Flibe blanket concept for transmuting transuranic elements and long lived fission products.
A Molten salt (Flibe) fusion blanket concept has been developed to solve the disposition problems of the spent nuclear fuel and the transuranic elements. This blanket concept can achieve the top rated solution, the complete elimination of the transuranic elements and the long-lived fission products. Small driven fusion devices with low neutron wall loading and low neutron fluence can perform this function. A 344-MW integrated fusion power from D-T plasmas for thirty years with an availability factor of 0.75 can dispose of 70,000 tons of the US inventory of spent nuclear fuel generated up to the year 2015. In addition, the utilization of this blanket concept eliminates the need for a geological repository site, which is a major advantage. This application provides an excellent opportunity to develop and to enhance the public acceptance of the fusion energy for the future. The energy from the transmutation process is utilized to produce revenue. Flibe, lithium-lead eutectic, and liquid lead are possible candidates. The liquid blankets have several features, which are suited for W application. It can operate at constant thermal power without interruption for refueling by adjusting the concentration of the transuranic elements and lithium-6. These liquids operate at low-pressure, which reduces the primary stresses in the structure material. Development and fabrication costs of solid transuranic materials are eliminated. Burnup limit of the transuranic elements due to radiation effects is eliminated. Heat is generated within the liquid, which simplifies the heat removal process without producing thermal stresses. These blanket concepts have large negative temperature coefficient with respect to the blanket reactivity, which enhances the safety performance. These liquids are chemically and thermally stable under irradiation conditions, which minimize the radioactive waste volume. The operational record of the Molten Salt Breeder Reactor with Flibe was very successful, which established the technical bases for this application. This paper provides the technical analyses and the performance of the Flibe blanket concept as an example of this class of blankets.
- Research Organization:
- Argonne National Lab., IL (US)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- US Department of Energy (US)
- DOE Contract Number:
- W-31-109-ENG-38
- OSTI ID:
- 768574
- Report Number(s):
- ANL/TD/CP-101869; TRN: US0102897
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: 14th Tropical Meeting on the Technology of Fusion Energy, Park City, UT (US), 10/16/2000--10/20/2000; Other Information: PBD: 15 Nov 2000
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY
BREEDING BLANKETS
FLIBE
LITHIUM 6
NEUTRON FLUENCE
SPENT FUELS
RADIATION EFFECTS
ALPHA-BEARING WASTES
TEMPERATURE COEFFICIENT
THERMAL STRESSES
WALL LOADING
D-T REACTORS
TRANSMUTATION
MSRE REACTOR