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It’s Back to the Future with Microgrids
Published in Stephen A. Roosa, Fundamentals of Microgrids, 2020
While fusion reactor demonstration projects are likely decades away, smaller nuclear reactors are more likely to be available sooner. Integral Molten Salt Reactor (IMSR) technology is a small-scale and modular technology that is being explored by a company located in Ottawa, Canada. IMSR uses molten salt as both the fuel and the coolant and operates on a variety of nuclear fuels including spent nuclear waste [27]. IMSRs can work in combination with RE facilities such as solar and wind plants to produce continuous utility-grade, fossil fuel-free energy with no carbon footprint [27]. IMSR plants can also operate under ambient pressures making them much safer than conventional nuclear plants. They are not subject to the potential of radioactive gas explosions and there is no risk of meltdown upon failure [27]. An example is the NuScale SMR. This technology uses a natural circulation light water reactor with the reactor core and helical coil steam generators located in a common reactor vessel in a cylindrical steel containment (see Figure 15.5) [28]. The reactor vessel containment module is submerged in water in the reactor pool, which is also the reactor’s heat sink and located below grade [28]. The reactor building is designed for 12 SMRs. Each SMR has a rated thermal output of 160 MW and electrical output of 50 MW each, yielding a total capacity of 600 MW for all twelve SMRs [28].
MSR Technology Basics
Published in Kenneth D. Kok, Nuclear Engineering Handbook, 2016
The main innovation of Terrestrial Energy’s IMSR is its novel solution to the long-standing sealed versus swap dilemma. Stated simply, the IMSR integrates all primary systems into a sealed reactor vessel. This includes the primary heat exchangers and core graphite. The IMSR is run at an economically attractive high power density and can avoid any need to replace graphite or heat exchangers by keeping the entire compact core unit sealed, but replacing this core unit itself. Seven years is the currently planned life cycle with the facility planned for 60+ years. The reactor vessel thus has a second life as a medium- to long-term storage vessel for the low-to-intermediate level spent graphite and heat exchangers. The IMSR employs multiple independent primary heat exchanger units, each with their own secondary coolant inlet and outlet lines. Thus in the event of any HX failure, individual segments can be isolated and the IMSR continue its planned lifetime. The IMSR units are planned in three power outputs from 80 to 600 MW(t). All are planned to be factory fabricated and truck deliverable (Figures 7.13 and 7.14).
Thermal-Hydraulic and Neutronic Phenomena Important in Modeling and Simulation of Liquid-Fuel Molten Salt Reactors
Published in Nuclear Technology, 2020
Nicholas R. Brown, David J. Diamond, Stephen Bajorek, Richard Denning
The four thermal spectrum designs used by the panel collectively as a generic design are the liquid fluoride thorium reactor (LFTR) (by Flibe Energy7), ThorCon (by Martingale8), integral molten salt reactor (IMSR) (by Terrestrial Energy9), and Transatomic Power Reactor (TAP) (by Transatomic Power10). For these reactors the very limited available design information is summarized in Table I. For fast spectrum reactors there is even less information available, but several concepts are discussed in Ref. 5 including two chloride salt designs of interest in the United States.11,12