Physical characteristics and problems of developing a sodium-cooled fast reactor as a source of high-potential thermal energy for hydrogen production and other high-temperature technologies

Poplavskii, V. M.; Zabud’Ko, A.N.; Petrov, Eugene P.; Ovcharenko, M. K.; Попов, В. В.; Bogush, V. B.; Loginov, N. I.; Tarasov, V. A.; Polevoi, V. B.; Khoromskii, V. A.; Mikheev, A. S.

doi:10.1007/s10512-009-9147-9

Cited by 5 publications

(1 citation statement)

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“…As one of the possible examples, Fig. 4 presents a diagram of a reactor facility with a fast reactor for electricity and hydrogen production based on the technology of high-temperature steam electrolysis with the use of a solid oxide electrolysis cell (Poplavskii et al 2009).…”

Section: Capabilities Of Two-component Nuclear Energy System In Addre...mentioning

confidence: 99%

System Features of Fast Sodium Reactors in a Two-Component Structure of Nuclear Power Generating

Troyanov,

Gulevich,

Gurskaya

et al. 2024

YadEn

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The stepwise conversion of Russian nuclear power industry to a two-component nuclear energy system (NES) with thermal and fast reactors in a single closed NFC allows a number of deferred system problems of modern power industry to be solved, such as accumulation of spent fuel from thermal reactors and spent fuel repatriated from foreign Russian-designed NPPs; inefficient use of highly limited raw uranium inventories; recycling of minor actinides and other long-lived high-level waste accumulated in the course of thermal reactors' operation. The paper examines the fundamental capabilities of two-component NES, which appear due to the availability of commercial fast neutron sodium reactors. Due to the synergistic development of thermal and fast reactors, it is expected to achieve an economic effect associated with introduction of new fuel services in the nuclear energy system, such as production of plutonium and improvement of its isotopic composition for thermal reactors, transmutation of "external" minor actinides, production of isotopes for various purposes, production of hydrogen, etc. The expansion of Russia's export opportunities is also being considered, it can be done through fuel supply for both power units built in compliance with Russian technologies and foreign power units with MOX fuel. In this approach, it is important to analyze the economy of the whole system, where fast reactors, due to their inherent surplus of neutrons, perform the functions required to the entire NES, rather than to analyze the technical and economic indicators of individual reactors. The article makes a preliminary technical and economic assessment of such system functions provided by fast sodium reactors. It is shown that fast and thermal reactors operating together in a two-component nuclear energy system, with the same electrical power and similar technical and economic indicators, can significantly reduce the necessary infrastructure costs and/or generate additional income, thereby reducing the specific levelized cost of electricity production.

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Section: Capabilities Of Two-component Nuclear Energy System In Addre...mentioning

confidence: 99%

System Features of Fast Sodium Reactors in a Two-Component Structure of Nuclear Power Generating

Troyanov,

Gulevich,

Gurskaya

et al. 2024

YadEn

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High-Temperature Nuclear Energy Technology Based on Sodium-Cooled Fast Reactors for Hydrogen Production

et al. 2014

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Studies show that in principle it is possible by relying on the BN-600 design to secure the required parameters of a reactor setup with a fast reactor with high-temperature sodium coolant (BN-VT) for hydrogen production. The calculations for 600 MW(t) BN-VT for electricity and hydrogen production based on solid-oxide electrolysis of water taking account of a fundamentally different method of purificationremoval of hydrogen and tritium from the sodium by vacuum pumping through special membranes -have shown that the efficiency of such a system is ~40% and hydrogen production volume is 2.8·10 4 liters/sec. The purification of hydrogen by removing tritium to a concentration ensuring the maximum admissible hydrogen concentration in the hydrogen produced 3.26 Bq/liter, imposes additional requirements on the hydrogen removal system.The most important problem determining the future development of environmentally clean power generation is bringing hydrogen into the fuel cycle. Hydrogen is an attractive element for replacing fossil fuels (oil, gas), though it is not a source but rather a carrier of energy. As expected, the demand for hydrogen production is increasing rapidly. At the present time, the main method of hydrogen production is steam conversion of methane. However, from the standpoint of the longterm future of the large-scale production of hydrogen this method is not viable because it requires the use of nonrenewable resources and is accompanied by the release of greenhouse gases. For this reason, alternative methods of hydrogen production by splitting water using thermochemical or electrolytic heat sources are being developed.At present, the best developed high-temperature sources of heat could be Gen-IV nuclear reactors because the proposed heat carriers are gases, liquid metals (sodium, lead) and fused salts. The temperature at the exit from the core in these reactors can reach 900-950°C. They represent a new class of reactors intended for electricity production with high efficiency (50%) and supporting important technological processes in hydrogen production, coal gasification and liquefaction, deep reprocessing of oil, conversion of biomass into liquid fuel as well as in the chemical industry and metallurgy.The conceptual studies performed at the Leipunskii Institute for Physics and Power Engineering (FEI) on the development of a high-energy high-temperature fast sodium reactor (BN-VT) show that the development of such a reactor is technically feasible [1]. The technological problems associated with the high temperature in the reactor setup are paramount. In the present work, a great deal of attention is given to validating the development of a system that secures the quality of the sodium coolant at high temperature and the hydrogen concentration for a long service life, heat-and radiation-resistant hightemperature construction materials and their corrosion resistance with oxygen content in the sodium coolant at the level 0.1 ppm. Concrete estimates were made for 600 MW(t) BN-VT.

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The high-temperature sodium coolant technology in nuclear power installations for hydrogen power engineering

et al. 2014

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Physical characteristics and problems of developing a sodium-cooled fast reactor as a source of high-potential thermal energy for hydrogen production and other high-temperature technologies

Cited by 5 publications

References 1 publication

System Features of Fast Sodium Reactors in a Two-Component Structure of Nuclear Power Generating

System Features of Fast Sodium Reactors in a Two-Component Structure of Nuclear Power Generating

High-Temperature Nuclear Energy Technology Based on Sodium-Cooled Fast Reactors for Hydrogen Production

The high-temperature sodium coolant technology in nuclear power installations for hydrogen power engineering

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