of the specimens will not be subjected to a compressive load during irradiation. The six stacks will be organized into pairs with a different compressive load being applied to the top half of each pair of specimen stacks. The seventh stack will not have a compressive load on the graphite specimens during irradiation. The specimens will be irradiated in an inert sweep gas atmosphere with on-line temperature and compressive load monitoring and control. There will also be the capability of sampling the sweep gas effluent to determine if any oxidation or off-gassing of the specimens occurs during initial start-up of the experiment. The final design phase for the first experiment was completed in September 2008, and the fabrication and assembly of the experiment test train as well as installation and testing of the control and support systems that will monitor and control the experiment during irradiation are being completed in early calendar 2009. The first experiment is scheduled to be ready for insertion in the ATR by April 30, 2009. This paper will discuss the design of the experiment including the test train and the temperature and compressive load monitoring, control, and data collection systems.
S. Blaine Grover
Design of a boiling water reactor equilibrium core using thorium-uranium fuel
In this paper the design of a Boiling Water Reactor (BWR) equilibrium core using thorium is presented; a heterogeneous blanket-seed core arrangement concept was adopted. The design was developed in three steps: in the first step two different assemblies were designed based on the integrated blanket-seed concept, they are the blanket-dummy assembly and the blanket-seed assembly. The integrated blanketseed concept comes from the fact that the blanket and the seed rods are located in the same assembly, and are burned-out in a once-through cycle. In the second step, a core design was developed to achieve an equilibrium cycle of 365 effective full power days in a standard BWR with a reload of 104 fuel assemblies designed with an average 235U enrichment of 7.5 w/o in the seed sub-lattice. The main operating parameters, like power, linear heat generation rate and void distributions were obtained as well as the shutdown margin. It was observed that the analyzed parameters behave like those obtained in a standard BWR. The shutdown margin design criterion was fulfilled by addition of a burnable poison region in the assembly. In the third step an in-house code was developed to evaluate the thorium equilibrium core under transient conditions. A stability analysis was also performed. Regarding the stability analysis, five operational states were analyzed; four of them define the traditional instability region corner of the power-flow map and the fifth one is the operational state for the full power condition. The frequency and the boiling length were calculated for each operational state. The frequency of the analyzed operational states was similar to that reported for BWRs; these are close to the unstable region that occurs due to the density wave oscillation phenomena in some nuclear power plants. Four transient analyses were also performed: manual SCRAM, recirculation pumps trip, main steam isolation valves closure and loss of feed water. The results of these transients are similar to those obtained with the traditional UO2 nuclear fuel.
Francois, J-L.; Nunez-Carrera, A.; Espinosa-Paredes, G.; Martin-del-Campo, C.
High Temperature Reactor (HTR) Deep Burn Core and Fuel Analysis: Design Selection for the Prismatic Block Reactor With Results from FY-2011 Activities
The Deep Burn (DB) Project is a U.S. Department of Energy sponsored feasibility study of Transuranic Management using high burnup fuel in the high temperature helium cooled reactor (HTR). The DB Project consists of seven tasks: project management, core and fuel analysis, spent fuel management, fuel cycle integration, TRU fuel modeling, TRU fuel qualification, and HTR fuel recycle. In the Phase II of the Project, we conducted nuclear analysis of TRU destruction/utilization in the HTR prismatic block design (Task 2.1), deep burn fuel/TRISO microanalysis (Task 2.3), and synergy with fast reactors (Task 4.2). The Task 2.1 covers the core physics design, thermo-hydraulic CFD analysis, and the thermofluid and safety analysis (low pressure conduction cooling, LPCC) of the HTR prismatic block design. The Task 2.3 covers the analysis of the structural behavior of TRISO fuel containing TRU at very high burnup level, i.e. exceeding 50% of FIMA. The Task 4.2 includes the self-cleaning HTR based on recycle of HTR-generated TRU in the same HTR. Chapter IV contains the design and analysis results of the 600MWth DB-HTR core physics with the cycle length, the average discharged burnup, heavy metal and plutonium consumptions, radial and axial power distributions, temperature reactivity coefficients. Also, it contains the analysis results of the 450MWth DB-HTR core physics and the analysis of the decay heat of a TRU loaded DB-HTR core. The evaluation of the hot spot fuel temperature of the fuel block in the DB-HTR (Deep-Burn High Temperature Reactor) core under full operating power conditions are described in Chapter V. The investigated designs are the 600MWth and 460MWth DB-HTRs. In Chapter VI, the thermo-fluid and safety of the 600MWth DB-HTRs has been analyzed to investigate a thermal-fluid design performance at the steady state and a passive safety performance during an LPCC event. Chapter VII describes the analysis results of the TRISO fuel microanalysis of the 600MWth and 450MWth DB-HTRs. The TRISO fuel microanalysis covers the gas pressure buildup in a coated fuel particle including helium production, the thermo-mechanical behavior of a CFP, the failure probabilities of CFPs, the temperature distribution in a CPF, and the fission product (FP) transport in a CFP and a graphite. In Chapter VIII, it contains the core design and analysis of sodium cooled fast reactor (SFR) with deep burn HTR reactor. It considers a synergistic combination of the DB-MHR and an SFR burner for a safe and efficient transmutation of the TRUs from LWRs. Chapter IX describes the design and analysis results of the self-cleaning (or self-recycling) HTR core. The analysis is considered zero and 5-year cooling time of the spent LWR fuels.
Michael A. Pope
Laminar Entrained Flow Reactor (Fact Sheet)
The Laminar Entrained Flow Reactor (LEFR) is a modular, lab scale, single-user reactor for the study of catalytic fast pyrolysis (CFP). This system can be employed to study a variety of reactor conditions for both in situ and ex situ CFP.
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Final safety evaluation report related to the certification of the advanced boiling water reactor design. Volume 2: Appendices
This safety evaluation report (SER) documents the technical review of the US Advanced Boiling Water Reactor (ABWR) standard design by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staff. The application for the ABWR design was initially submitted by the General Electric Company, now GE Nuclear Energy (GE), in accordance with the procedures of Appendix O of Part 50 of Title 10 of the code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR Part 50). Later GE requested that its application be considered as an application for design approval and subsequent design certification pursuant to 10 CFR {section} 52.45. The ABWR is a single-cycle, forced-circulation, boiling water reactor (BWR) with a rated power of 3,926 megawatts thermal (MWt) and a design power of 4,005 MWt. To the extent feasible and appropriate, the staff relied on earlier reviews for those ABWR design features that are substantially the same as those previously considered. Unique features of the ABWR design include internal recirculation pumps, fine-motion control rod drives, microprocessor-based digital logic and control systems, and digital safety systems. On the basis of its evaluation and independent analyses, the NRC staff concludes that, subject to satisfactory resolution of the confirmatory items identified in Section 1.8 of this SER, GE`s application for design certification meets the requirements of Subpart B of 10 CFR Part 52 that are applicable and technically relevant to the US ABWR standard design.
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Final safety evaluation report related to the certification of the advanced boiling water reactor design. Volume 1: Main report
This safety evaluation report (SER) documents the technical review of the US Advanced Boiling Water Reactor (ABWR) standard design by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staff. The application for the ABWR design was initially submitted by the General Electric Company, now GE Nuclear Energy (GE), in accordance with the procedures of Appendix O of Part 50 of Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR Part 50). Later GE requested that its application be considered as an application for design approval and subsequent design certification pursuant to 10 CFR {section} 52.45. The ABWR is a single-cycle, forced-circulation, boiling water reactor (BWR) with a rated power of 3,926 megawatts thermal (MWt) and a design power of 4,005 MWt. To the extent feasible and appropriate, the staff relied on earlier reviews for those ABWR design features that are substantially the same as those previously considered. Unique features of the ABWR design include internal recirculation pumps, fine-motion control rod drives, microprocessor-based digital logic and control systems, and digital safety systems. On the basis of its evaluation and independent analyses, the NRC staff concludes that, subject to satisfactory resolution of the confirmatory items identified in Section 1.8 of this SER, GE`s application for design certification meets the requirements of Subpart B of 10 CFR Part 52 that are applicable and technically relevant to the US ABWR standard design.
Not Available
Multi-Applications Small Light Water Reactor - NERI Final Report
The Multi-Application Small Light Water Reactor (MASLWR) project was conducted under the auspices of the Nuclear Energy Research Initiative (NERI) of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). The primary project objectives were to develop the conceptual design for a safe and economic small, natural circulation light water reactor, to address the economic and safety attributes of the concept, and to demonstrate the technical feasibility by testing in an integral test facility. This report presents the results of the project. After an initial exploratory and evolutionary process, as documented in the October 2000 report, the project focused on developing a modular reactor design that consists of a self-contained assembly with a reactor vessel, steam generators, and containment. These modular units would be manufactured at a single centralized facility, transported by rail, road, and/or ship, and installed as a series of self-contained units. This approach also allows for staged construction of an NPP and ''pull and replace'' refueling and maintenance during each five-year refueling cycle.
S. Michale Modro; James E. Fisher; Kevan D. Weaver; Jose N. Reyes, Jr.; John T. Groome; Pierre Babka; Thomas M. Carlson
Nuclear Regulatory Commission Handling of Beyond Design Basis Events for Nuclear Power Reactors
Broader source: Energy.gov [DOE]
Presenter: Bill Reckley, Chief, Policy and Support Branch, Japan Lessons-Learned Project Directorate, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation, US Nuclear Regulatory Commission US Nuclear Regulatory Commission
Final Report: Design & Evaluation of Energy Efficient Modular Classroom Structures Phase II / Volume I-VII, January 17, 1995 - October 30, 1999
We are developing innovations to enable modular builders to improve the energy performance of their classrooms with no increase in first cost. The Modern Building Systems' (MBS) classroom building conforms to the stringent Oregon energy code, and at $18/ft{sup 2} ($1.67/m{sup 2}) (FOB the factory) it is at the low end of the cost range for modular classrooms. We have investigated daylighting, cross-ventilation, solar preheat of ventilation air, air-to-air heat exchanger, electric lighting controls, and down-sizing HVAC systems as strategies to improve energy performance. We were able to improve energy performance with no increase in first cost in all climates examined. Two papers and a full report on Phase I of this study are available. The work described in this report is from the second phase of the project. In the first phase we redesigned the basic modular classroom to incorporate energy strategies including daylighting, cross-ventilation, solar preheating of ventilation air, and insulation. We also explored thermal mass but determined that it was not a cost-effective strategy in the five climates we examined. Energy savings ranged from 6% to 49% with an average of 23%. Paybacks ranged from 1.3 years to 23.8 years, an average of 12.1 years. In Phase II the number of baseline buildings was expanded by simulating buildings that would be typical of those produced by Modern Building Systems, Inc. (MBS) for each of the seven locations/climates. A number of parametric simulations were performed for each energy strategy. Additionally we refined our previous algorithm for a solar ventilation air wall preheater and developed an algorithm for a roof preheater configuration. These algorithms were coded as functions in DOE 2.1E. We were striving for occupant comfort as well as energy savings. We performed computer analyses to verify adequate illumination on vertical surfaces and acceptable glare levels when using daylighting. We also used computational fluid dynamics software to determine air distribution from cross-ventilation and used the resulting interior wind speeds to calculate occupant comfort and allowable outside air temperatures for cross-ventilation.
Preliminary design study of small long life boiling water reactor (BWR) with tight lattice thorium nitride fuel
Neutronic performance of small long-life boiling water reactors (BWR) with thorium nitride based fuel has been performed. A recent study conducted on BWR in tight lattice environments (with a lower moderator percentage) produces small power reactor which has some specifications, i.e. 10 years operation time, power density of 19.1 watt/cc and maximum excess reactivity of about 4%. This excess reactivity value is smaller than standard reactivity of conventional BWR. The use of hexagonal geometry on the fuel cell of BWR provides a substantial effect on the criticality of the reactor to obtain a longer operating time. Supported by a tight concept lattice where the volume fraction of the fuel is greater than the moderator and fuel, Thorium Nitride give good results for fuel cell design on small long life BWR. The excess reactivity of the reactor can be reduced with the addition of gadolinium as burnable poisons. Therefore the hexagonal tight lattice fuel cell design of small long life BWR that has a criticality more than 20 years of operating time has been obtained.
Trianti, Nuri, E-mail: email@example.com, E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com; Su'ud, Zaki, E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com, E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com; Arif, Idam, E-mail: email@example.com, E-mail: email@example.com [Nuclear Physics and Biophysics Research Group, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Science, Bandung Institute of Technology (Ganesha 10 Bandung, Indonesia) (Indonesia); Riyana, EkaSapta [Nuclear Energy Regulatory Agency (BAPETEN) (Indonesia)
Status of axial heterogeneous liquid-metal fast breeder reactor core design studies and research and development
The current status of axial heterogeneous core (AHC) design development in Japan, which consists of an AHC core design in a pool-type demonstration fast breeder reactor (DFBR) and research and development activities supporting AHC core design, is presented. The DFBR core design objectives developed by The Japan Atomic Power Company include (a) favorable core seismic response, (b) core compactness, (c) high availability, and (d) lower fuel cycle cost. The AHC concept was selected as a reference pool-type DFBR core because it met these objectives more suitably than the homogeneous core (HOC). The AHC core layouts were optimized emphasizing the reduction of the burnup reactivity swing, peak fast fluence, and power peaking. The key performance parameters resulting from the AHC, such as flat axial power/flux distribution, lower peak fast fluence, lower burnup reactivity swing, etc., were evaluated in comparison with the HOC. The critical experiments at the Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute's Fast Critical Assembly facility demonstrate the key AHC performance characteristics. The large AHC engineering benchmark experiments using the zero-power plutonium reactor and the AHC fuel pin irradiation test program using the JOYO reactor are also presented.
Nakagawa, H.; Inagaki, T.; Yoshimi, H.; Shirakata, K.; Watari, Y.; Suzuki, M.; Inoue, K.
Design, fabrication, and certification of advanced modular PV power systems. Annual technical progress report, 8 September 1995--7 September 1996
This report summarizes the activities performed during the first year of a nominal 2-year effort by Solar Electric Specialties Company (SES) under the Photovoltaic Manufacturing Technology (PVMaT) project of the National Photovoltaic Program. The goal of the SES contract is to reduce the installed system life-cycle costs by developing certified and standardized prototype products for two SES product lines--MAPPS{trademark} and Photogenset{trademark}. The MAPPS (modular autonomous PV power supply) systems are used for DC applications up to about a thousand watt-hours. The Photogensets are hybrid PV/generator systems for AC applications. SES expects these products to provide the basis for future commercial product lines of standardized certified, packaged systems.
Lambarski, T.; Minyard, G. [Solar Electric Specialties, Willits, CA (United States)
Reactor Physics Methods and Preconceptual Core Design Analyses for Conversion of the Advanced Test Reactor to Low-Enriched Uranium Fuel Annual Report for Fiscal Year 2012
Under the current long-term DOE policy and planning scenario, both the ATR and the ATRC will be reconfigured at an appropriate time within the next several years to operate with low-enriched uranium (LEU) fuel. This will be accomplished under the auspices of the Reduced Enrichment Research and Test Reactor (RERTR) Program, administered by the DOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA). At a minimum, the internal design and composition of the fuel element plates and support structure will change, to accommodate the need for low enrichment in a manner that maintains total core excess reactivity at a suitable level for anticipated operational needs throughout each cycle while respecting all control and shutdown margin requirements and power distribution limits. The complete engineering design and optimization of LEU cores for the ATR and the ATRC will require significant multi-year efforts in the areas of fuel design, development and testing, as well as a complete re-analysis of the relevant reactor physics parameters for a core composed of LEU fuel, with possible control system modifications. Ultimately, revalidation of the computational physics parameters per applicable national and international standards against data from experimental measurements for prototypes of the new ATR and ATRC core designs will also be required for Safety Analysis Report (SAR) changes to support routine operations with LEU. This report is focused on reactor physics analyses conducted during Fiscal Year (FY) 2012 to support the initial development of several potential preconceptual fuel element designs that are suitable candidates for further study and refinement during FY-2013 and beyond. In a separate, but related, effort in the general area of computational support for ATR operations, the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) is conducting a focused multiyear effort to introduce modern high-fidelity computational reactor physics software and associated validation protocols to replace several obsolete components of the current analytical tool set used for ATR neutronics support. This aggressive computational and experimental campaign will have a broad strategic impact on the operation of the ATR, both in terms of improved computational efficiency and accuracy for support of ongoing DOE programs as well as in terms of national and international recognition of the ATR National Scientific User Facility (NSUF). It will also greatly facilitate the LEU conversion effort, since the upgraded computational capabilities are now at a stage where they can be, and in fact have been, used for the required physics analysis from the beginning. In this context, extensive scoping neutronics analyses were completed for six preconceptual candidate LEU fuel element designs for the ATR (and for its companion critical facility, ATRC). Of these, four exhibited neutronics performance in what is believed to be an acceptable range. However, there are currently some concerns with regard to fabricability and mechanical performance that have emerged for one of the four latter concepts. Thus three concepts have been selected for more comprehensive conceptual design analysis during the upcoming fiscal year.
David W. Nigg; Sean R. Morrell
Sodium Based Heat Pipe Modules for Space Reactor Concepts: Stainless Steel SAFE-100 Core
A heat pipe cooled reactor is one of several candidate reactor cores being considered for advanced space power and propulsion systems to support future space exploration applications. Long life heat pipe modules, with designs verified through a combination of theoretical analysis and experimental lifetime evaluations, would be necessary to establish the viability of any of these candidates, including the heat pipe reactor option. A hardware-based program was initiated to establish the infrastructure necessary to build heat pipe modules. This effort, initiated by Los Alamos National Laboratory and referred to as the Safe Affordable Fission Engine (SAFE) project, set out to fabricate and perform non-nuclear testing on a modular heat pipe reactor prototype that can provide 100-kWt from the core to an energy conversion system at 700 deg. C. Prototypic heat pipe hardware was designed, fabricated, filled, closed-out and acceptance tested. (authors)
Martin, James J.; Reid, Robert S. [Marshall Space Flight Center, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Huntsville, Alabama, 35812 (United States)
Advanced Test Reactor Safety Basis Upgrade Lessons Learned Relative to Design Basis Verification and Safety Basis Management
The Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) is a pressurized light-water reactor with a design thermal power of 250 MW. The principal function of the ATR is to provide a high neutron flux for testing reactor fuels and other materials. The reactor also provides other irradiation services such as radioisotope production. The ATR and its support facilities are located at the Test Reactor Area of the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL). An audit conducted by the Department of Energy's Office of Independent Oversight and Performance Assurance (DOE OA) raised concerns that design conditions at the ATR were not adequately analyzed in the safety analysis and that legacy design basis management practices had the potential to further impact safe operation of the facility.1 The concerns identified by the audit team, and issues raised during additional reviews performed by ATR safety analysts, were evaluated through the unreviewed safety question process resulting in shutdown of the ATR for more than three months while these concerns were resolved. Past management of the ATR safety basis, relative to facility design basis management and change control, led to concerns that discrepancies in the safety basis may have developed. Although not required by DOE orders or regulations, not performing design basis verification in conjunction with development of the 10 CFR 830 Subpart B upgraded safety basis allowed these potential weaknesses to be carried forward. Configuration management and a clear definition of the existing facility design basis have a direct relation to developing and maintaining a high quality safety basis which properly identifies and mitigates all hazards and postulated accident conditions. These relations and the impact of past safety basis management practices have been reviewed in order to identify lessons learned from the safety basis upgrade process and appropriate actions to resolve possible concerns with respect to the current ATR safety basis. The need for a design basis reconstitution program for the ATR has been identified along with the use of sound configuration management principles in order to support safe and efficient facility operation.
G. L. Sharp; R. T. McCracken
Advanced Light Water Reactor Plants System 80+{trademark} Design Certification Program. Annual progress report, October 1, 1992--September 30, 1993
The purpose of this report is to provide a status of the progress that was made towards Design Certification of System 80+{trademark} during the US government`s 1993 fiscal year. The System 80+ Advanced Light Water Reactor (ALWR) is a 3931 MW{sub t} (1350 MWe) Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR). The design consists of an essentially complete plant. It is based on evolutionary improvements to the Standardized System 80 nuclear steam supply system in operation at Palo Verde Units 1, 2, and 3, and the Duke Power Company P-81 balance-of-plant (BOP) that was designed and partially constructed at the Cherokee plant site. The System 80/P-81 original design has been substantially enhanced to increase conformance with the EPRI ALWR Utility Requirements Document (URD). Some design enhancements incorporated in the System 80+ design are included in the four units currently under construction in the Republic of Korea. These units form the basis of the Korean standardization program. The full System 80+ standard design has been offered to the Republic of China, in response to their recent bid specification. The ABB-CE Standard Safety Analysis Report (CESSAR-DC) was submitted to the NRC and a Draft Safety Evaluation Report was issued by the NRC in October 1992. CESSAR-DC contains the technical basis for compliance with the EPRI URD for simplified emergency planning. The Nuclear Steam Supply System (NSSS) is the standard ABB-Combustion Engineering two-loop arrangement with two steam generators, two hot legs and four cold legs each with a reactor coolant pump. The System 80+ standard plant includes a sperical steel containment vessel which is enclosed in a concrete shield building, thus providing the safety advantages of a dual containment.
Not Available
Preapplication safety evaluation report for the Power Reactor Innovative Small Module (PRISM) liquid-metal reactor. Final report
This preapplication safety evaluation report (PSER) presents the results of the preapplication desip review for die Power Reactor Innovative Small Module (PRISM) liquid-mew (sodium)-cooled reactor, Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) Project No. 674. The PRISM conceptual desip was submitted by the US Department of Energy in accordance with the NRC`s ``Statement of Policy for the Regulation of Advanced Nuclear Power Plants`` (51 Federal Register 24643). This policy provides for the early Commission review and interaction with designers and licensees. The PRISM reactor desip is a small, modular, pool-type, liquid-mew (sodium)-cooled reactor. The standard plant design consists of dim identical power blocks with a total electrical output rating of 1395 MWe- Each power block comprises three reactor modules, each with a thermal rating of 471 MWt. Each module is located in its own below-grade silo and is co to its own intermediate heat transport system and steam generator system. The reactors utilize a metallic-type fuel, a ternary alloy of U-Pu-Zr. The design includes passive reactor shutdown and passive decay heat removal features. The PSER is the NRC`s preliminary evaluation of the safety features in the PRISM design, including the projected research and development programs required to support the design and the proposed testing needs. Because the NRC review was based on a conceptual design, the PSER did not result in an approval of the design. Instead it identified certain key safety issues, provided some guidance on applicable licensing criteria, assessed the adequacy of the preapplicant`s research and development programs, and concluded that no obvious impediments to licensing the PRISM design had been identified.
Donoghue, J.E.; Donohew, J.N.; Golub, G.R.; Kenneally, R.M.; Moore, P.B.; Sands, S.P.; Throm, E.D.; Wetzel, B.A. [Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC (United States). Associate Directorate for Advanced Reactors and License Renewal
Status of EC solid breeder blanket designs and R&D for DEMO fusion reactors
In the framework of the European Community Fusion Technology Program four blanket concepts for a DEMO reactor are being investigated. DEMO is the next step after ITER. It should ensure tritium self-sufficiency and operate at coolant temperatures high enough to have a reasonable plant efficiency. Further requirements have been specified for the four concepts, namely an average neutron wall load of 2.2 MW/m{sup 2}, a blanket lifetime of 20000 hours and the capability of the blanket segment to withstand the forces caused by a rapid distribution of the plasma current (20 MA to zero in 20 ms), so that after the disruption the segment can still allow a comparison of the various options, in view of reducing this number to two in 1995 and to design and develop modules and articles representative of the chosen blankets to be tested in ITER. The present paper deals with two solid breeder concepts. They have many features in common: both use high pressure helium as coolant and helium to purge the tritium from the breeder material, martensitic steel as structural material and beryllium as neutron multiplier. The configuration of the two blankets are however different: in the B.I.T. (Breeder Inside Tube) concept the breeder material is LiAlO{sub 2} or LiZrO{sub 3} in the form of annular pellets contained in tubes surrounded by beryllium blocks, the coolant helium being outside the tubes, whereas in the B.O.T. (Breeder out of Tube) the breeder and multiplier material are Li{sub 4}SiO{sub 4} and beryllium pebbles forming a mixed bed placed outside the tubes containing the coolant helium.
Dalle Donne, M. [INR, Karlsruhe (Russian Federation); Anziedi, L.A. [C.R.E., Franscati (Italy); Kwast, H. [ECN, Petten (Netherlands)] [and others
Safety and core design of large liquid-metal cooled fast breeder reactors
type fast reactor of the IV generation for regional powerELECTRA-FCC: a centre for Generation IV system research andunder the framework of generation-IV nuclear pro- grams or
Qvist, Staffan Alexander
Stability analysis of the boiling water reactor : methods and advanced designs
Density Wave Oscillations (DWOs) are known to be possible when a coolant undergoes considerable density reduction while passing through a heated channel. In the development of boiling water reactors (BWRs), there has been ...
Hu, Rui, Ph. D. Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Design strategies for optimizing high burnup fuel in pressurized water reactors
This work is focused on the strategy for utilizing high-burnup fuel in pressurized water reactors (PWR) with special emphasis on the full array of neutronic considerations. The historical increase in batch-averaged discharge ...
Xu, Zhiwen, 1975-
Optimized core design of a supercritical carbon dioxide-cooled fast reactor
Spurred by the renewed interest in nuclear power, Gas-cooled Fast Reactors (GFRs) have received increasing attention in the past decade. Motivated by the goals of the Generation-IV International Forum (GIF), a GFR cooled ...
Handwerk, Christopher S. (Christopher Stanley), 1974-
Thermal hydraulic design and analysis of a large lead-cooled reactor with flexible conversion ratio
This thesis contributes to the Flexible Conversion Ratio Fast Reactor Systems Evaluation Project, a part of the Nuclear Cycle Technology and Policy Program funded by the Department of Energy through the Nuclear Energy ...
Nikiforova, Anna S., S.M. Massachusetts Institute of Technology
An inverted pressurized water reactor design with twisted-tape swirl promoters
An Inverted Fuel Pressurized Water Reactor (IPWR) concept was previously investigated and developed by Paolo Ferroni at MIT with the effort to improve the power density and capacity of current PWRs by modifying the core ...
Nguyen, Nghia T. (Nghia Tat)
Granular Dynamics in Pebble Bed Reactor Cores
pebble bed reactor,� Nuclear Engineering and Design, vol.the AVR reactor,� Nuclear Engineering and Design, vol. 121,Operating Experience,� Nuclear Engineering and Design, vol.
Laufer, Michael Robert
Modular Verification of Timed Circuits Using Automatic Abstraction
Modular Verification of Timed Circuits Using Automatic Abstraction Hao Zheng, Eric Mercer, Member for verification of timed circuits using automatic abstraction. This approach partitions the design into modules by the RAPPID instruction length decoder designed at Intel [2]. This design was 3 times faster while using only
Zheng, Hao
Technology Development Program for an Advanced Potassium Rankine Power Conversion System Compatible with Several Space Reactor Designs
This report documents the work performed during the first phase of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), National Research Announcement (NRA) Technology Development Program for an Advanced Potassium Rankine Power Conversion System Compatible with Several Space Reactor Designs. The document includes an optimization of both 100-kW{sub e} and 250-kW{sub e} (at the propulsion unit) Rankine cycle power conversion systems. In order to perform the mass optimization of these systems, several parametric evaluations of different design options were investigated. These options included feed and reheat, vapor superheat levels entering the turbine, three different material types, and multiple heat rejection system designs. The overall masses of these Nb-1%Zr systems are approximately 3100 kg and 6300 kg for the 100- kW{sub e} and 250-kW{sub e} systems, respectively, each with two totally redundant power conversion units, including the mass of the single reactor and shield. Initial conceptual designs for each of the components were developed in order to estimate component masses. In addition, an overall system concept was presented that was designed to fit within the launch envelope of a heavy lift vehicle. A technology development plan is presented in the report that describes the major efforts that are required to reach a technology readiness level of 6. A 10-year development plan was proposed.
Yoder, G.L.
Pressure loadings of Soviet-designed VVER (Water-Cooled, Water-Moderated Energy Reactor) reactor release mitigation structures from large-break LOCAs
Analyses have been carried out of the pressurization of the accident release mitigation structures of Soviet-designed VVER (Water-Cooled, Water-Moderated Energy Reactor) pressurized water reactors following large-break loss-of-coolant accidents. Specific VVER systems for which calculations were performed are the VVER-440 model V230, VVER-440 model V213, and VVER-1000 model V320. Descriptions of the designs of these and other VVER models are contained in the report DOE/NE-0084. The principal objective of the current analyses is to calculate the time dependent pressure loadings inside the accident localization or containment structures immediately following the double-ended guillotine rupture of a primary coolant pipe. In addition, the pressures are compared with the results of calculations of the response of the structures to overpressure. Primary coolant system thermal hydraulic conditions and the fluid conditions at the break location were calculated with the RETRAN-02 Mod2 computer code (Agee, 1984). Pressures and temperatures inside the building accident release mitigation structures were obtained from the PACER (Pressurization Accompanying Coolant Escape from Ruptures) multicompartment containment analysis code developed at Argonne National Laboratory. The analyses were carried out using best estimate models and conditions rather than conservative, bounding-type assumptions. In particular, condensation upon structure and equipment was calculated using correlations based upon analyses of the HDR, Marviken, and Battelle Frankfurt containment loading experiments. The intercompartment flow rates incorporate an effective discharge coefficient and liquid droplet carryover fraction given by expressions of Schwan determined from analyses of the Battelle Frankfurt and Marviken tests. 5 refs., 4 figs.
Sienicki, J.J.; Horak, W.C. (Argonne National Lab., IL (USA); Brookhaven National Lab., Upton, NY (USA))
RAMS (Risk Analysis - Modular System) methodology
The Risk Analysis - Modular System (RAMS) was developed to serve as a broad scope risk analysis tool for the Risk Assessment of the Hanford Mission (RAHM) studies. The RAHM element provides risk analysis support for Hanford Strategic Analysis and Mission Planning activities. The RAHM also provides risk analysis support for the Hanford 10-Year Plan development activities. The RAMS tool draws from a collection of specifically designed databases and modular risk analysis methodologies and models. RAMS is a flexible modular system that can be focused on targeted risk analysis needs. It is specifically designed to address risks associated with overall strategy, technical alternative, and `what if` questions regarding the Hanford cleanup mission. RAMS is set up to address both near-term and long-term risk issues. Consistency is very important for any comparative risk analysis, and RAMS is designed to efficiently and consistently compare risks and produce risk reduction estimates. There is a wide range of output information that can be generated by RAMS. These outputs can be detailed by individual contaminants, waste forms, transport pathways, exposure scenarios, individuals, populations, etc. However, they can also be in rolled-up form to support high-level strategy decisions.
Stenner, R.D.; Strenge, D.L.; Buck, J.W. [and others
An Advanced Integrated Diffusion/Transport Method for the Design, Analysis and Optimization of the Very-High-Temperature Reactors
The main objective of this research is to develop an integrated diffusion/transport (IDT) method to substantially improve the accuracy of nodal diffusion methods for the design and analysis of Very High Temperature Reactors (VHTR). Because of the presence of control rods in the reflector regions in the Pebble Bed Reactor (PBR-VHTR), traditional nodal diffusion methods do not accurately model these regions, within which diffusion theory breaks down in the vicinity of high neutron absorption and steep flux gradients. The IDT method uses a local transport solver based on a new incident flux response expansion method in the controlled nodes. Diffusion theory is used in the rest of the core. This approach improves the accuracy of the core solution by generating transport solutions of controlled nodes while maintaining computational efficiency by using diffusion solutions in nodes where such a treatment is sufficient. The transport method is initially developed and coupled to the reformulated 3-D nodal diffusion model in the CYNOD code for PBR core design and fuel cycle analysis. This method is also extended to the prismatic VHTR. The new method accurately captures transport effects in highly heterogeneous regions with steep flux gradients. The calculations of these nodes with transport theory avoid errors associated with spatial homogenization commonly used in diffusion methods in reactor core simulators
Farzad Rahnema; Dingkang Zhang; Abderrafi Ougouag; Frederick Gleicher
A vectorized heat transfer model for solid reactor cores
The new generation of nuclear reactors includes designs that are significantly different from light water reactors. Among these new reactor designs is the Modular High-Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor (MHTGR). In addition, nuclear thermal rockets share a number of similarities with terrestrial HTGRs and would be amenable to similar types of analyses. In these reactors, the heat transfer in the solid core mass is of primary interest in design and safety assessment. One significant safety feature of these reactors is the capability to withstand a loss of pressure and forced cooling in the primary system and still maintain peak fuel temperatures below the safe threshold for retaining the fission products. To accurately assess the performance of gas-cooled reactors during these types of transients, a Helium/Hydrogen Cooled Reactor Analysis (HERA) computer code has been developed. HERA has the ability to model arbitrary geometries in three dimensions, which allows the user to easily analyze reactor cores constructed of prismatic graphite elements. The code accounts for heat generation in the fuel, control rods and other structures; conduction and radiation across gaps; convection to the coolant; and a variety of boundary conditions. The numerical solution scheme has been optimized for vector computers, making long transient analyses economical. Time integration is either explicit or implicit, which allows the use of the model to accurately calculate both short- or long-term transients with an efficient use of computer time. Both the basic spatial and temporal integration schemes have been benchmarked against analytical solutions. Also, HERA has been used to analyze a depressurized loss of forced cooling transient in a HTGR with a very detailed three-dimensional input model. The results compare favorably with other means of analysis and provide further validation of the models and methods. 18 refs., 11 figs.
