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Study on Fuel Selection for a Long-Life Small Lead-Based Reactor

Author

Listed:
  • Gan Huang

    (School of Nuclear Science and Technology, University of South China, Hengyang 421000, China
    Research Center for Digital Nuclear Reactor Engineering and Technology of Hunan Province, University of South China, Hengyang 421000, China)

  • Chao Yang

    (School of Nuclear Science and Technology, University of South China, Hengyang 421000, China
    Research Center for Digital Nuclear Reactor Engineering and Technology of Hunan Province, University of South China, Hengyang 421000, China)

  • Jichong Lei

    (School of Nuclear Science and Technology, University of South China, Hengyang 421000, China
    Research Center for Digital Nuclear Reactor Engineering and Technology of Hunan Province, University of South China, Hengyang 421000, China)

  • Lingling Su

    (School of Nuclear Science and Technology, University of South China, Hengyang 421000, China)

  • Zhenping Chen

    (School of Nuclear Science and Technology, University of South China, Hengyang 421000, China
    Research Center for Digital Nuclear Reactor Engineering and Technology of Hunan Province, University of South China, Hengyang 421000, China)

  • Tao Yu

    (School of Nuclear Science and Technology, University of South China, Hengyang 421000, China
    Research Center for Digital Nuclear Reactor Engineering and Technology of Hunan Province, University of South China, Hengyang 421000, China)

Abstract

The choice of an appropriate fuel can effectively prolong the refueling cycle of a reactor core. The Th-U cycle and U-Pu cycle are commonly used fuel breeding cycles. Oxide fuels, nitride fuels, and metal fuels are the primary candidate fuels for lead-based reactors. For fuel selection, a core model of a 60 MWt reactor was established. The results show that the breeding performance of the breeding fuel Th-232 is better than that of U-238, and the driving performance of the driving fuel Pu-239 is better than that of U-235. Therefore, PuO 2 -ThO 2 , PuN-ThN, and Pu-Th-Zr fuels may have good performance. By comparing the reactivity loss of three types of fuel, it was found that the reactivity loss of PuN-ThN fuel is the smallest. Hence, using PuN-ThN fuel as a core fuel can result in a longer refueling cycle. On this basis, PuN-ThN fuel was used in the preliminary design of the 120 MWt core physical model. It can be seen that when PuN-ThN fuel is used as the core fuel, a smaller reactivity swing (1408 pcm), smaller power peak factor, and super long refueling cycle (more than 30 years) can be obtained.

Suggested Citation

  • Gan Huang & Chao Yang & Jichong Lei & Lingling Su & Zhenping Chen & Tao Yu, 2022. "Study on Fuel Selection for a Long-Life Small Lead-Based Reactor," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(24), pages 1-21, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:14:y:2022:i:24:p:16840-:d:1004344
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    References listed on IDEAS

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