scholarly journals Generation-IV nuclear reactor systems

2020 ◽  
Vol 246 ◽  
pp. 00011
Author(s):  
R. Caciuffo ◽  
C. Fazio ◽  
C. Guet
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Energy ◽  
Nuclear Reactor ◽  
Fuel Cycle ◽  
Energy Systems ◽  
International Forum ◽  
Industrial Manufacturing ◽  
Energy Needs ◽  
World Energy ◽  
Nuclear Systems ◽  
Zero Carbon

In this paper, we provide a concise description of the six nuclear reactor concepts that are under development in the framework of the Generation-IV International Forum. After a brief introduction on the world energy needs, its plausible evolution during the next fifty years, and the constraints imposed by the necessity to address the climate challenges we are facing today, we will present the main features of the innovative nuclear energy systems that hold the promise to produce almost-zero-carbon-emission electricity, heat for chemistry and industrial manufacturing, hydrogen to be used as energy vector, and affordable freshwater. Potential advantages over currently available nuclear systems in terms of increased safety, reduced proliferation risks, economical affordability, sustainability of the fuel cycle, and management of the waste inventory will be critically discussed against the technical challenges that remain to be overcome.

Users’ Requirements for Environmental Effects From Innovative Nuclear Energy Systems and Their Fuel Cycles

2002 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Carreter ◽  
M. Gray ◽  
E. Falck ◽  
A. Bonne ◽  
M. Bell
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Impact Assessment ◽  
Environmental Impact Assessment ◽  
Environmental Effects ◽  
Nuclear Energy ◽  
Fuel Cycle ◽  
Energy Systems ◽  
User Requirements ◽  
Fuel Cycles ◽  
Nuclear Systems

The objective of the International Project on Innovative Nuclear Reactors and Fuel Cycles (INPRO) is to support the safe, sustainable, economic and proliferation resistant use of nuclear technology to meet the needs of the 21st century. The first part of the project focusses on the development of an understanding of the requirements of possible users of innovative concepts for reactors and fuel cycle applications. This paper reports progress made on the identification of user requirements as they relate to the environment and environmental protection. The user requirements being formulated are intended to limit adverse environmental effects from the different facilities involved in the nuclear fuel cycles to be well below maximum acceptable levels. To determine if the user requirements are met, it is necessary to identify those factors that are relevant to assessment of the environmental performance of innovative nuclear systems. To this effect, Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and the Material Flow accounting (MFA) methodologies are being appraised for the suitability for application. This paper develops and provides the rationale for the “users’ requirements” as they are currently defined. Existing Environmental Impact Assessment and Materials Flow Accounting methodologies that can be applied to determine whether or not innovative technologies conform to the User Requirements are briefly described. It is concluded that after establishing fundamental principles, it is possible to formulate sets of general and specific users’ requirements against which, the potential adverse environmental effects to be expected from innovative nuclear energy systems (INES) can be assessed. The application of these users’ requirements should keep the adverse environmental effects from INES’s within acceptable limits.

scholarly journals Elaboration of approach to nuclear energy systems assessment by criterion of sustainable development

2018 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 27-33
Author(s):  
Vladimir I. Usanov ◽  
Stepan A. Kviatkovskii ◽  
Andrey A. Andrianov
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Nuclear Fuel ◽  
Nuclear Energy ◽  
Spent Nuclear Fuel ◽  
Fuel Cycle ◽  
Energy Systems ◽  
Nuclear Fuel Cycle ◽  
Time Interval ◽  
Subject Areas ◽  
Key Events

The paper describes the approach to the assessment of nuclear energy systems based on the integral indicator characterizing the level of their sustainability and results of comparative assessment of several nuclear energy system options incorporating different combinations of nuclear reactors and nuclear fuel cycle facilities. The nuclear energy systems are characterized by achievement of certain key events pertaining to the following six subject areas: economic performance, safety, availability of resources, waste handling, non-proliferation and public support. Achievement of certain key events is examined within the time interval until 2100, while the key events per se are assessed according to their contribution in the achievement of sustainable development goals. It was demonstrated that nuclear energy systems based on the once-through nuclear fuel cycle with thermal reactors and uranium oxide fuel do not score high according to the integral sustainable development indicator even in the case when the issue of isolation of spent nuclear fuel in geological formation is resolved. Gradual replacement of part of thermal reactors with fast reactors and closing the nuclear fuel cycle results in the achievement of evaluated characteristics in many subject areas, which are close to maximum requirements of sustainable development, and in the significant enhancement of the sustainability indicator.