Rider, W.J.; Cappiello, M.W.; Liles, D.R.
Design and Status of the NGNP Fuel Experiment AGR-3/4 Irradiated in the Advanced Test Reactor
The United States Department of Energy�s Next Generation Nuclear Plant (NGNP) Advanced Gas Reactor (AGR) Fuel Development and Qualification Program will be irradiating up to seven separate low enriched uranium (LEU) tri-isotopic (TRISO) particle fuel (in compact form) experiments in the Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) located at the Idaho National Laboratory (INL). These irradiations and fuel development are being accomplished to support development of the next generation reactors in the United States, and will be irradiated over the next several years to demonstrate and qualify new TRISO coated particle fuel for use in high temperature gas reactors. The goals of the irradiation experiments are to provide irradiation performance data to support fuel process development, to qualify fuel for normal operating conditions, to support development and validation of fuel performance and fission product transport models and codes, and to provide irradiated fuel and materials for post irradiation examination (PIE) and safety testing. The experiments, which will each consist of at least six separate capsules, will be irradiated in an inert sweep gas atmosphere with individual on-line temperature monitoring and control of each capsule. The sweep gas will also have on-line fission product monitoring on its effluent to track performance of the fuel in each individual capsule during irradiation. The first experiment (designated AGR-1) started irradiation in December 2006 and was completed in November 2009. The second experiment (AGR-2) started irradiation in June 2010 and is currently scheduled to be completed in April 2013. The third and fourth experiments have been combined into a single experiment designated AGR-3/4, which started its irradiation in December 2011 and is currently scheduled to be completed in November 2013. Since the purpose of this experiment is to provide data on fission product migration and retention in the NGNP reactor, the design of this experiment is significantly different from the first two experiments, though the control and monitoring systems are very similar. The purpose and design of this experiment will be discussed followed by its progress and status to date.
Blaine Grover
Design of an Actinide-Burning, Lead or Lead-Bismuth Cooled Reactor that Produces Low-Cost Electricity
The purpose of this Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL) and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) University Research Consortium (URC) project is to investigate the suitability of lead or lead-bismuth cooled fast reactors for producing low-cost electricity as well as for actinide burning. The goal is to identify and analyze the key technical issues in core neutronics, materials, thermal-hydraulics, fuels, and economics associated with the development of this reactor concept. Work has been accomplished in four major areas of research: core neutronic design, material compatibility, plant engineering, and coolant activation. In the area of core neutronic design, the reactivity vs. burnup and discharge isotopics of both non-fertile and fertile fuels were evaluated. An innovative core for pure actinide burning that uses streaming, fertile-free fuel assemblies was studied in depth. This particular core exhibits excellent reactivity performance upon coolant voiding, even for voids that occur in the core center, and has a transuranic (TRU) destruction rate that is comparable to the proposed accelerator transmutation of waste (ATW) facility. These studies suggest that a core can be designed to achieve a long life while maintaining safety and minimizing waste. In the area of material compatibility studies, an experimental apparatus for the investigation of the flow-assisted dissolution and precipitation (corrosion) of potential fuel cladding and structural materials has been designed and built at the INEEL. The INEEL forced-convection corrosion cell consists of a small heated vessel with a shroud and gas flow system. The corrosion cell is being used to test steel that is commercially available in the United States to temperatures above 650�C. Progress in plant engineering was made for two reactor concepts, one utilizing an indirect cycle with heat exchangers and the other utilizing a direct-contact steam cycle. The evaluation of the indirect cycle designs has investigated the effects of various parameters to increase electric production at full power. For the direct-contact reactor, major issues related to the direct-contact heat transfer rate and entrainment and carryover of liquid lead-bismuth to the turbine have been identified and analyzed. An economic analysis approach was also developed to determine the cost of electricity production in the lead-bismuth reactor. The approach will be formulated into a model and applied to develop scientific cost estimates for the different reactor designs and thus aid in the selection of the most economic option. In the area of lead-bismuth coolant activation, the radiological hazard was evaluated with particular emphasis on the direct-contact reactor. In this system, the lack of a physical barrier between the primary and secondary coolant favors the release of the alpha-emitter Po?210 and its transport throughout the plant. Modeling undertaken on the basis of the scarce information available in the literature confirmed the importance of this issue, as well as the need for experimental work to reduce the uncertainties on the basic characteristics of volatile polonium chemical forms.
Mac Donald, Philip Elsworth; Weaver, Kevan Dean; Davis, Cliff Bybee; MIT folks
Design change management in regulation of nuclear fleets: World nuclear association's working groups on Cooperation in Reactor Design Evaluation and Licensing (CORDEL)
The 60 year life of a reactor means that a plant will undergo change during its life. To ensure continuing safety, changes must be made with a full understanding of the design intent. With this aim, regulators require that each operating organisation should have a formally designated entity responsible for complete design knowledge in regard to plant safety. INSAG-19 calls such an entity 'Design Authority'. This requirement is difficult to achieve, especially as the number of countries and utilities operating plants increases. Some of these operating organisations will be new, and some will be small. For Gen III plants sold on a turnkey basis, it is even more challenging for the operating company to develop and retain the full knowledge needed for this role. CORDEL's Task Force entitled 'Design Change Management' is investigating options for effective design change management with the aim to support design standardization throughout a fleet's lifetime by means of enhanced international cooperation within industry and regulators. This paper starts with considering the causes of design change and identifies reasons for the increased beneficial involvement of the plant's original vendor in the design change process. A key central theme running through the paper is the definition of responsibilities for design change. Various existing mechanisms of vendor-operator interfaces over design change and how they are managed in different organisational and regulatory environments around the world are considered, with the functionality of Owners Groups and Design Authority being central. The roles played in the design change process by vendors, utilities, regulators, owners' groups and other organisations such as WANO are considered The aerospace industry approach to Design Authority has been assessed to consider what lessons might be learned. (authors)
Swinburn, R. [CORDEL DCM Task Force, Rolls-Royce Plc (United Kingdom); Borysova, I. [CORDEL, WNA, 22a St.James Sq., London SW1Y 4JH (United Kingdom); Waddington, J. [CORDEL Group (United Kingdom); Head, J. G. [CORDEL Group, GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy (United Kingdom); Raidis, Z. [CORDEL Group, Candu Energy (United Kingdom)
Implementation of the SAM-CE Monte Carlo benchmark analysis capability for validating nuclear data and reactor design codes
The National Nuclear Data Center is continuing its program to improve the nuclear data base used as input for commercial reactor analysis and design. In the most recent phase of this project the Monte Carlo program SAM-CE, developed by the Mathematical Applications Group, Inc. (MAGI), was made operational at BNL. This program was implemented on the BNL-CDC-7600 Computer, and also on the PDP-10 in-house computer. The NNDC made operational and developed techniques for processing ENDF/B-V cross sections for SAM-CE. A limited ENDF/B-V based library was produced. Use of the SAM-CE program in thermal reactor problems was validated using detailed comparisons of results with other Monte Carlo codes such as RECAP, RCP01 and VIM as well as with experimental data.
Beer, M.; Rose, P.
Th/U-233 multi-recycle in pressurized water reactors : feasibility study of multiple homogeneous and heterogeneous assembly designs.
The use of thorium in current or advanced light water reactors (LWRs) has been of interest in recent years. These interests have been associated with the need to increase nuclear fuel resources and the perceived non-proliferation advantages of the utilization of thorium in the fuel cycle. Various options have been considered for the use of thorium in the LWR fuel cycle. The possibility for thorium utilization in a multi-recycle system has also been considered in past literature, primarily because of the potential for near breeders with Th/U-233 in the thermal energy range. The objective of this study is to evaluate the potential of Th/U-233 fuel multi-recycle in current LWRs, focusing on pressurized water reactors (PWRs). Approaches for sustainable multi-recycle without the need for external fissile material makeup have been investigated. The intent is to obtain a design that allows existing PWRs to be used with minimal modifications.
Yun, D.; Taiwo, T. A.; Kim, T. K.; Mohamed, A.; Nuclear Engineering Division
This report documents progress made during FY 2010 in studies of converting the High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) from high enriched uranium (HEU) fuel to low enriched uranium (LEU) fuel. Conversion from HEU to LEU will require a change in fuel form from uranium oxide to a uranium-molybdenum alloy. With axial and radial grading of the fuel foil and an increase in reactor power to 100 MW, calculations indicate that the HFIR can be operated with LEU fuel with no degradation in performance to users from the current level. Studies are reported of support to a thermal hydraulic test loop design, the implementation of finite element, thermal hydraulic analysis capability, and infrastructure tasks at HFIR to upgrade the facility for operation at 100 MW. A discussion of difficulties with preparing a fuel specification for the uranium-molybdenum alloy is provided. Continuing development in the definition of the fuel fabrication process is described.
Cook, David Howard [ORNL; Freels, James D [ORNL; Ilas, Germina [ORNL; Jolly, Brian C [ORNL; Miller, James Henry [ORNL; Primm, Trent [ORNL; Renfro, David G [ORNL; Sease, John D [ORNL; Pinkston, Daniel [ORNL
Exploratory design study on reactor configurations for carbon dioxide capture from conventional power plants employing regenerable solid sorbents
Preliminary commercial designs were carried out for a fluidized bed as a CO{sub 2} adsorber and a moving bed as a CO{sub 2} regenerator. Reverse engineering methodology was employed on the basis of a commercial 500 MW supercritical PC power plant whereby the boundaries required for a particular reactor design and configuration could be set. Employing the proposed moving bed for regenerator is, however, not promising because of poor heat transfer, evolution of CO{sub 2} during regeneration, and high pressure drop when small particles are used. If regeneration kinetics is as slow as reported in tens of minutes, the bed height can be quite high and the reactor can be quite costly. In its place, a so-called assisted self-fluidization bed with embedded heat transfer surface was proposed. Theoretically, there is no reason why the fluidized bed cannot be successfully designed and operated both as an adsorber and a regenerator under proper adsorption and regeneration kinetics. Recent publications, where fluidized beds, circulating fluidized beds, or a combination of them were employed both as an adsorber and a regenerator, were cited. Staging may not be necessary employing the fluidized bed technology because of the capability to control reaction temperature at the optimum operating temperature through embedded heat transfer surface in the fluidized beds. Even if the staging is necessary, the implementation of staging in fluidized beds at ambient pressure and moderate temperature is relatively easy and with minimum cost penalty. Example designs are presented.
Yang, W.C.; Hoffman, J. [US DOE, Pittsburgh, PA (USA). National Energy Technology Laboratory
Flow Components in a NaK Test Loop Designed to Simulate Conditions in a Nuclear Surface Power Reactor
A test loop using NaK as the working fluid is presently in use to study material compatibility effects on various components that comprise a possible nuclear reactor design for use on the lunar surface. A DC electromagnetic (EM) pump has been designed and implemented as a means of actively controlling the NaK flow rate through the system and an EM flow sensor is employed to monitor the developed flow rate. These components allow for the matching of the flow rate conditions in test loops with those that would be found in a full-scale surface-power reactor. The design and operating characteristics of the EM pump and flow sensor are presented. In the EM pump, current is applied to a set of electrodes to produce a Lorentz body force in the fluid. A measurement of the induced voltage (back-EMF) in the flow sensor provides the means of monitoring flow rate. Both components are compact, employing high magnetic field strength neodymium magnets thermally coupled to a water-cooled housing. A vacuum gap limits the heat transferred from the high temperature NaK tube to the magnets and a magnetically-permeable material completes the magnetic circuit. The pump is designed to produce a pressure rise of 34.5 kPa, and the flow sensor's predicted output is roughly 20 mV at the loop's nominal flow rate of 0.114 m{sup 3}/hr.
Polzin, Kurt A.; Godfroy, Thomas J. [NASA Marshall Space Flight Center Propulsion Research and Technology Applications Branch/ER24, MSFC, AL 35812 (United States)
Single channel flow blockage accident phenomena identification and ranking table (PIRT) for the advanced Candu reactor
The Advanced Candu Reactor (ACRTM) is an evolutionary advancement of the current Candu 6{sup R} reactor, aimed at producing electrical power for a capital cost and at a unit-energy cost significantly less than that of the current reactor designs. The ACR retains the modular concept of horizontal fuel channels surrounded by a heavy water moderator, as with all Candu reactors. However, ACR uses slightly enriched uranium (SEU) fuel, compared to the natural uranium used in Candu 6. This achieves the twin goals of improved economics (e.g., via reductions in the heavy water requirements and the use of a light water coolant), as well as improved safety. This paper documents the results of Phenomena Identification and Ranking Table (PIRT) results for a very limited frequency, beyond design basis event of the ACR design. This PIRT is developed in a highly structured process of expert elicitation that is well supported by experimental data and analytical results. The single-channel flow blockage event in an ACR reactor assumes a severe flow blockage of one of the reactor fuel channels, which leads to a reduction of the flow in the affected channel, leading to fuel cladding and fuel temperature increase. The paper outlines the design characteristics of the ACR reactor that impact the PIRT process and computer code applicability. It also describes the flow blockage phenomena, lists all components and systems that have an important role during the event, discusses the PIRT process and results, and presents the finalized PIRT tables. (authors)
Popov, N.K.; Abdul-Razzak, A.; Snell, V.G.; Langman, V. [Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd., 2251 Speakman Drive, Mississauga, Ontario, L5K 1B2 (Canada); Sills, H. [Consultant, Deep River, Ontario (Canada)
Maintenance building structural design description: 4 x 350 MW(t) Modular HTGR [High-Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor] Plant
The Maintenance Building is a grade-founded, two-story, steel-framed structure, located adjacent to the Turbine Building in the Energy Conversion Area. It has a reinforced concrete foundation and slab on grade, and insulated sheet metal exterior walls and roof decking.
Experimental study of Siphon breaker about size effect in real scale reactor design
Rupture accident within the pipe of a nuclear reactor is one of the main causes of a loss of coolant accident (LOCA). Siphon-breaking is a passive method that can prevent a LOCA. In this study, either a line or a hole is used as a siphon-breaker, and the effect of various parameters, such as the siphon-breaker size, pipe rupture point, pipe rupture size, and the presence of an orifice, are investigated using an experimental facility similar in size to a full-scale reactor. (authors)
Kang, S. H. [Mechanical Engineering Dept., POSTECH, Pohang, 790-784 (Korea, Republic of); Ahn, H. S. [Div. of Advanced Nuclear Engineering, POSTECH, Pohang, 790-784 (Korea, Republic of); Kim, J. M. [Mechanical Engineering Dept., POSTECH, Pohang, 790-784 (Korea, Republic of); Joo, H. M. [Dept. of Nuclear Engineering, Hanyang Univ., Seoul, 133-791 (Korea, Republic of); Lee, K. Y.; Seo, K.; Chi, D. Y. [KAERI, Yuseong, Daejeon, 305-353 (Korea, Republic of); Kim, M. H. [Div. of Advanced Nuclear Engineering, POSTECH, Pohang, 790-784 (Korea, Republic of)
Analytical Study on Thermal and Mechanical Design of Printed Circuit Heat Exchanger
The analytical methodologies for the thermal design, mechanical design and cost estimation of printed circuit heat exchanger are presented in this study. In this study, three flow arrangements of parallel flow, countercurrent flow and crossflow are taken into account. For each flow arrangement, the analytical solution of temperature profile of heat exchanger is introduced. The size and cost of printed circuit heat exchangers for advanced small modular reactors, which employ various coolants such as sodium, molten salts, helium, and water, are also presented.
Su-Jong Yoon; Piyush Sabharwall; Eung-Soo Kim
A TEN MEGAWATT BOILING HETEROGENEOUS PACKAGE POWER REACTOR. Reactor...
Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI)
A TEN MEGAWATT BOILING HETEROGENEOUS PACKAGE POWER REACTOR. Reactor Design and Feasibility Problem Re-direct Destination: Temp Data Fields Rosen, M. A.; Coburn, D. B.; Flynn, T....
Reliable-linac design for accelerator-driven subcritical reactor systems.
Accelerator reliability corresponding to a very low frequency of beam interrupts is an important new accelerator requirement for accelerator-driven subcritical reactor systems. In this paper we review typical accelerator-reliability requirements and discuss possible methods for meeting these goals with superconducting proton-linac technology.
Wangler, Thomas P.,
Analyses in support of the Laboratory Microfusion Facility and ICF commercial reactor designs
Our work on this contract was divided into two major categories; two thirds of the total effort was in support of the Laboratory Microfusion Facility (LMF), and one third of the effort was in support of Inertial Confinement Fusion (ICF) commercial reactors. This final report includes copies of the formal reports, memoranda, and viewgraph presentations that were completed under this contract.
Meier, W.R.; Monsler, M.J.
Conceptual design of thorium-fuelled Mitrailleuse accelerator-driven subcritical reactor using D-Be neutron source
A distributed accelerator is a charged-particle accelerator that uses a new acceleration method based on repeated electrostatic acceleration. This method offers outstanding benefits not possible with the conventional radio-frequency acceleration method, including: (1) high acceleration efficiency, (2) large acceleration current, and (3) lower failure rate made possible by a fully solid-state acceleration field generation circuit. A 'Mitrailleuse Accelerator' is a product we have conceived to optimize this distributed accelerator technology for use with a high-strength neutron source. We have completed the conceptual design of a Mitrailleuse Accelerator and of a thorium-fuelled subcritical reactor driven by a Mitrailleuse Accelerator. This paper presents the conceptual design details and approach to implementing the subcritical reactor core. We will spend the next year or so on detailed design work, and then will start work on developing a prototype for demonstration. If there are no obstacles in setting up a development organization, we expect to finish verifying the prototype's performance by the third quarter of 2015. (authors)
Kokubo, Y. [Quan Japan Company Limited, 3-9-15 Sannomiya-cho, Chuo-ku, Kobe, Hyogo, 650-0021 (Japan); Kamei, T. [Research Inst. for Applied Sciences, 49 Tanaka Ohicho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto-shi, Kyoto, 606-8202 (Japan)
Design and Testing of a 10B4C Capsule for Spectral-Tailoring in Mixed-Spectrum Reactors
A boron carbide capsule highly enriched in 10B has been designed and used for spectral-tailoring experiments at the TRIGA reactor at Washington State University. New experiments show that enriching the boron to 96% B-10 results in additional absorption of neutrons in the resonance region thereby producing a neutron spectrum that is much closer to a pure 235U fission spectrum. A cadmium outer cover was used to reduce thermal heating. The neutron spectrum calculated with MCNP was found to be in very good agreement with measured activation rates from neutron fluence monitors.
Greenwood, Lawrence R.; Wittman, Richard S.; Metz, Lori A.; Finn, Erin C.; Friese, Judah I.
Online Scheduling in Modular Multimedia Systems with Stream Reuse
of services (for each combination of modules), some systems [13, 14, 10] automate the construction of pipelin-21 Abstract When properly constructed, a modular multimedia system can satisfy a client's request in multiple platform. Categories and Subject Descriptors: C.4: Design Studies General Terms: Algorithms, Design
Massachusetts at Amherst, University of
Fuel element design for the enhanced destruction of plutonium in a nuclear reactor
A uranium-free fuel for a fast nuclear reactor comprising an alloy of Pu, Zr and Hf, wherein Hf is present in an amount less than about 10% by weight of the alloy. The fuel may be in the form of a Pu alloy surrounded by a Zr--Hf alloy or an alloy of Pu--Zr--Hf or a combination of both.
Crawford, Douglas C. (Idaho Falls, ID); Porter, Douglas L. (Idaho Falls, ID); Hayes, Steven L. (Idaho Falls, ID); Hill, Robert N. (Bolingbrook, IL)
Fuel element design for the enhanced destruction of plutonium in a nuclear reactor
A uranium-free fuel for a fast nuclear reactor comprising an alloy of Pu, Zr and Hf, wherein Hf is present in an amount less than about 10% by weight of the alloy. The fuel may be in the form of a Pu alloy surrounded by a Zr-Hf alloy or an alloy of Pu-Zr-Hf or a combination of both.
Crawford, Douglas C.; Porter, Douglas L.; Hayes, Steven L.; Hill, Robert N.
Fuel element design for the enhanced destruction of plutonium in a nuclear reactor
A uranium-free fuel for a fast nuclear reactor comprising an alloy of Pu, Zr and Hf, wherein Hf is present in an amount less than about 10% by weight of the alloy. The fuel may be in the form of a Pu alloy surrounded by a Zr--Hf alloy or an alloy of Pu--Zr--Hf or a combination of both. 7 figs.
Crawford, D.C.; Porter, D.L.; Hayes, S.L.; Hill, R.N.
