Search Menu
DOE PAGES title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information
Search Scholarly Publications

Title: Fuel cycle and neutronic performance of a spectral shift molten salt reactor design

Abstract

Here, the fuel cycle performance and core design of the Transatomic Power liquid-fueled molten salt reactor concept is analyzed. This advanced reactor concept uses configurable zirconium hydride moderator rod assemblies to shift the neutron spectrum in the core from intermediate at beginning of life to thermal at end of life. With a harder spectrum during the early years of reactor operation, this spectral shift design drives captures in fertile 238U. The converted fissile plutonium makes up over 50% of the fissile material in the fuel salt over the last half (~15 years) of reactor operation. A softer spectrum late in reactor life helps drive the fuel to a burnup of 90 GWd/MTU. Continuously changing physics necessitates time-dependent analyses resolved over long timescales (i.e., months to years), as this concept does not meet an equilibrium condition. The spectral shift and molten salt reactor material feeds and removals enable this concept to perform better in fuel cycle metrics, increasing resource utilization by more than 50% compared with a typical light water reactor (i.e., from ~0.6% to ~1%). Finally, these metrics are compared to similar fuel cycles using alternate technologies. Additional core design and analysis challenges associated with the spectral shift and usemore » of molten salt reactor technology are identified and discussed.« less

Authors:
 [1];  [2];  [3];  [1];  [1];  [2];  [2]
+ Show Author Affiliations
  1. Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
  2. Transatomic Power Corporation, Cambridge, MA (United States)
  3. (née Sunny), Eva E. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
Publication Date:
Research Org.:
Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
Sponsoring Org.:
USDOE Office of Nuclear Energy (NE)
OSTI Identifier:
1474667
Alternate Identifier(s):
OSTI ID: 1582696
Grant/Contract Number:  
AC05-00OR22725
Resource Type:
Accepted Manuscript
Journal Name:
Annals of Nuclear Energy (Oxford)
Additional Journal Information:
Journal Name: Annals of Nuclear Energy (Oxford); Journal Volume: 119; Journal ID: ISSN 0306-4549
Publisher:
Elsevier
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
20 FOSSIL-FUELED POWER PLANTS; molten salt reactor; fuel cycle; spectral shift; zirconium hydride

Citation Formats

Betzler, Benjamin R., Robertson, Sean, Davidson, Powers, Jeffrey J., Worrall, Andrew, Dewan, Leslie, and Massie, Mark. Fuel cycle and neutronic performance of a spectral shift molten salt reactor design. United States: N. p., 2018. Web. doi:10.1016/j.anucene.2018.04.043.
Copy to clipboard
Betzler, Benjamin R., Robertson, Sean, Davidson, Powers, Jeffrey J., Worrall, Andrew, Dewan, Leslie, & Massie, Mark. Fuel cycle and neutronic performance of a spectral shift molten salt reactor design. United States. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anucene.2018.04.043
Copy to clipboard
Betzler, Benjamin R., Robertson, Sean, Davidson, Powers, Jeffrey J., Worrall, Andrew, Dewan, Leslie, and Massie, Mark. Sat . "Fuel cycle and neutronic performance of a spectral shift molten salt reactor design". United States. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anucene.2018.04.043. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1474667.
Copy to clipboard
@article{osti_1474667,
title = {Fuel cycle and neutronic performance of a spectral shift molten salt reactor design},
author = {Betzler, Benjamin R. and Robertson, Sean and Davidson and Powers, Jeffrey J. and Worrall, Andrew and Dewan, Leslie and Massie, Mark},
abstractNote = {Here, the fuel cycle performance and core design of the Transatomic Power liquid-fueled molten salt reactor concept is analyzed. This advanced reactor concept uses configurable zirconium hydride moderator rod assemblies to shift the neutron spectrum in the core from intermediate at beginning of life to thermal at end of life. With a harder spectrum during the early years of reactor operation, this spectral shift design drives captures in fertile 238U. The converted fissile plutonium makes up over 50% of the fissile material in the fuel salt over the last half (~15 years) of reactor operation. A softer spectrum late in reactor life helps drive the fuel to a burnup of 90 GWd/MTU. Continuously changing physics necessitates time-dependent analyses resolved over long timescales (i.e., months to years), as this concept does not meet an equilibrium condition. The spectral shift and molten salt reactor material feeds and removals enable this concept to perform better in fuel cycle metrics, increasing resource utilization by more than 50% compared with a typical light water reactor (i.e., from ~0.6% to ~1%). Finally, these metrics are compared to similar fuel cycles using alternate technologies. Additional core design and analysis challenges associated with the spectral shift and use of molten salt reactor technology are identified and discussed.},
doi = {10.1016/j.anucene.2018.04.043},
journal = {Annals of Nuclear Energy (Oxford)},
number = ,
volume = 119,
place = {United States},
year = {Sat May 26 00:00:00 EDT 2018},
month = {Sat May 26 00:00:00 EDT 2018}
}
Copy to clipboard
Journal Article:
Free Publicly Available Full Text
Publisher's Version of Record
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anucene.2018.04.043
Copyright Statement
Other availability
Search WorldCat Search WorldCat to find libraries that may hold this journal
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 13 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

Figures / Tables:

Figure 1 Figure 1: Example of the 2D geometry used in SCALE/NEWT showing the progression of the pitch in the unit cell model as moderator rods are inserted into the core.
All figures and tables (34 total)
Save / Share:
Export Metadata
Save to My Library
You must Sign In or Create an Account in order to save documents to your library.

