Comparative study of minor actinide transmutation in sodium and lead-cooled fast reactor cores |
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Authors: | Kamil Tu
ek, Johan Carlsson, Dragan Vidovi ,Hartmut Wider |
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Affiliation: | aJoint Research Centre of the European Commission, Institute for Energy, Postbus 2, NL-1755 ZG Petten, The Netherlands |
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Abstract: | This paper shows that lead-cooled and sodium-cooled fast reactors (LFRs and SFRs) can preferentially consume minor actinides without burning plutonium, both in homogeneous and in heterogeneous mode. The former approach consists of admixing about 5% of minor actinides (MAs) into uranium–plutonium fuels in the core and using a limited number of thermalising pins consisting of UZrH1.6. These are needed to keep the negative Doppler feedback larger than the positive coolant reactivity coefficient. Our Monte Carlo burn-up calculations showed that a 600 MWe LFR self-breeder without blankets can burn an average of around 67 kg annually of MAs with a reactivity swing of only about −0.7$ per year. The reactivity swing of a corresponding 600 MWe SFR is more than three times larger due to the poorer breeding and half the critical mass in comparison to the LFR. However, when axial and radial blankets loaded with 10% MAs are added, the SFR burns 25% more MAs (131 kg/yr) and breeds 30% more Pu (150 kg/yr) than an equally sized LFR. When only the blankets are loaded with MAs, the SFR breeds 30% more Pu (198 kg/yr) and still burns about 60 kg a year of MAs. However, in terms of severe accident behaviour, the LFR, with its superior natural coolant circulation and larger heat capacity, has definite advantages. |
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Keywords: | Lead-cooled fast reactor (LFR) Sodium-cooled fast reactor (SFR) Minor actinide burning Self-breeder Moderator pins Fast reactor safety |
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