Design Configurations and Coupling High Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor and Hydrogen Plant
The US Department of Energy is investigating the use of high-temperature nuclear reactors to produce hydrogen using either thermochemical cycles or high-temperature electrolysis. Although the hydrogen production processes are in an early stage of development, coupling either of these processes to the high-temperature reactor requires both efficient heat transfer and adequate separation of the facilities to assure that off-normal events in the production facility do not impact the nuclear power plant. An intermediate heat transport loop will be required to separate the operations and safety functions of the nuclear and hydrogen plants. A next generation high-temperature reactor could be envisioned as a single-purpose facility that produces hydrogen or a dual-purpose facility that produces hydrogen and electricity. Early plants, such as the proposed Next Generation Nuclear Plant (NGNP), may be dual-purpose facilities that demonstrate both hydrogen and efficient electrical generation. Later plants could be single-purpose facilities. At this stage of development, both single- and dual-purpose facilities need to be understood.
Chang H. Oh; Eung Soo Kim; Steven Sherman
Modular Interpreted Systems: A Preliminary Report
Zachmann (Computer Graphics) #12;Modular Interpreted Systems: A Preliminary Report Wojciech Jamroga1
Zachmann, Gabriel
A method of embedding auxiliary information into the digital representation of host data containing noise in the low-order bits. The method applies to digital data representing analog signals, for example digital images. The method reduces the error introduced by other methods that replace the low-order bits with auxiliary information. By a substantially reverse process, the embedded auxiliary data can be retrieved easily by an authorized user through use of a digital key. The modular error embedding method includes a process to permute the order in which the host data values are processed. The method doubles the amount of auxiliary information that can be added to host data values, in comparison with bit-replacement methods for high bit-rate coding. The invention preserves human perception of the meaning and content of the host data, permitting the addition of auxiliary data in the amount of 50% or greater of the original host data.
Sandford, II, Maxwell T. (Los Alamos, NM); Handel, Theodore G. (Los Alamos, NM); Ettinger, J. Mark (Los Alamos, NM)
Development of Improved Models and Designs for Coated-Particle Gas Reactor Fuels -- Final Report under the International Nuclear Energy Research Initiative (I-NERI)
The objective of this INERI project was to develop improved fuel behavior models for gas reactor coated-particle fuels and to explore improved coated-particle fuel designs that could be used reliably at very high burnups and potentially in gas-cooled fast reactors. Project participants included the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEEL), Centre �tude Atomique (CEA), and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). To accomplish the project objectives, work was organized into five tasks.
David Petti; Philippe Martin; Mayeul Ph�lip; Ronald Ballinger; Petti does not have NT account
Portfolio for fast reactor collaboration
The development of the LMFBR type reactor in the United Kingdom is reviewed. Design characteristics of a commercial demonstration fast reactor are presented and compared with the Super Phenix reactor.
Rippon, S.
Lead-Cooled Fast Reactor (LFR) Design: Safety, Neutronics, Thermal Hydraulics, Structural Mechanics, Fuel, Core, and Plant Design
The idea of developing fast spectrum reactors with molten lead (or lead alloy) as a coolant is not a new one. Although initially considered in the West in the 1950s, such technology was not pursued to completion because of anticipated difficulties associated with the corrosive nature of these coolant materials. However, in the Soviet Union, such technology was actively pursued during the same time frame (1950s through the 1980s) for the specialized role of submarine propulsion. More recently, there has been a renewal of interest in the West for such technology, both for critical systems as well as for Accelerator Driven Subcritical (ADS) systems. Meanwhile, interest in the former Soviet Union, primarily Russia, has remained strong and has expanded well beyond the original limited mission of submarine propulsion. This section reviews the past and current status of LFR development.
Smith, C
The Los Alamos VXI-based modular RF control system
This paper describes the design and implementation of the Los Alamos modular RF control system, which provides high-performance feedback and/or feedforward control of RF accelerator cavities. This is a flexible, modular control system which has been realized in the industry-standard VXI cardmodular format. A wide spectrum of system functionality can be accommodated simply by incorporating only those modules and features required for a particular application. The fundamental principles of the design approach are discussed. Details of the VXI implementation are given, including the system architecture and interfaces, performance capabilities, and available features.
Jachim, S.P.; Ziomek, C.; Natter, E.F.; Regan, A.H.; Hill, J.; Eaton, L.; Gutscher, W.D.; Curtin, M.; Denney, P.; Hansberry, E.; Brooks, T.
The Los Alamos VXI-based modular RF control system
This paper describes the design and implementation of the Los Alamos modular RF control system, which provides high-performance feedback and/or feedforward control of RF accelerator cavities. This is a flexible, modular control system which has been realized in the industry-standard VXI cardmodular format. A wide spectrum of system functionality can be accommodated simply by incorporating only those modules and features required for a particular application. The fundamental principles of the design approach are discussed. Details of the VXI implementation are given, including the system architecture and interfaces, performance capabilities, and available features.
Jachim, S.P.; Ziomek, C.; Natter, E.F.; Regan, A.H.; Hill, J.; Eaton, L.; Gutscher, W.D.; Curtin, M.; Denney, P.; Hansberry, E.; Brooks, T.
TR-IIS-06-001 On the Satisfiability of Modular
TR-IIS-06-001 On the Satisfiability of Modular Arithmetic Formula Bow-Yaw Wang January 24, 2006 the Satisfiability of Modular Arithmetic Formula Bow-Yaw Wang Institute of Information Science Academia Sinica Taiwan used in the design of cryptosystems and pseudo random number generators. In the RSA public key system
Chen, Sheng-Wei
Design of central irradiation facilities for the MITR-II research reactor
Design analysis studies have been made for various in-core irradiation facility designs which are presently used, or proposed for future use in the MITR-II. The information obtained includes reactivity effects, core flux ...
Meagher, Paul Christopher
Advanced Modular Inverter Technology Development
Electric and hybrid-electric vehicle systems require an inverter to convert the direct current (DC) output of the energy generation/storage system (engine, fuel cells, or batteries) to the alternating current (AC) that vehicle propulsion motors use. Vehicle support systems, such as lights and air conditioning, also use the inverter AC output. Distributed energy systems require an inverter to provide the high quality AC output that energy system customers demand. Today's inverters are expensive due to the cost of the power electronics components, and system designers must also tailor the inverter for individual applications. Thus, the benefits of mass production are not available, resulting in high initial procurement costs as well as high inverter maintenance and repair costs. Electricore, Inc. (www.electricore.org) a public good 501 (c) (3) not-for-profit advanced technology development consortium assembled a highly qualified team consisting of AeroVironment Inc. (www.aerovironment.com) and Delphi Automotive Systems LLC (Delphi), (www.delphi.com), as equal tiered technical leads, to develop an advanced, modular construction, inverter packaging technology that will offer a 30% cost reduction over conventional designs adding to the development of energy conversion technologies for crosscutting applications in the building, industry, transportation, and utility sectors. The proposed inverter allows for a reduction of weight and size of power electronics in the above-mentioned sectors and is scalable over the range of 15 to 500kW. The main objective of this program was to optimize existing AeroVironment inverter technology to improve power density, reliability and producibility as well as develop new topology to reduce line filter size. The newly developed inverter design will be used in automotive and distribution generation applications. In the first part of this program the high-density power stages were redesigned, optimized and fabricated. One of the main tasks was to design and validate new gate drive circuits to provide the capability of high temp operation. The new power stages and controls were later validated through extensive performance, durability and environmental tests. To further validate the design, two power stages and controls were integrated into a grid-tied load bank test fixture, a real application for field-testing. This fixture was designed to test motor drives with PWM output up to 50kW. In the second part of this program the new control topology based on sub-phases control and interphase transformer technology was successfully developed and validated. The main advantage of this technology is to reduce magnetic mass, loss and current ripple. This report summarizes the results of the advanced modular inverter technology development and details: (1) Power stage development and fabrication (2) Power stage validation testing (3) Grid-tied test fixture fabrication and initial testing (4) Interphase transformer technology development
Adam Szczepanek
Secondary Heat Exchanger Design and Comparison for Advanced High Temperature Reactor
The goals of next generation nuclear reactors, such as the high temperature gas-cooled reactor and advance high temperature reactor (AHTR), are to increase energy efficiency in the production of electricity and provide high temperature heat for industrial processes. The efficient transfer of energy for industrial applications depends on the ability to incorporate effective heat exchangers between the nuclear heat transport system and the industrial process heat transport system. The need for efficiency, compactness, and safety challenge the boundaries of existing heat exchanger technology, giving rise to the following study. Various studies have been performed in attempts to update the secondary heat exchanger that is downstream of the primary heat exchanger, mostly because its performance is strongly tied to the ability to employ more efficient conversion cycles, such as the Rankine super critical and subcritical cycles. This study considers two different types of heat exchangers�helical coiled heat exchanger and printed circuit heat exchanger�as possible options for the AHTR secondary heat exchangers with the following three different options: (1) A single heat exchanger transfers all the heat (3,400 MW(t)) from the intermediate heat transfer loop to the power conversion system or process plants; (2) Two heat exchangers share heat to transfer total heat of 3,400 MW(t) from the intermediate heat transfer loop to the power conversion system or process plants, each exchanger transfers 1,700 MW(t) with a parallel configuration; and (3) Three heat exchangers share heat to transfer total heat of 3,400 MW(t) from the intermediate heat transfer loop to the power conversion system or process plants. Each heat exchanger transfers 1,130 MW(t) with a parallel configuration. A preliminary cost comparison will be provided for all different cases along with challenges and recommendations.
Piyush Sabharwall; Ali Siahpush; Michael McKellar; Michael Patterson; Eung Soo Kim
Reactor design for uniform chemical vapor deposition-grown films without substrate rotation
A quartz reactor vessel for growth of uniform semiconductor films includes a vertical, cylindrical reaction chamber in which a substrate-supporting pedestal provides a horizontal substrate-supporting surface spaced on its perimeter from the chamber wall. A cylindrical confinement chamber of smaller diameter is disposed coaxially above the reaction chamber and receives reaction gas injected at a tangent to the inside chamber wall, forming a helical gas stream that descends into the reaction chamber. In the reaction chamber, the edge of the substrate-supporting pedestal is a separation point for the helical flow, diverting part of the flow over the horizontal surface of the substrate in an inwardly spiraling vortex.
Wanlass, Mark (Golden, CO)
Reactor design for uniform chemical vapor deposition-grown films without substrate rotation
A quartz reactor vessel for growth of uniform semiconductor films includes a vertical, cylindrical reaction chamber in which a substrate-supporting pedestal provides a horizontal substrate-supporting surface spaced on its perimeter from the chamber wall. A cylindrical confinement chamber of smaller diameter is disposed coaxially above the reaction chamber and receives reaction gas injected at a tangent to the inside chamber wall, forming a helical gas stream that descends into the reaction chamber. In the reaction chamber, the edge of the substrate-supporting pedestal is a separation point for the helical flow, diverting part of the flow over the horizontal surface of the substrate in an inwardly spiraling vortex.
Wanlass, M.
