Practical Combinations of Light-Water Reactors and Fast-Reactors for Future Actinide Transmutation

Conference · Mon Jan 01 00:00:00 EST 2007

OSTI ID:975055

Collins, Emory D ^[1]; Renier, John-Paul ^[1]

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1. ORNL

Multicycle partitioning-transmutation (P-T) studies continue to show that use of existing light-water reactors (LWRs) and new advanced light-water reactors (ALWRs) can effectively transmute transuranic (TRU) actinides, enabling initiation of full actinide recycle much earlier than waiting for the development and deployment of sufficient fast reactor (FR) capacity. The combination of initial P-T cycles using LWRs/ALWRs in parallel with economic improvements to FR usage for electricity production, and a follow-on transition period in which FRs are deployed, is a practical approach to near-term closure of the nuclear fuel cycle with full actinide recycle.

• Research Organization: Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE Office of Nuclear Energy (NE)
• DOE Contract Number: DE-AC05-00OR22725
• OSTI ID: 975055
• Resource Relation: Conference: ANS Global 2007, Boise, ID, USA, 20070909, 20070909
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS
21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS
ACTINIDES
CAPACITY
CLOSURES
ECONOMICS
ELECTRICITY
FAST REACTORS
NUCLEAR FUELS
PRODUCTION
TRANSMUTATION