INPRO Assessment of an INS in the Area of Safety of Fuel Cycle Installations

2006 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. Raj ◽  
Y. Busurin ◽  
F. Depisch
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Reactor ◽  
Fuel Cycle ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Sol Gel ◽  
Safety Issues ◽  
Stage Of Development ◽  
Energy Needs ◽  
Fuel Fabrication ◽  
Specific Assessment ◽  
Acceptance Limits

INPRO has defined requirements organized in a hierarchy of Basic Principles, User Requirements and Criteria (consisting of an indicator and an acceptance limit) to be met by innovative nuclear reactor systems (INS) in six areas, namely: economics, safety, waste management, environment, proliferation resistance, and infrastructure. If an INS meets all requirements in all areas it represents a sustainable system for the supply of energy, capable of making a significant contribution to meeting the energy needs of the 21st century. Draft manuals have been developed, for each INPRO area, to provide guidance for performing an assessment of whether an INS meets the INPRO requirements in a given area. The manuals set out the information that needs to be assembled to perform an assessment and provide guidance on selecting the acceptance limits and, for a given INS, for determining the value of the indicators for comparison with the associated acceptance limits. Each manual also includes an example of a specific assessment to illustrate the guidance. This paper discusses the manual for performing an INPRO assessment in the area of safety of fuel cycle installations. The example, chosen solely for the purpose of illustrating the INPRO methodology, describes an assessment of an MOX fuel fabrication plant based on sol-gel technology and illustrates an assessment performed for an INS at an early stage of development. The safety issues and the assessment steps are presented in detail in the paper.

scholarly journals Fuel cycle modelling of open cycle thorium-fuelled nuclear energy systems

2014 ◽  
Vol 69 ◽  
pp. 314-330 ◽  
Author(s):  
S.F. Ashley ◽  
B.A. Lindley ◽  
G.T. Parks ◽  
W.J. Nuttall ◽  
R. Gregg ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Energy ◽  
Fuel Cycle ◽  
Energy Systems ◽  
Open Cycle

Pu and MA Management in Thermal HTGRs: Impact at Fuel, Reactor and Fuel Cycle Levels

2008 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. C. Kuijper
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Energy ◽  
Fuel Cycle ◽  
Nuclear Fuel Cycle ◽  
The European Union ◽  
International Forum ◽  
Reactor Technology ◽  
The Status ◽  
Fuel Reactor ◽  
Key Issues ◽  
The Eu

The PUMA project, a Specific Targeted Research Project (STREP) of the European Union EURATOM 6th Framework Program, is mainly aimed at providing additional key elements for the utilisation and transmutation of plutonium and minor actinides (neptunium and americium) in contemporary and future (high temperature) gas-cooled reactor design, which are promising tools for improving the sustainability of the nuclear fuel cycle. PUMA would also contribute to the reduction of Pu and MA stockpiles and to the development of safe and sustainable reactors for CO2-free energy generation. The project runs from September 1, 2006 until August 31, 2009. PUMA also contributes to technological goals of the Generation IV International Forum. It contributes to developing and maintaining the competence in reactor technology in the EU and addresses European stakeholders on key issues for the future of nuclear energy in the EU. An overview is presented of the status of the project at mid-term.

scholarly journals Challenges in Materials Research for Sustainable Nuclear Energy

MRS Bulletin ◽  
2008 ◽  
Vol 33 (4) ◽  
pp. 327-337 ◽  
Author(s):  
Baldev Raj ◽  
M. Vijayalakshmi ◽  
P.R. Vasudeva Rao ◽  
K.B.S. Rao
Keyword(s):  
Service Life ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
Nuclear Power ◽  
Nuclear Energy ◽  
Prolonged Exposure ◽  
Fuel Cycle ◽  
Global Energy ◽  
Environmental Friendliness ◽  
Reactor Technology ◽  
Nuclear Systems

AbstractGlobal energy demand is expected to increase steeply, creating an urgent need to evolve a judicious global energy policy, exploiting the potential of all available energy resources, including nuclear energy. With increasing awareness of environmental issues, nuclear energy is expected to play an important role on the energy scenario in the coming decades. The immediate thrust in the science and technology of nuclear materials is to realize a robust reactor technology with associated fuel cycle and ensure the cost competitiveness of nuclear power and to extend the service life of reactors to 100 years. Accordingly, the present-generation materials need to be modified to meet the demands of prolonged exposure to irradiation and extended service life for the reactor. Emerging nuclear systems incorporate features to ensure environmental friendliness, effective waste management, enhanced safety, and proliferation resistance and require development of high-temperature materials and the associated technologies. Fusion, on a longer horizon of about fve decades, also requires the development of a new spectrum of materials. The development of next-generation materials technology is expected to occur in short times and is likely to be further accelerated by strong international collaborations.

