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<p>Molten Salt Reactors</p>
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<p>© Thomas J. Dolan, Member, IEEE 2021</p>
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<p><i>Abstract</i>— Nuclear power is advancing
slowly because of public concerns about nuclear accidents, radioactive waste,
fuel supply, cost, and nuclear proliferation. The development of molten salt
reactors could alleviate most of these concerns and prevent water-cooled
reactor accidents like those at Three Mile Island, Chernobyl, and Fukushima.
The purpose of this article is to provide information about the potential advantages
and problems of molten salt reactors. The coolants could be either <i>fluorides</i>
or <i>chlorides</i>, operated above their melting temperatures, to avoid
solidification, and well below their boiling temperatures, to prevent
evaporation losses. “Fast” reactors use energetic fission neutrons, while
“thermal” reactors use graphite to slow the neutrons down to thermal energies. We
describe four reactor types: solid fuel thermal, liquid fuel thermal, liquid
fuel fast, and “stable salt” fast reactors (liquid fuel in tubes). We discuss load
following, reactor design projects, and development problems. Liquid fuel
reactors will require a chemical processing plant to adjust fissile fuel
inventory, fission products, actinides, and corrosivity in a hot, highly-radioactive
environment. </p>