Manufacturing Development of the NCSX Modular Coil Windings
The modular coils on the National Compact Stellarator Experiment (NCSX) present a number of significant engineering challenges due to their complex shapes, requirements for high dimensional accuracy and the high current density required in the modular coils due to space constraints. In order to address these challenges, an R&D program was established to develop the conductor, insulation scheme, manufacturing techniques, and procedures. A prototype winding named Twisted Racetrack Coil (TRC) was of particular importance in dealing with these challenges. The TRC included a complex shaped winding form, conductor, insulation scheme, leads and termination, cooling system and coil clamps typical of the modular coil design. Even though the TRC is smaller in size than a modular coil, its similar complex geometry provided invaluable information in developing the final design, metrology techniques and development of manufacturing procedures. In addition a discussion of the development of the copper rope conductor including "Keystoning" concerns; the epoxy impregnation system (VPI) plus the tooling and equipment required to manufacture the modular coils will be presented.
Chrzanowsk, J. H.; Fogarty, P. J.; Heitzenroeder, P. J.; Meighan, T.; Nelson, B.; Raftopoulos, S.; Williamson, D.
Critical Design Issues of Tokamak Cooling Water System of ITER's Fusion Reactor
U.S. ITER is responsible for the design, engineering, and procurement of the Tokamak Cooling Water System (TCWS). The TCWS transfers heat generated in the Tokamak to cooling water during nominal pulsed operation 850 MW at up to 150 C and 4.2 MPa water pressure. This water contains radionuclides because impurities (e.g., tritium) diffuse from in-vessel components and the vacuum vessel by water baking at 200 240 C at up to 4.4MPa, and corrosion products become activated by neutron bombardment. The system is designated as safety important class (SIC) and will be fabricated to comply with the French Order concerning nuclear pressure equipment (December 2005) and the EU Pressure Equipment Directive using ASME Section VIII, Div 2 design codes. The complexity of the TCWS design and fabrication presents unique challenges. Conceptual design of this one-of-a-kind cooling system has been completed with several issues that need to be resolved to move to next stage of the design. Those issues include flow balancing between over hundreds of branch pipelines in parallel to supply cooling water to blankets, determination of optimum flow velocity while minimizing the potential for cavitation damage, design for freezing protection for cooling water flowing through cryostat (freezing) environment, requirements for high-energy piping design, and electromagnetic impact to piping and components. Although the TCWS consists of standard commercial components such as piping with valves and fittings, heat exchangers, and pumps, complex requirements present interesting design challenges. This paper presents a brief description of TCWS conceptual design and critical design issues that need to be resolved.
Kim, Seokho H [ORNL] [ORNL; Berry, Jan [ORNL] [ORNL
GT-MHR design, performance, and safety
The Gas Turbine-Modular Helium Reactor (GT-MHR) is the result of coupling the evolution of a low power density passively safe modular reactor with key technology developments in the U.S. during the last decade: large industrial gas turbines; large active magnetic bearings; and compact, highly effective plate-fin heat exchangers. This is accomplished through the unique use of the Brayton cycle to produce electricity with the helium as primary coolant from the reactor directly driving the gas turbine electrical generator. This cycle can achieve a high net efficiency in the range of 45% to 48%. In the design of the GT-MHR the desirable inherent characteristics of the inert helium coolant, graphite core, and the coated fuel particles are supplemented with specific design features such as passive heat removal to achieve the safety objective of not disturbing the normal day-to-day activities of the public even for beyond design basis rare accidents. Each GT-MHR plant consists of four modules. The GT-MHR module components are contained within steel pressure vessels: a reactor vessel, a power conversion vessel, and a connecting cross vessel. All vessels are sited underground in a concrete silo, which serves as an independent vented low pressure containment structure. By capitalizing on industrial and aerospace gas turbine development, highly effective heat exchanger designs, and inherent gas cooled reactor temperature characteristics, the passively safe GT-MHR provides a sound technical, monetary, and environmental basis for new nuclear power generating capacity. This paper provides an update on the status of the design, which has been under development on the US-DOE program since February 1993. An assessment of plant performance and safety is also included.
Neylan, A.J.; Shenoy, A.; Silady, F.A.; Dunn, T.D.
Safety approaches for high power modular laser operation
Approximately 20 years ago, a program was initiated at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) to study the feasibility of using lasers to separate isotopes of uranium and other materials. Of particular interest has been the development of a uranium enrichment method for the production of commercial nuclear power reactor fuel to replace current more expensive methods. The Uranium Atomic Vapor Laser Isotope Separation (U-AVLIS) Program has progressed to the point where a plant-scale facility to demonstrate commercial feasibility has been built and is being tested. The U-AVLIS Program uses copper vapor lasers which pump frequency selective dye lasers to photoionize uranium vapor produced by an electron beam. The selectively ionized isotopes are electrostatically collected. The copper lasers are arranged in oscillator/amplifier chains. The current configuration consists of 12 chains, each with a nominal output of 800 W for a system output in excess of 9 kW. The system requirements are for continuous operation (24 h a day, 7 days a week) and high availability. To meet these requirements, the lasers are designed in a modular form allowing for rapid change-out of the lasers requiring maintenance. Since beginning operation in early 1985, the copper lasers have accumulated over 2 million unit hours at a >90% availability. The dye laser system provides approximately 2.5 kW average power in the visible wavelength range. This large-scale laser system has many safety considerations, including high-power laser beams, high voltage, and large quantities ({approximately}3000 gal) of ethanol dye solutions. The Laboratory`s safety policy requires that safety controls be designed into any process, equipment, or apparatus in the form of engineering controls. Administrative controls further reduce the risk to an acceptable level. Selected examples of engineering and administrative controls currently being used in the U-AVLIS Program are described.
Handren, R.T.
Clinch River breeder reactor sodium fire protection system design and development
To assure the protection of the public and plant equipment, improbable accidents were hypothesized to form the basis for the design of safety systems. One such accident is the postulated failure of the Intermediate Heat Transfer System (IHTS) piping within the Steam Generator Building (SGB), resulting in a large-scale sodium fire. This paper discusses the design and development of plant features to reduce the consequences of the accident to acceptable levels. Additional design solutions were made to mitigate the sodium spray contribution to the accident scenario. Sodium spill tests demonstrated that large sodium leaks can be safely controlled in a sodium-cooled nuclear power plant.
Foster, K.W.; Boasso, C.J.; Kaushal, N.N.
Contribution of Clinch River Breeder Reactor plant design and development to the LMFBR fuel cycle
This paper describes how the CRBRP development and CRBRP focus of the LMFBR base technology program have led to advances in the state of the art in physics, thermal-hydraulics, structural analysis, core restraint, seismic analysis, and analysis of hypothetical core-disruptive accident energetics, all of which have been incorporated through disciplined engineering into the final CRBRP design. The total development in the US of fuels and materials, the analytical advances made on CRBRP design, and the incorporation of the latest experimental results into that design have put the US technology in general and the CRBRP design in particular at the forefront of technology. This has placed the US in a position to develop the most favorable LMFBR fuel cycle.
Riley, D.R.; Dickson, P.W.
Design of compact intermediate heat exchangers for gas cooled fast reactors
Two aspects of an intermediate heat exchanger (IHX) for GFR service have been investigated: (1) the intrinsic characteristics of the proposed compact printed circuit heat exchanger (PCHE); and (2) a specific design optimizing ...
Gezelius, Knut, 1978-
Modular container assembled from fiber reinforced thermoplastic sandwich panels
An improved, load bearing, modular design container structure assembled from thermoformed FRTP sandwich panels in which is utilized the unique core-skin edge configuration of the present invention in consideration of improved load bearing performance, improved useful load volume, reduced manufacturing costs, structural weight savings, impact and damage tolerance and repair and replace issues.
Donnelly, Mathew William (Edgewood, NM); Kasoff, William Andrew (Albuquerque, NM); Mcculloch, Patrick Carl (Irvine, CA); Williams, Frederick Truman (Albuquerque, NM)
Development and Features EatSafe: Modular Portable Food Sensor
. The convenience of the EatSafe Sensor allows for this. PRONE TO FOOD-POISONING Seniors, children, pregnant womenDevelopment and Features EatSafe: Modular Portable Food Sensor ECE-Rady Design Competition FOOD INDUSTRY Every year >76 million people become sick from the consumption of contaminated food. PACKAGING
California at San Diego, University of
Preventing fuel failure for a beyond design basis accident in a fluoride salt cooled high temperature reactor
The fluoride salt-cooled high-temperature reactor (FHR) combines high-temperature coated-particle fuel with a high-temperature salt coolant for a reactor with unique market and safety characteristics. This combination can ...
Minck, Matthew J. (Matthew Joseph)
Conceptual design study on very small long-life gas cooled fast reactor using metallic natural Uranium-Zr as fuel cycle input
A conceptual design study of very small 350 MWth Gas-cooled Fast Reactors with Helium coolant has been performed. In this study Modified CANDLE burn-up scheme was implemented to create small and long life fast reactors with natural Uranium as fuel cycle input. Such system can utilize natural Uranium resources efficiently without the necessity of enrichment plant or reprocessing plant. The core with metallic fuel based was subdivided into 10 regions with the same volume. The fresh Natural Uranium is initially put in region-1, after one cycle of 10 years of burn-up it is shifted to region-2 and the each region-1 is filled by fresh Natural Uranium fuel. This concept is basically applied to all axial regions. The reactor discharge burn-up is 31.8% HM. From the neutronic point of view, this design is in compliance with good performance.
Monado, Fiber, E-mail: email@example.com [Nuclear Physics and Biophysics Research Group, Dept. of Physics, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Bandung Institute of Technology, Bandung, Indonesia and Dept. of Physics, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Sriwijaya University (Indonesia); Ariani, Menik [Dept. of Physics, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Sriwijaya University (Indonesia); Su'ud, Zaki; Waris, Abdul; Basar, Khairul; Permana, Sidik [Nuclear Physics and Biophysics Research Group, Dept. of Physics, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Bandung Institute of Technology, Bandung (Indonesia); Aziz, Ferhat [National Nuclear Energy Agency of Indonesia (BATAN) (Indonesia); Sekimoto, Hiroshi [CRINES, Tokyo Institute of Technology, O-okoyama, Meguro-ku, Tokyo 152-8550 (Japan)
Gas-Cooled Thermal Reactor Program. Semiannual technical progress report, April 1, 1983-September 30, 1983
An assessment of the HTGR opportunities from the year 2000 through 2045 was the principal activity on the Market Definition Task (WBS 03). Within the Plant Technology (WBS 13) task, there were activities to develop analytical methods for investigation of Coolant Transport Behavior and to define methods and criteria for High Temperature Structural Engineering design. The activities in support of the HTGR-SC/C Lead Plant (WBS 30 and 31) were the participation in the Lead Plant System Engineering (LPSE) effort and the plant simulation task. The efforts on the Advanced HTGR systems was performed under the Modular Reactor Systems (MRS) (WBS 41) to study the potential for multiple small reactors to provide lower costs, improved safety, and higher availability than the large monolithic core reactors.