scholarly journals Feasibility Studies on Pyro-SFR Closed Fuel Cycle and Direct Disposal of Spent Nuclear Fuel in Line with the Latest National Policy and Strategy of Korea

2017 ◽  
Vol 2017 ◽  
pp. 1-17
Author(s):  
Muhammad Minhaj Khan ◽  
Jae Min Lee ◽  
Jae Hak Cheong ◽  
Joo Ho Whang
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Fuel ◽  
Cost Estimation ◽  
Nuclear Power ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Nuclear Energy ◽  
Spent Nuclear Fuel ◽  
Fuel Cycle ◽  
Energy Systems ◽  
Economic Feasibility ◽  
Closed Fuel Cycle

With a view to providing supportive information for the decision-making on the direction of the future nuclear energy systems in Korea (i.e., direct disposal or recycling of spent nuclear fuel) to be made around 2020, quantitative studies on the spent nuclear fuel (SNF) including transuranic elements (TRUs) and a series of economic analyses were conducted. At first, the total isotopic inventory of TRUs in the SNF to be generated from all thirty-six units of nuclear power plants in operation or under planning is estimated based on the Korean government’s official plan for nuclear power development. Secondly, the optimized deployment strategies are proposed considering the minimum number of sodium cooled-fast reactors (SFRs) needed to transmute all TRUs. Finally, direct disposal and Pyro-SFR closed nuclear energy systems were compared using equilibrium economic model and considering reduction of TRUs and electricity generation as benefits. Probabilistic economic analysis shows that the assumed total generation cost for direct disposal and Pyro-SFR closed nuclear energy systems resides within the range of 13.60~33.94 mills/kWh and 11.40~25.91 mills/kWh, respectively. Dominant cost elements and the range of SFR overnight cost which guarantees the economic feasibility of the Pyro-SFR closed nuclear energy system over the direct disposal option were also identified through sensitivity analysis and break-even cost estimation.

Framework for Assessing Transition Scenarios to Sustainable Nuclear Energy Systems

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Galina Fesenko ◽  
Vladimir Kuznetsov ◽  
Vladimir Usanov
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Fuel ◽  
Material Flow ◽  
Nuclear Energy ◽  
Fuel Cycle ◽  
Nuclear Reactors ◽  
Energy Systems ◽  
Energy System ◽  
Analytical Framework ◽  
Member States ◽  
Fuel Cycles

The International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA’s) International Project on Innovative Nuclear Reactors and Fuel Cycles (INPRO) was established in 2000 with the goal to ensure a sustainable nuclear energy supply to meet the global energy needs in the 21st century. The INPRO activities on global and regional nuclear energy scenarios provide newcomers and mature nuclear countries alike with better understanding of options for making a collaborative transition to future sustainable nuclear energy systems. Collaborative project GAINS (Global Architecture of Innovative Nuclear Energy Systems Based on Thermal and Fast Reactors Including a Closed Fuel Cycle) developed an internationally verified analytical framework for assessing such transition scenarios. The framework (hereafter, GAINS framework) is a part of the integrated services provided by IAEA to Member States considering initial development or expansion of their nuclear energy programmes. The paper presents major elements of the analytical framework and selected results of its application, including: • Long-term nuclear energy demand scenarios based on the IAEA Member States’ high and low estimations of nuclear power deployment until 2030 and expected trends until 2050 and on forecasts of competent international energy organizations; • Heterogeneous world model comprised of groups of non-personified non-geographical countries (NGs) with different policy regarding nuclear fuel cycle back end; • Architectures of nuclear energy systems; • Metrics and tools for the assessment of dynamic nuclear energy system evolution scenarios regarding sustainability, including a set of key indicators and evaluation parameters; • An internationally verified database with best estimate material flow and economic characteristics of existing and advanced nuclear reactors and associated nuclear fuel cycles needed for material flow analysis and comparative economic analysis, extending the previously developed IAEA databases and taking into account preferences of different countries; • Selected results of sample analysis for scenarios involving transition from the present fleets of nuclear reactors and fuel cycles to future sustainable nuclear energy system architectures involving innovative technological solutions.

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