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Modular Systems for Energy Conservation and Efficiency
Published in Yatish T. Shah, Modular Systems for Energy Usage Management, 2020
One of the most promising concepts is the VHTR with its characteristic features of direct cycle gas turbine plant for high efficiency and a coolant outlet temperatures of 1,000°C. The top candidate production method is the sulfur–iodine (S–I) thermochemical cycle, considered presently as a reference method by various countries. Most advanced in this respect is the Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA), which is planning to connect the S–I process to their high-temperature engineering test reactor (HTTR) and demonstrate for the first time nuclear hydrogen production foreseen for 2010. The United States is currently designing a “Next Generation Nuclear Plant” (NGNP). This government-sponsored demo program is based on a 400–600 MWth full-scale prototype gas-cooled reactor to provide electricity and process heat at 900°C–1,000°C. The 100 MW is planned to be used for hydrogen production using the I-S process as a reference method or alternatively high-temperature electrolysis (HTE). In addition, in China and Korea, ambitious programs have been started with the goal to bring nuclear hydrogen production to the energy market.
Review of the Fluid Dynamics and Heat Transport Phenomena in Packed Pebble Bed Nuclear Reactors
Published in Nuclear Science and Engineering, 2023
Rahman S. Almusafir, Ahmed A. Jasim, Muthanna H. Al-Dahhan
The next-generation nuclear plants (NGNP), or the Gen IV nuclear reactors, are supposed to fulfill future energy demand and environmental needs. In addition, they can be used to produce hydrogen and process heat for industrial needs. The very high-temperature reactor (VHTR) is one of these six advanced concepts for Gen IV nuclear reactors that are being considered for electric power, process heat, and hydrogen production. The VHTR is a continuation and optimization of the present high-temperature gas-cooled reactor (HTGR) designs, with the aim of reaching a coolant outlet temperature of around 1000°C or above, which would increase reactor performance. The core configuration of the VHTR can be a pebble bed type or a prismatic block type, according to the fuel element assembly. An annulus filled with mobile fuel spheres is used in the core of the pebble bed reactor (PBR) while a hexagonal prismatic fuel block core configuration is used for the prismatic block reactor. Both the pebble fuel type and prismatic block type are still considered for the NGNP design with a once-through low-enriched uranium fuel cycle at a high burnup value. Recently, various studies have been conducted on these reactors. Thus, in this work, we focus on reviewing the recent advances that have been made in fluid dynamics and heat transport phenomena related to only packed pebble bed nuclear reactors.