GCFR: The European Union Gas Cooled Fast Reactor Project
- National Nuclear Corporation Limited, Booths Park, Chelford Rd, Knutsford (United Kingdom)
- Commissariat a l'Energie Atomique, CEA Cadarache, 13108 Saint Paul Lez Durance (France)
- Laboratory for Reactor Physics and Systems Behaviour, Paul Scherrer Institute, CH-5232 Villigen PSI (Switzerland)
- Joint Research Centre, Institute for Transuranic Elements (ITU), Karlsruhe (Germany)
- European Commission, Brussels (Belgium)
In March 2005, the European Commission (EC) initiated a new 4-year Project on Gas Cooled Fast Reactors (GCFR) within its 6. Framework Programme. The EC and more than 10 participating companies, R and D organizations and universities finance the project in equal parts. The project contributes to the Generation IV ambitious goals requiring innovative solutions in terms environmental impact (robust fuel with no significant radioactive release), sustainability (core which is self sustaining and has the flexibility for waste reduction), proliferation resistant fuel cycle and economics (high coolant temperatures leading to increased thermodynamic efficiency). A matrix has been prepared for the Generation IV GFR studies to facilitate sharing the work between the members, which identifies seven combinations of design options. These option studies will lead to a pre-selection of a reference concept and alternatives and the preliminary GFR viability report. The GCFR project, which forms part of the EURATOM contribution to the Generation IV International Forum (GIF) has responsibility for the direct cycle and indirect cycle 600 MW options. In detail, the GCFR project will examine; the GFR (600 MW options) and ETDR, core and system design; GFR and ETDR safety analysis, including the analysis of selected transients; the qualification and benchmarking of the transient analysis codes through a series of benchmark exercises; and a review of candidate fuels and core materials, including their fabrication and irradiation. Education and communication to foster understanding of the growing needs for nuclear power in general and for the technology of the GCFR in particular is specific goal of the EU project. (authors)
- Research Organization:
- American Nuclear Society, 555 North Kensington Avenue, La Grange Park, IL 60526 (United States)
- OSTI ID:
- 21021108
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: 2006 International congress on advances in nuclear power plants - ICAPP'06, Reno - Nevada (United States), 4-8 Jun 2006; Other Information: Country of input: France; 7 refs; Related Information: In: Proceedings of the 2006 international congress on advances in nuclear power plants - ICAPP'06, 2734 pages.
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Impact of spectral transition zone in reference ENIGMA configuration.
Generation IV nuclear energy system initiative. Pin core subassembly designfor the Gas-Cooled Fast Reactor.