Preliminary neutron study of a thorium-based molten salt energy amplifier

Yang, Pu; Lin, Zuokang; Wan, Weishi; Zhu, Guifeng; Yu, Xiaohan; Dai, Zhimin

doi:10.1007/s41365-020-0750-8

Cited by 9 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…CR can also be obtained from the neutron balance point of view. CR in a subcritical reactor can be given by the formula 21

italicCR = η + ε + μ - ((), l_{Absorb} + l_{Leakage} + 1)

where η is the number of neutrons produced by fissions in fissile isotopes, ε is the excess neutrons produced by fissions in fertile isotopes, l Absorb stands for the number of neutrons absorbed in non‐fuel materials, l Leakage represents the number of neutrons lost by leakage, and μ is the contribution of external source neutrons which can be expressed as

μ = \frac{\overset{ν}{true} ((), 1 - k_{eff})}{k_{eff} ((), 1 + α) φ^{*}}

where α is the capture‐fission ratio of fissile isotopes. As shown in Equation , the contribution of external neutron source to CR is closely related to the sub‐criticality.…”

Section: General Description Of Tmsfeamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The beam tube is inserted directly into the fuel salt to transport 1 GeV proton beam. The liquid lead reflector is adopted, since it can yield a very hard neutron spectrum, fostering a good breeding performance 21 …”

Section: Design Parameters Of Tmsfeamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Therefore, considering the current technology level and future development trend of the accelerator, the maximum beam power of TMSFEA is limited to 4 MW. Considering the 1 GeV proton energy is more efficient for neutron yield, 21,34 the maximum beam current of TMSFEA is set to 4 mA.…”

Section: Design Parameters Of Tmsfeamentioning

confidence: 99%

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The conceptual design of thorium‐based molten salt energy amplifier

et al. 2020

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Summary Thorium is a possible nuclear fuel to achieve the sustainable development of nuclear energy. The molten salt reactor (MSR) has great potential and advantages in realizing the efficient utilization of thorium resources. However, there are still many challenging technologies to be developed, such as the graphite lifetime problem, the complex online processing of the fuel salt. Therefore, the actual deployment timelines of thorium‐based MSR are still unpredictable. In this research, a Thorium‐based Molten Salt Fast Energy Amplifier (TMSFEA), which is based on the subcritical chloride salt fast reactor, is proposed. It adopts a single‐fluid, moderator‐free simple core design. A ternary molten salt system containing sodium chloride (NaCl), thorium tetrachloride (ThCl4), and plutonium trichloride (PuCl3) serves as both the spallation target and the fuel. A 1 GeV proton accelerator with maximum beam current of 4 mA is introduced to compensate the neutrons absorbed by fission products during operation. By adopting an offline fuel cycle scenario based on the multi‐generation reactor evolution, the utilization efficiency of thorium fuel is greatly improved. After four generations of TMSFEA operation, the total net 233U production is 2774.6 kg, the fission rate fraction of 233U rises from 0% to 89.3%, the energy fraction of thorium (EFT) can achieve the value of 66.6%, and the utilization efficiency of thorium (UET) can reach 25.9%.

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“…CR can also be obtained from the neutron balance point of view. CR in a subcritical reactor can be given by the formula 21

italicCR = η + ε + μ - ((), l_{Absorb} + l_{Leakage} + 1)

μ = \frac{\overset{ν}{true} ((), 1 - k_{eff})}{k_{eff} ((), 1 + α) φ^{*}}

where α is the capture‐fission ratio of fissile isotopes. As shown in Equation , the contribution of external neutron source to CR is closely related to the sub‐criticality.…”

Section: General Description Of Tmsfeamentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Design Parameters Of Tmsfeamentioning

confidence: 99%

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The conceptual design of thorium‐based molten salt energy amplifier

et al. 2020

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“…Molten salt reactors (MSRs) [1,2] are one of the six Generation IV technologies presented in the Technology Roadmap for Generation IV Nuclear Energy Systems [3][4][5] that have garnered tremendous interest from both academic and business communities. Among all the designs of the Generation IV reactor systems, MSRs [6][7][8][9] have emerged as the most promising and revolutionary reactor type, showcasing unparalleled potential for diverse applications [10][11][12][13]. The MSR stands out for its unique design, which features the use of a circulating fluid fuel [14][15][16][17].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comparative Irradiated Dimensional Change Strain Analyses of Two Types of Graphite Components in a Thorium Molten Salt Reactor

Zhong,

Zou,

Wang

et al. 2024

Energies

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Nuclear graphite plays a crucial role in thermal-spectrum thorium molten salt reactors (TMSRs) as both the neutron moderator and the construct for the coolant flowing channel. When subjected to irradiation and elevated temperatures, graphite components experience considerable deformation due to a combination of dimensional changes, thermal expansion, irradiation creep, elastic deformation, and changes in thermomechanical characteristics. The lifespan of the graphite component is a limiting factor in TMSR designs as it strongly correlates with the dimensional changes of the graphite. To evaluate the thermal and mechanical reactions of graphite component under TMSR core conditions, it is necessary to couple models of thermal-hydraulics, neutronics, and thermal-mechanics. This paper presents an enhanced methodology for analyzing the deformation of graphite components using the finite element method. Then, this method was applied to analyze a 10-year deformation history of a hexagonal prism assembly (HPA) and it was compared with the traditional hexagonal round channel assembly (RCA). The results demonstrate that the stress–strain field of both types of graphite components undergo significant variations with the increasing neutron fluence from irradiation. HPA graphite exhibits a slower deformation as compared to RCA graphite when subjected to identical operating conditions. In this case, HPA graphite has a lifespan of approximately 10 years, while RCA graphite lasts only 8.8 years.

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“…As a result, the chloride is more adequate than the fluoride for a long time running strategy without an online processing in the design. As the spallation target of the conceptual design of thorium‐based molten salt fast energy amplifier, 10 it is necessary to carry out more research on chloride molten salt target.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Analysis of integrated target in thorium‐based molten salt fast energy amplifier

et al. 2020

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Summary Conventional neutron targets in accelerator driven subcritical system (ADS) are based on the design using heavy metal like lead and lead‐bismuth eutectic (LBE), which generally needs a separated loop for target cooling. In the thorium‐based molten salt fast energy amplifier, an integrated target is conceived that the proton beam is directly placed in the chloride/fluoride molten salt core without a separated cooling loop for the target in consideration of the neutron productivity of the liquid molten salt fuel bombarded with the proton. The physical analysis of the spallation target is presented, including the spallation neutron yield, neutron spectrum, spallation products, and energy deposition. Chloride molten salt is a reasonable choice among four kinds of simulated target based on considering about the neutron yield, neutron spectrum, spallation products and energy deposition. The simulation code is the Monte Carlo code MCNP6.1. Besides, evaluation of the target size is presented, and two kinds of the beam tube layout are compared by considering the neutron economy in the system.

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Preliminary neutron study of a thorium-based molten salt energy amplifier

Cited by 9 publications

References 29 publications

The conceptual design of thorium‐based molten salt energy amplifier

The conceptual design of thorium‐based molten salt energy amplifier

Comparative Irradiated Dimensional Change Strain Analyses of Two Types of Graphite Components in a Thorium Molten Salt Reactor

Analysis of integrated target in thorium‐based molten salt fast energy amplifier

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