Design of an Organic Simplified Nuclear Reactor
Numerous advanced reactor concepts have been proposed to replace light water reactors ever since their establishment as the dominant technology for nuclear energy production. While most designs seek to improve cost competitiveness and safety, the implausibility of doing so with affordable materials...
| Main Authors: | , |
|---|---|
| Other Authors: | |
| Format: | Article |
| Published: |
Elsevier BV
2018
|
| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/117025 |
| _version_ | 1811078135037296640 |
|---|---|
| author | Shirvan, Koroush Forrest, Eric |
| author2 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Nuclear Science and Engineering |
| author_facet | Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Nuclear Science and Engineering Shirvan, Koroush Forrest, Eric |
| author_sort | Shirvan, Koroush |
| collection | MIT |
| description | Numerous advanced reactor concepts have been proposed to replace light water reactors ever since their establishment as the dominant technology for nuclear energy production. While most designs seek to improve cost competitiveness and safety, the implausibility of doing so with affordable materials or existing nuclear fuel infrastructure reduces the possibility of near-term deployment, especially in developing countries. The organic nuclear concept, first explored in the 1950s, offers an attractive alternative to advanced reactor designs being considered. The advent of high temperature fluids, along with advances in hydrocracking and reforming technologies driven by the oil and gas industries, make the organic concept even more viable today. We present a simple, cost-effective, and safe small modular nuclear reactor for offshore underwater deployment. The core is moderated by graphite, zirconium hydride, and organic fluid while cooled by the organic fluid. The organic coolant enables operation near atmospheric pressure and use of plain carbon steel for the reactor tank and primary coolant piping system. The core is designed to mitigate the coolant degradation seen in early organic reactors. Overall, the design provides a power density of 40 kW/L, while reducing the reactor hull size by 40% compared with a pressurized water reactor while significantly reducing capital plant costs. Keywords: Advanced Concepts, Graphite Moderated, Nuclear Design, Organic Reactor, Santowax, SMR |
| first_indexed | 2024-09-23T10:54:06Z |
| format | Article |
| id | mit-1721.1/117025 |
| institution | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
| last_indexed | 2024-09-23T10:54:06Z |
| publishDate | 2018 |
| publisher | Elsevier BV |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | mit-1721.1/1170252024-07-15T17:15:52Z Design of an Organic Simplified Nuclear Reactor Shirvan, Koroush Forrest, Eric Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Nuclear Science and Engineering Shirvan, Koroush Numerous advanced reactor concepts have been proposed to replace light water reactors ever since their establishment as the dominant technology for nuclear energy production. While most designs seek to improve cost competitiveness and safety, the implausibility of doing so with affordable materials or existing nuclear fuel infrastructure reduces the possibility of near-term deployment, especially in developing countries. The organic nuclear concept, first explored in the 1950s, offers an attractive alternative to advanced reactor designs being considered. The advent of high temperature fluids, along with advances in hydrocracking and reforming technologies driven by the oil and gas industries, make the organic concept even more viable today. We present a simple, cost-effective, and safe small modular nuclear reactor for offshore underwater deployment. The core is moderated by graphite, zirconium hydride, and organic fluid while cooled by the organic fluid. The organic coolant enables operation near atmospheric pressure and use of plain carbon steel for the reactor tank and primary coolant piping system. The core is designed to mitigate the coolant degradation seen in early organic reactors. Overall, the design provides a power density of 40 kW/L, while reducing the reactor hull size by 40% compared with a pressurized water reactor while significantly reducing capital plant costs. Keywords: Advanced Concepts, Graphite Moderated, Nuclear Design, Organic Reactor, Santowax, SMR 2018-07-20T14:52:25Z 2018-07-20T14:52:25Z 2016-03 2016-02 2018-07-19T19:52:31Z Article http://purl.org/eprint/type/JournalArticle 17385733 1738-5733 http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/117025 Shirvan, Koroush, and Eric Forrest. “Design of an Organic Simplified Nuclear Reactor.” Nuclear Engineering and Technology, vol. 48, no. 4, Aug. 2016, pp. 893–905. © 2016, Published by Elsevier Korea LLC on behalf of Korean Nuclear Society http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/J.NET.2016.02.019 Nuclear Engineering and Technology Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ application/pdf Elsevier BV Elsevier |
| spellingShingle | Shirvan, Koroush Forrest, Eric Design of an Organic Simplified Nuclear Reactor |
| title | Design of an Organic Simplified Nuclear Reactor |
| title_full | Design of an Organic Simplified Nuclear Reactor |
| title_fullStr | Design of an Organic Simplified Nuclear Reactor |
| title_full_unstemmed | Design of an Organic Simplified Nuclear Reactor |
| title_short | Design of an Organic Simplified Nuclear Reactor |
| title_sort | design of an organic simplified nuclear reactor |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/117025 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT shirvankoroush designofanorganicsimplifiednuclearreactor AT forresteric designofanorganicsimplifiednuclearreactor |