Design and testing of an enriched uranium fueled molten salt irradiation vehicle

Journal Article · 21 August 2023 · Progress in Nuclear Energy

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pnucene.2023.104846 · OSTI ID:2222471

Abou-Jaoude, Abdalla  ^[1]; Downey, Calvin Myer ^[1]; Yoon, SuJong  ^[1]; Davies, Kim B.  ^[1]; Chandler, Bryce James ^[1]; Warmann, Stephen A.  ^[1]; Kropp, Morgan Tess  ^[1]; Phillips, William C.  ^[1]; Core, Gregory M.  ^[1]; Tan, Chuting  ^[1]

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1. Idaho National Laboratory (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States)

Molten salt reactors (MSRs) have garnered increasing attention recently with several demonstration efforts on the way. A key challenge to the licensing basis for these reactors is the lack of experimental data on fueled salts. This is expected to be crucial to the safety evaluation and licensing basis of reactors of this type deployed in the future. While capability for irradiating molten salts has started being reestablished in the recent decade, no enriched fuel irradiation capability has been developed and tested as of yet. A new experiment vehicle under development at Idaho National Laboratory (INL) is presented here. The Molten-salt Research Temperature-controlled Irradiation (MRTI) experiment was developed to host enriched-uranium bearing salt samples to be irradiated at a test reactor within the lab complex. One of the key scientific objectives is to provide irradiated salt samples for post irradiation examination (PIE) to study the impact of fission product generation and neutron/gamma radioactivity on the salt solution and salt-facing wall material. This paper provides a detailed overview of the mechanical design of the experiment, followed by an overview of the fabrication and assembly of an initial prototype vehicle (with non-fuel bearing salt). A summary of the key analyses conducted as a part of the performance and safety evaluation is then provided. Lastly, an overview of the test conducted in prototypic out-of-pile (non-neutron) environment are shown. These evaluations provide the foundation for a planned irradiation of and enriched uranium-bearing chloride salt sample in the near term. The upcoming irradiation will contain 13cm³ of UCl₃-NaCl salt (93% enrichment) generating around 20 W/cm³ of fission energy during irradiation and a temperature range that can be contained between bounds of 525-900°C.

• Research Organization: Idaho National Laboratory (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) Program
• Grant/Contract Number: AC07-05ID14517
• OSTI ID: 2222471
• Report Number(s): INL/JOU--23-72048-Rev000
• Journal Information: Progress in Nuclear Energy, Journal Name: Progress in Nuclear Energy Vol. 164; ISSN 0149-1970
• Publisher: ElsevierCopyright Statement
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English