A Techno-Economic Optimization of the Power Conversion System of a Very High Temperature Reactor

Generation IV nuclear reactors will not be implemented unless they enable lower production costs than with the current systems. In such a context a techno-economic optimization method was developed and then applied to the power conversion system of a very high temperature reactor. Techno-economic optimization consists in minimizing an objective function that depends on technical variables and economic ones. The advantage of the techno-economic optimization is that it can take into account both investment costs and operating costs. A techno-economic model was implemented in a specific optimization software named Vizir, which is based on genetic algorithms. The calculation of the thermodynamic cycle is performed by a software named Tugaz. The results are the values of the decision variables that lead to a minimum cost, according to the model. The total production cost is evaluated. The influence of the various variables and constraints is also pointed out.