Not Available
RAMI Analysis for Designing and Optimizing Tokamak Cooling Water System (TCWS) for the ITER's Fusion Reactor
U.S.-ITER is responsible for the design, engineering, and procurement of the Tokamak Cooling Water System (TCWS). TCWS is designed to provide cooling and baking for client systems that include the first wall/blanket, vacuum vessel, divertor, and neutral beam injector. Additional operations that support these primary functions include chemical control of water provided to client systems, draining and drying for maintenance, and leak detection/localization. TCWS interfaces with 27 systems including the secondary cooling system, which rejects this heat to the environment. TCWS transfers heat generated in the Tokamak during nominal pulsed operation - 850 MW at up to 150 C and 4.2 MPa water pressure. Impurities are diffused from in-vessel components and the vacuum vessel by water baking at 200-240 C at up to 4.4 MPa. TCWS is complex because it serves vital functions for four primary clients whose performance is critical to ITER's success and interfaces with more than 20 additional ITER systems. Conceptual design of this one-of-a-kind cooling system has been completed; however, several issues remain that must be resolved before moving to the next stage of the design process. The 2004 baseline design indicated cooling loops that have no fault tolerance for component failures. During plasma operation, each cooling loop relies on a single pump, a single pressurizer, and one heat exchanger. Consequently, failure of any of these would render TCWS inoperable, resulting in plasma shutdown. The application of reliability, availability, maintainability, and inspectability (RAMI) tools during the different stages of TCWS design is crucial for optimization purposes and for maintaining compliance with project requirements. RAMI analysis will indicate appropriate equipment redundancy that provides graceful degradation in the event of an equipment failure. This analysis helps demonstrate that using proven, commercially available equipment is better than using custom-designed equipment with no field experience and lowers specific costs while providing higher reliability. This paper presents a brief description of the TCWS conceptual design and the application of RAMI tools to optimize the design at different stages during the project.
Ferrada, Juan J [ORNL] [ORNL; Reiersen, Wayne T [ORNL] [ORNL
Modular low-aspect-ratio high-beta torsatron
A fusion-reactor device is described which the toroidal magnetic field and at least a portion of the poloidal magnetic field are provided by a single set of modular coils. The coils are arranged on the surface of a low-aspect-ratio toroid in planed having the cylindrical coordinate relationship phi = phi/sub i/ + kz, where k is a constant equal to each coil's pitch and phi/sub i/ is the toroidal angle at which the i'th coil intersects the z = o plane. The toroid defined by the modular coils preferably has a race track minor cross section. When vertical field coils and, preferably, a toroidal plasma current are provided for magnetic-field-surface closure within the toroid, a vacuum magnetic field of racetrack-shaped minor cross section with improved stability and beta valves is obtained.
Sheffield, G.V.
Reactor design for uniform chemical vapor deposition-grown films without substrate rotation
A reactor vessel is described for chemical vapor deposition of a uniform semiconductor film on a substrate, comprising: a generally cylindrical reaction chamber for receiving a substrate and a flow of reaction gas capable of depositing a film on the substrate under the conditions of the chamber, the chamber having upper and lower portion and being oriented about a vertical axis; a supporting means having a substrate support surface generally perpendicular to the vertical axis for carrying the substrate within the lower portion of the reaction chamber in a predetermined relative position with respect to the upper portion of the reaction chamber, the upper portion including a cylindrically shaped confinement chamber. The confinement chamber has a smaller diameter than the lower portion of the reaction chamber and is positioned above the substrate support surface; and a means for introducing a reaction gas into the confinement chamber in a nonaxial direction so as to direct the reaction gas into the lower portion of the reaction chamber with a non-axial flow having a rotational component with respect to the vertical axis. In this way the reaction gas defines an inward vortex flow pattern with respect to the substrate surface.
Wanlass, M.
Packed-bed reactor/silent-discharge plasma design data report
In 1992, Congress passed the Federal Facility Compliance Act requiring the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to treat and dispose of its mixed waste in accordance with Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) land disposal restrictions (LDRs). The DOE Albuquerque Operations Office (AL) currently does not have adequate systems to treat the mixed wastes generated and stored at the nine DOE-AL sites. In response to the need for mixed-waste treatment capacity, DOE-AL organized a Treatment Selection Team under the Mixed-Waste Treatment Program (MWTP) to match mixed wastes with treatment options and develop a strategy for treatment of its mixed waste. The strategy developed by the Treatment Selection Team, as described in the AL Mixed-Waste Treatment Plan (DOE 1994), is to use available off-site commercial treatment facilities for all wastes that can be successfully and cost-effectively treated by such facilities. Where no appropriate commercial treatment facilities exist, mobile treatment units (MTUs) would be developed to treat wastes at the sites where the wastes are generated. Treatment processes used for mixed waste must not only address the hazardous component (i.e., meet LDRs) but also must contain the radioactive component in a form that allows final disposal while protecting workers, the public, and the environment. The packed-bed reactor/silent discharge plasma was chosen as a potential candidate for the treatment of the mixed wastes. The process is described.
Design considerations for a steady state fusion reactor's thermal energy dump (TED) with emphasis on SAFFIRE
This work examines the use of a thermal dump to handle the severe particle and energy handling requirements of a diverted plasma. We outline a general approach for evaluating the design parameters and limitations of a thermal dump, considering such things as thermomechanical and erosion effects, compatibility, availability, machinability, coolant recirculation, vacuum pumping, economics, lifetime, etc. To demonstrate how the performance requirements are reflected in design decisions, we apply a solid-walled dump to a small-sized field reversed mirror (FRM). We also examine a liquid-lithium droplet thermal dump and point out some distinct advantages of this new concept over the solid-wall design in reducing stress, erosion, and vacuum pumping problems. The chief disadvantages of this scheme include liquid-metal safe-handling problems, vapor pressure-temperature limitations, and the need for differential pumping if T/sub Li/ > 310/sup 0/C is desired.
Werley, K.A.
Order and diversity within a modular system for housing : a computational approach
This thesis introduces elements of a methodology to achieve order and diversity in the systematic design of street facades within a modular system for housing. In its context both order and diversity refer to the spatial ...
Duarte, Jos� Pinto
Modular Lorentz force actuators for efficient biomimetic propulsion of Autonomous Underwater Vehicles
In this thesis, we developed a highly scalable design for modular Lorentz force actuators for use in segmented flexible-hull undersea vehicles such as the RoboTuna being developed at Franklin W, Olin College of Engineering. ...
Church, Joseph Christopher
A Comparative Study of Modular Axial Flux Podded Generators for Marine Current Turbines
A Comparative Study of Modular Axial Flux Podded Generators for Marine Current Turbines Sofiane turbines (MCTs). Due to the submarine environment, maintenance operations are very hard, very costly current turbine, axial flux permanent magnet generator, design, optimization. Nomenclature MCT = Marine
Brest, Université de
Linear ParameterVarying versus Linear TimeInvariant Control Design for a Pressurized Water Reactor
. The plant can thus have widely varying dynamics over the operating range. The controllers designed perform to a description of the problem statement. Section 4 describes the identification and modelling of the plant. Se the worstcase time variation of a measurable parameter which enters the plant in a linear fractional manner
Bodenheimer, Bobby
Invertible Program Restructurings for Continuing Modular Maintenance
Invertible Program Restructurings for Continuing Modular Maintenance Julien Cohen ASCOLA team (EMN in main- tenance with invertible program transformations. We illustrate this on the typical Expression problems with our approach. Keywords-modular maintenance; restructuring; invertible pro- gram
Paris-Sud XI, Université de
Abductive Analysis of Modular Logic Programs
Abductive Analysis of Modular Logic Programs Roberto Giacobazzi LIX, Laboratoire d introduce a practical method for abductive analysis of modular logic programs. This is obtained of abductive reasoning in dataflow analysis of logic programs. 1 Introduction Dataflow analysis
Giacobazzi, Roberto
State-of-the-art review and report on critical aspects and scale-up considerations in the design of fluidized-bed reactors. Final report on Phase 1
Information is given on the design of distributor plates and opening geometry to provide uniform flow over the reactor area. The design of granular bed filters is also considered. Pressure drops and particle size in the bed are discussed. (LTN)
Not Available
Modular industrial solar retrofit project (MISR)
The intent of this paper is to describe a major Department of Energy (DOE) thrust to bring line-focus solar thermal technology to commercial readiness. This effort is referred to as the MISR Project. The project is based upon the premise that thermal energy is the basic solar thermal system output and that low-temperature, fossil fuel applications are technically the first that should be retrofitted. Experience has shown that modularity in system design and construction offers potential for reducing engineering design costs, reduces manufacturing costs, reduces installation time and expense, and improves system operational reliability. The modular design effort will be sponsored by Sandia National Laboratories with industry doing the final designs. The operational credibility of the systems will be established by allowing selected industrial thermal energy users to purchase MISR systems from suppliers and operate them for two years. Industries will be solicited by DOE/Albuquerque Operations Office to conduct these experiments on a cost sharing basis. The MISR system allowed in the experiments will have been previously qualified for the application. The project is divided into three development phases which represent three design and experiment cycles. The first cycle will use commercially available trough-type solar collectors and will incorporate 5 to 10 experiments of up to 5000 m/sup 2/ of collectors each. The project effort began in March 1980, and the first cycle is to be completed in 1985. Subsequent cycles will begin at 3-year intervals. The project is success oriented, and if the first cycle reaches commercial readiness, the project will be terminated. If not, a second, and possibly a third, development cycle will be conducted.
Alvis, R.L.
Seismic design technology for breeder reactor structures. Volume 1. Special topics in earthquake ground motion
This report is divided into twelve chapters: seismic hazard analysis procedures, statistical and probabilistic considerations, vertical ground motion characteristics, vertical ground response spectrum shapes, effects of inclined rock strata on site response, correlation of ground response spectra with intensity, intensity attenuation relationships, peak ground acceleration in the very mean field, statistical analysis of response spectral amplitudes, contributions of body and surface waves, evaluation of ground motion characteristics, and design earthquake motions. (DLC)
Reddy, D.P.
Design of Safety Significant Safety Instrumented Systems Used at DOE Non-Reactor Nuclear Facilities
AFDC Printable Version Share this resource Send a link to EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page to someone by E-mail Share EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page on Facebook Tweet about EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page on Twitter Bookmark EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page on Google Bookmark EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page on Office of Inspector General Office of Audit Services AuditTransatlantic Relations & the196-2011WasteDesign
Development of Improved Models and Designs for Coated-Particle Gas Reactor Fuels (I-NERI Annual Report)
The objective of this INERI project is to develop improved fuel behavior models for gas reactor coated particle fuels and to develop improved coated-particle fuel designs that can be used reliably at very high burnups and potentially in fast gas-cooled reactors. Thermomechanical, thermophysical, and physiochemical material properties data were compiled by both the US and the French and preliminary assessments conducted. Comparison between U.S. and European data revealed many similarities and a few important differe