Works referenced in this record:

Materials considerations for molten salt accelerator-based plutonium conversion systems
conference, January 1995

  • DeVan, J. H.; DiStefano, J. R.; Eatherly, W. P.
  • The international conference on accelerator-driven transmutation technologies and applications, AIP Conference Proceedings
  • DOI: 10.1063/1.49122

Sustainable thorium nuclear fuel cycles: A comparison of intermediate and fast neutron spectrum systems
journal, August 2015

Perspectives on radiation effects in nickel-base alloys for applications in advanced reactors
journal, July 2009

A comparison between spectral shift control methods for light water reactors
journal, January 1980

SCALE 6: Comprehensive Nuclear Safety Analysis Code System
journal, May 2011

Modified Fuel Assembly Design for Pressurized Water Reactors with Improved Fuel Utilization
journal, August 1983

Heat deposition analysis for the High Flux Isotope Reactor’s HEU and LEU core models
journal, October 2017

The Spectral Shift Control Reactor as an option for much improved uranium utilisation in single-batch SMRs
journal, December 2016

Preconceptual design of a fluoride high temperature salt-cooled engineering demonstration reactor: Motivation and overview
journal, September 2017

Isotopic Depletion and Decay Methods and Analysis Capabilities in SCALE
journal, May 2011

  • Gauld, Ian C.; Radulescu, Georgeta; Ilas, Germina
  • Nuclear Technology, Vol. 174, Issue 2
  • DOI: 10.13182/NT11-3

Combination of Two Spectral Shift Control Methods for Pressurized Water Reactors with Improved Power Utilization
journal, October 1984

Molten salt reactor neutronics and fuel cycle modeling and simulation with SCALE
journal, March 2017

Liquid Fuel Molten Salt Reactors for Thorium Utilization
journal, May 2016

  • Gehin, Jess C.; Powers, Jeffrey J.
  • Nuclear Technology, Vol. 194, Issue 2
  • DOI: 10.13182/NT15-124

Experience with the Molten-Salt Reactor Experiment
journal, February 1970

  • Haubenreich, Paul N.; Engel, J. R.
  • Nuclear Applications and Technology, Vol. 8, Issue 2
  • DOI: 10.13182/NT8-2-118

ENDF/B-VII.1 Nuclear Data for Science and Technology: Cross Sections, Covariances, Fission Product Yields and Decay Data
journal, December 2011

Reactor Physics Methods and Analysis Capabilities in SCALE
journal, May 2011

  • DeHart, Mark D.; Bowman, Stephen M.
  • Nuclear Technology, Vol. 174, Issue 2
  • DOI: 10.13182/NT174-196

Preconceptual design of a fluoride high temperature salt-cooled engineering demonstration reactor: Core design and safety analysis
journal, May 2017

    Sort by:
    [ × clear filter / sort ]

    Figures / Tables found in this record:

    Figure 1 (p. 9)figure
    Figure 2 (p. 9)figure
    Figure 3 (p. 10)figure
    Figure 4 (p. 11)figure
    Table 1 (p. 12)table
    Table 2 (p. 13)table
    Figure 5 (p. 14)figure
    Figure 6 (p. 15)figure
    Figure 7 (p. 16)figure
    Figure 8 (p. 17)figure
    Figure 9 (p. 18)figure
    Figure 10 (p. 19)figure
    Figure 11 (p. 19)figure
    Figure 12 (p. 20)figure
    Figure 13 (p. 21)figure
    Table 3 (p. 21)table
    Table 4 (p. 23)table
    Table 5 (p. 25)table
    Figure 14 (p. 26)figure
    Figure 15 (p. 27)figure
    Figure 16 (p. 27)figure
    Figure 17 (p. 28)figure
    Figure 18 (p. 28)figure
    Figure 19 (p. 29)figure
    Figure 20 (p. 30)figure
    Figure 21 (p. 31)figure
    Figure 22 (p. 31)figure
    Table 6 (p. 33)table
    Figure 23 (p. 34)figure
    Figure 24 (p. 35)figure
    Figure 25 (p. 35)figure
    Table 7 (p. 36)table
    Table 8 (p. 37)table
    Figure 26 (p. 38)figure
      [ × clear filter / sort ]
      Figures/Tables have been extracted from DOE-funded journal article accepted manuscripts.

      Similar Records in DOE PAGES and OSTI.GOV collections: