Pub Date : 2023-12-21DOI: 10.3389/fnuen.2023.1293908
Haydn C. Bryan, Katherine W. Jesse, Charles A. Miller, Jeren M. Browning
The nuclear energy industry is looking to next-generation reactor designs to augment, diversify, and expand generation capacity in an increasingly complex and varied energy landscape. A key element in this objective is microreactors—small nuclear reactors which can provide flexible capacity at a reduced scale compared to traditional large-scale nuclear reactors. Specifically, microreactors could be used to provide clean, reliable combined heat and power to remote communities, worksites, or facilities. However, the construction and operations and maintenance costs to supply the required operator staffing and physical supporting assets, such as control rooms, could be a limiting factor for first adopters of the technology. Opportunities to reduce the cost of monitoring and control activities could enable early adoption, allowing economies of learning to take effect, spurring further adoption. A reduction in the number and cost intensity of control rooms and operators per deployed microreactor could significantly decrease the overall cost for a fleet of microreactors. To optimize microreactor economic competitiveness, one solution would be to establish an off-site operation facility for centralized monitoring and control (CM&C) of a fleet of microreactors. Leveraging advances in digital instrumentation and control systems could bolster the safety, reliability, and security of the remote communication architecture inherently required to operate remotely. Digital twins (DTs) are virtual replicas of physical assets which can be used for a variety of applications, including analyzing I&C signals against a validated model to perform several analysis and prediction functions. When implemented properly, DTs can potentially detect anomalies and component failures, and serve as a diagnostic tool for operators. These technologies can enhance operator understanding and awareness, reduce the management demand time on operators, and increase asset uptime by providing early alerts for failures alongside insights to aid in predictive maintenance. Furthermore, a DT system could enhance the secure and reliable communication architecture necessary for remote microreactor operation by verifying signals and suggesting or automating controls, thereby boosting their economic viability. This research examines the economic effects of various control strategies ranging from many individually and on-site controlled reactors to co-management of all microreactors in a system from a single, off-site control center. Results from the analysis are positive, revealing significant cost-reduction opportunities.
{"title":"Remote nuclear microreactors: a preliminary economic evaluation of digital twins and centralized offsite control","authors":"Haydn C. Bryan, Katherine W. Jesse, Charles A. Miller, Jeren M. Browning","doi":"10.3389/fnuen.2023.1293908","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/fnuen.2023.1293908","url":null,"abstract":"The nuclear energy industry is looking to next-generation reactor designs to augment, diversify, and expand generation capacity in an increasingly complex and varied energy landscape. A key element in this objective is microreactors—small nuclear reactors which can provide flexible capacity at a reduced scale compared to traditional large-scale nuclear reactors. Specifically, microreactors could be used to provide clean, reliable combined heat and power to remote communities, worksites, or facilities. However, the construction and operations and maintenance costs to supply the required operator staffing and physical supporting assets, such as control rooms, could be a limiting factor for first adopters of the technology. Opportunities to reduce the cost of monitoring and control activities could enable early adoption, allowing economies of learning to take effect, spurring further adoption. A reduction in the number and cost intensity of control rooms and operators per deployed microreactor could significantly decrease the overall cost for a fleet of microreactors. To optimize microreactor economic competitiveness, one solution would be to establish an off-site operation facility for centralized monitoring and control (CM&C) of a fleet of microreactors. Leveraging advances in digital instrumentation and control systems could bolster the safety, reliability, and security of the remote communication architecture inherently required to operate remotely. Digital twins (DTs) are virtual replicas of physical assets which can be used for a variety of applications, including analyzing I&C signals against a validated model to perform several analysis and prediction functions. When implemented properly, DTs can potentially detect anomalies and component failures, and serve as a diagnostic tool for operators. These technologies can enhance operator understanding and awareness, reduce the management demand time on operators, and increase asset uptime by providing early alerts for failures alongside insights to aid in predictive maintenance. Furthermore, a DT system could enhance the secure and reliable communication architecture necessary for remote microreactor operation by verifying signals and suggesting or automating controls, thereby boosting their economic viability. This research examines the economic effects of various control strategies ranging from many individually and on-site controlled reactors to co-management of all microreactors in a system from a single, off-site control center. Results from the analysis are positive, revealing significant cost-reduction opportunities.","PeriodicalId":400400,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Nuclear Engineering","volume":"80 3","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-12-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"138952807","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-12-13DOI: 10.3389/fnuen.2023.1253974
Susan Ortner
A nuclear power plant is a highly complex installation. Its design is a response to many drivers, including neutronic efficiency, thermal efficiency, economic efficiency, radiation safety, structural integrity, ease of monitoring and maintenance. The correct selection of structural materials has been key in achieving long term structural integrity, as different plant designs and operating conditions impose different combinations of requirements on the materials. This paper describes the reasoning behind structural materials choices and the changing perspectives on the interplay with other design imperatives in historic, current and future plant designs. It also describes the campaigns of materials development put in place to meet novel materials challenges specific to nuclear plant.
{"title":"A review of structural material requirements and choices for nuclear power plant","authors":"Susan Ortner","doi":"10.3389/fnuen.2023.1253974","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/fnuen.2023.1253974","url":null,"abstract":"A nuclear power plant is a highly complex installation. Its design is a response to many drivers, including neutronic efficiency, thermal efficiency, economic efficiency, radiation safety, structural integrity, ease of monitoring and maintenance. The correct selection of structural materials has been key in achieving long term structural integrity, as different plant designs and operating conditions impose different combinations of requirements on the materials. This paper describes the reasoning behind structural materials choices and the changing perspectives on the interplay with other design imperatives in historic, current and future plant designs. It also describes the campaigns of materials development put in place to meet novel materials challenges specific to nuclear plant.","PeriodicalId":400400,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Nuclear Engineering","volume":"28 15","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-12-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139005082","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-12-13DOI: 10.3389/fnuen.2023.1306529
Janelle P. Wharry, Donna P. Guillen, Caleb D. Clement, Saquib Bin Habib, Wen Jiang, Yangyang Zhao, Yu Lu, Yaqiao Wu, Ching-Heng Shiau, David Frazer, B. Heidrich, Collin Knight, David W. Gandy
This article presents neutron irradiation and post-irradiation examination (PIE) capabilities available to the nuclear materials research community through the US Department of Energy’s Nuclear Science User Facilities (NSUF). The pressing need to deploy advanced nuclear reactors to combat climate change requires qualification of new fuels and materials. Among advanced manufacturing processes, powder metallurgy with hot isostatic pressing (PM-HIP) is nearest to becoming qualified for nuclear applications. This article provides examples from a recent irradiation and PIE program on a series of structural alloys fabricated by PM-HIP to illustrate how NSUF capabilities can be used to generate qualification data. The neutron irradiation experiments are described, and a sampling of results from tensile testing, nanoindentation, transmission electron microscopy, and atom probe tomography are presented, showing the favorable performance of PM-HIP alloys compared to their cast or forged counterparts under irradiation. This article provides a perspective on leveraging NSUF for future nuclear fuels and materials testing and qualification.
{"title":"Materials qualification through the Nuclear Science User Facilities (NSUF): a case study on irradiated PM-HIP structural alloys","authors":"Janelle P. Wharry, Donna P. Guillen, Caleb D. Clement, Saquib Bin Habib, Wen Jiang, Yangyang Zhao, Yu Lu, Yaqiao Wu, Ching-Heng Shiau, David Frazer, B. Heidrich, Collin Knight, David W. Gandy","doi":"10.3389/fnuen.2023.1306529","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/fnuen.2023.1306529","url":null,"abstract":"This article presents neutron irradiation and post-irradiation examination (PIE) capabilities available to the nuclear materials research community through the US Department of Energy’s Nuclear Science User Facilities (NSUF). The pressing need to deploy advanced nuclear reactors to combat climate change requires qualification of new fuels and materials. Among advanced manufacturing processes, powder metallurgy with hot isostatic pressing (PM-HIP) is nearest to becoming qualified for nuclear applications. This article provides examples from a recent irradiation and PIE program on a series of structural alloys fabricated by PM-HIP to illustrate how NSUF capabilities can be used to generate qualification data. The neutron irradiation experiments are described, and a sampling of results from tensile testing, nanoindentation, transmission electron microscopy, and atom probe tomography are presented, showing the favorable performance of PM-HIP alloys compared to their cast or forged counterparts under irradiation. This article provides a perspective on leveraging NSUF for future nuclear fuels and materials testing and qualification.","PeriodicalId":400400,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Nuclear Engineering","volume":"117 7","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-12-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139003511","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-08-17DOI: 10.3389/fnuen.2023.1227170
S. Holgersson, Priyesh Kumar
The literature for radionuclide sorption on four common granitic minerals have been surveyed. Mainly, such studies were modelling using Thermodynamic Sorption Models were investigated. Although the studies give a far from concerted results, they agree on the necessity to model radionuclide uptake by granitic minerals with a combination of ion exchange and surface complexation reactions. For the sheet-silicates biotite and chlorite alkaline and alkaline earth mainly bind by ion exchange but there is also a clear pH effect for this, which shows the importance of protons competing with metal cations for the exchange sites. For multivalent metal cations, surface complexation is the model of choice since the binding to mineral surfaces seems to be strongly dependent on pH and to be little affected by an increase in ion strength. Anion sorption seems to be taking place also by surface complexation, where the sorption mainly takes place at low pH. For the feldspar minerals K-feldspar and plagioclase the sorption is also modelled by the two reaction mechanisms ion exchange and surface complexation. Surface complexation seems to be especially prevalent for the M(III) and M(VI) state, while ion exchange probably dominates M (II) uptake. Although the literature on these minerals is sparse, the studies show that also these minerals have considerable sorption capacity and must be considered if sorption onto granite is to be modelled from single mineral data. What is usually missing from these studies are more systematic variations in pH, ion strength and temperature. Instead, there is a certain overemphasis on the establishment of sorption isotherms.
{"title":"A literature review on thermodynamic sorption models of radionuclides with some selected granitic minerals","authors":"S. Holgersson, Priyesh Kumar","doi":"10.3389/fnuen.2023.1227170","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/fnuen.2023.1227170","url":null,"abstract":"The literature for radionuclide sorption on four common granitic minerals have been surveyed. Mainly, such studies were modelling using Thermodynamic Sorption Models were investigated. Although the studies give a far from concerted results, they agree on the necessity to model radionuclide uptake by granitic minerals with a combination of ion exchange and surface complexation reactions. For the sheet-silicates biotite and chlorite alkaline and alkaline earth mainly bind by ion exchange but there is also a clear pH effect for this, which shows the importance of protons competing with metal cations for the exchange sites. For multivalent metal cations, surface complexation is the model of choice since the binding to mineral surfaces seems to be strongly dependent on pH and to be little affected by an increase in ion strength. Anion sorption seems to be taking place also by surface complexation, where the sorption mainly takes place at low pH. For the feldspar minerals K-feldspar and plagioclase the sorption is also modelled by the two reaction mechanisms ion exchange and surface complexation. Surface complexation seems to be especially prevalent for the M(III) and M(VI) state, while ion exchange probably dominates M (II) uptake. Although the literature on these minerals is sparse, the studies show that also these minerals have considerable sorption capacity and must be considered if sorption onto granite is to be modelled from single mineral data. What is usually missing from these studies are more systematic variations in pH, ion strength and temperature. Instead, there is a certain overemphasis on the establishment of sorption isotherms.","PeriodicalId":400400,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Nuclear Engineering","volume":"75 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-08-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"128484509","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-08-02DOI: 10.3389/fnuen.2023.1185038
David García, R. Dagnelie, M. Zavarin
{"title":"Editorial: Sorption processes in nuclear waste management: data knowledge management and new methodologies for data acquisition/prediction","authors":"David García, R. Dagnelie, M. Zavarin","doi":"10.3389/fnuen.2023.1185038","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/fnuen.2023.1185038","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":400400,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Nuclear Engineering","volume":"69 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-08-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"134183523","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-07-19DOI: 10.3389/fnuen.2023.1185448
B. Beeler, Yongfeng Zhang
A U-Mo alloy has been selected as the fuel design for the conversion of high-performance research reactors in the United States. Efforts are ongoing to describe the fuel evolution as a function of time, for a variety of different reactor conditions. The accurate prediction of fuel evolution under irradiation requires the implementation of correct thermodynamic properties into mesoscale and continuum-level fuel performance modeling codes. Molecular dynamics has proven to be a valuable tool to parameterize or inform these higher-length scale models. However, there are currently inaccuracies in the only available U-Mo-Xe potential, which limits the predictive capabilities of molecular dynamics to inform critical phenomena in these fuel systems such as fission gas swelling. This work provides an updated U-Mo-Xe ternary interatomic potential which combines existing potentials in a reconciled format. The validation of the interatomic potential is performed by analyzing the phase stability and vacancy formation energies. Subsequently, Xe solution energies and an equation of state to describe Xe bubbles in U-Mo are calculated, providing 1) evidence of the significant differences between the prior ternary potential and the currently presented potential, and 2) updated data/tools for implementation into mesoscale simulation methodologies to study fission gas bubble evolution.
{"title":"The reconciliation and validation of a combined interatomic potential for the description of Xe in γU-Mo","authors":"B. Beeler, Yongfeng Zhang","doi":"10.3389/fnuen.2023.1185448","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/fnuen.2023.1185448","url":null,"abstract":"A U-Mo alloy has been selected as the fuel design for the conversion of high-performance research reactors in the United States. Efforts are ongoing to describe the fuel evolution as a function of time, for a variety of different reactor conditions. The accurate prediction of fuel evolution under irradiation requires the implementation of correct thermodynamic properties into mesoscale and continuum-level fuel performance modeling codes. Molecular dynamics has proven to be a valuable tool to parameterize or inform these higher-length scale models. However, there are currently inaccuracies in the only available U-Mo-Xe potential, which limits the predictive capabilities of molecular dynamics to inform critical phenomena in these fuel systems such as fission gas swelling. This work provides an updated U-Mo-Xe ternary interatomic potential which combines existing potentials in a reconciled format. The validation of the interatomic potential is performed by analyzing the phase stability and vacancy formation energies. Subsequently, Xe solution energies and an equation of state to describe Xe bubbles in U-Mo are calculated, providing 1) evidence of the significant differences between the prior ternary potential and the currently presented potential, and 2) updated data/tools for implementation into mesoscale simulation methodologies to study fission gas bubble evolution.","PeriodicalId":400400,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Nuclear Engineering","volume":"7 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-07-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"126920529","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-06-28DOI: 10.3389/fnuen.2023.1208524
N. Chapman, C. Mccombie
Multinational geological repositories (Multinational repositories: MNRs) will inevitably be features of the international radioactive waste management landscape in future decades. They will involve more complex requirements for long-term information management than national deep geological repositories (DGRs) but the considerations involved in managing these requirements also point to wider needs for transnational information management for any country with a national deep geological repository. This article looks at what information needs to be propagated into the future for both DGRs and MNRs, and for how long. It is argued that the critical requirements are quite limited and are readily achievable, with the most important period being the coming few hundred years. The transience of organisations and national boundaries, issues being addressed for MNRs, also affect any national programme, but are generally overlooked. It is concluded that there is a need to move towards international oversight of all geological disposal facilities, including a common system of regulations and information archiving, and that providing these is a potential role for the IAEA.
{"title":"Multinational repositories (MNRs) highlight the need for transnational information management in geological disposal","authors":"N. Chapman, C. Mccombie","doi":"10.3389/fnuen.2023.1208524","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/fnuen.2023.1208524","url":null,"abstract":"Multinational geological repositories (Multinational repositories: MNRs) will inevitably be features of the international radioactive waste management landscape in future decades. They will involve more complex requirements for long-term information management than national deep geological repositories (DGRs) but the considerations involved in managing these requirements also point to wider needs for transnational information management for any country with a national deep geological repository. This article looks at what information needs to be propagated into the future for both DGRs and MNRs, and for how long. It is argued that the critical requirements are quite limited and are readily achievable, with the most important period being the coming few hundred years. The transience of organisations and national boundaries, issues being addressed for MNRs, also affect any national programme, but are generally overlooked. It is concluded that there is a need to move towards international oversight of all geological disposal facilities, including a common system of regulations and information archiving, and that providing these is a potential role for the IAEA.","PeriodicalId":400400,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Nuclear Engineering","volume":"24 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-06-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"127246359","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-06-22DOI: 10.3389/fnuen.2023.1206110
Jennifer Yao, Shalini Tripathi, B. McNamara, N. Lahiri, Shawn L. Riechers, S. Chatterjee, Dallas D. Reilly, E. Ilton, E. Buck
Introduction: This study aims to develop a microgram-scale microfluidic electrochemical cell (E-cell) for investigating the redox behavior of uranium oxide (UO2). The traditional bulk electrochemical methods may require shielded facilities to investigate the hazardous materials, e.g., spent nuclear fuel, due to high radiation levels. Microfluidic E-cells offer advantages such as reduced radiation exposure, control over fluid flow rates, and high-throughput capabilities. Methods: The design of the E-cell considers electrode morphology, adhesion to a thin membrane, electrode configuration, and vacuum compatibility. Three techniques, including FIB-SEM lift-out, Au coating, and polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) binder, are explored for fabricating and attaching microgram quantities of UO2 as working electrodes. The PVDF binder method proves to be the most effective, enabling the creation of a vacuum-compatible microfluidic E-cell. Results and discussion: The PVDF binder method demonstrates successful electrochemical responses and allows for real-time monitoring of UO2 electrode behavior at the microscale. It offers chemical imaging capabilities using in situ SEM/EDS analysis. The technique provides consistent redox outcomes similar to bulk electrochemical analysis. Conclusion: The development of a microgram-scale microfluidic electrochemical cell using the PVDF binder technique enables the investigation of UO2 redox behavior. It offers a low-risk approach with reduced radiation exposure and high-throughput capabilities. The technique provides real-time monitoring and chemical imaging capabilities, making it valuable for studying spent nuclear fuel systems and material characterization.
{"title":"Advancing radioactive material research method: the development of a novel in situ particle-attached microfluidic electrochemical cell","authors":"Jennifer Yao, Shalini Tripathi, B. McNamara, N. Lahiri, Shawn L. Riechers, S. Chatterjee, Dallas D. Reilly, E. Ilton, E. Buck","doi":"10.3389/fnuen.2023.1206110","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/fnuen.2023.1206110","url":null,"abstract":"Introduction: This study aims to develop a microgram-scale microfluidic electrochemical cell (E-cell) for investigating the redox behavior of uranium oxide (UO2). The traditional bulk electrochemical methods may require shielded facilities to investigate the hazardous materials, e.g., spent nuclear fuel, due to high radiation levels. Microfluidic E-cells offer advantages such as reduced radiation exposure, control over fluid flow rates, and high-throughput capabilities. Methods: The design of the E-cell considers electrode morphology, adhesion to a thin membrane, electrode configuration, and vacuum compatibility. Three techniques, including FIB-SEM lift-out, Au coating, and polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) binder, are explored for fabricating and attaching microgram quantities of UO2 as working electrodes. The PVDF binder method proves to be the most effective, enabling the creation of a vacuum-compatible microfluidic E-cell. Results and discussion: The PVDF binder method demonstrates successful electrochemical responses and allows for real-time monitoring of UO2 electrode behavior at the microscale. It offers chemical imaging capabilities using in situ SEM/EDS analysis. The technique provides consistent redox outcomes similar to bulk electrochemical analysis. Conclusion: The development of a microgram-scale microfluidic electrochemical cell using the PVDF binder technique enables the investigation of UO2 redox behavior. It offers a low-risk approach with reduced radiation exposure and high-throughput capabilities. The technique provides real-time monitoring and chemical imaging capabilities, making it valuable for studying spent nuclear fuel systems and material characterization.","PeriodicalId":400400,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Nuclear Engineering","volume":"23 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-06-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"133329248","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-06-22DOI: 10.3389/fnuen.2023.1212351
Ziyi Li, Xiaomin Wang, Huanchun Chen, Ruiqian Zhang, T. Wei, Lifu Yao, Pengfei Wang
The conventional Zircaloy cladding may react with coolant in light water reactors and elicit severe accident at high temperature, which constraint the safe and efficient development of nuclear energy. To avoid the tragedy happened in Fukushima, the concept of Accident Tolerant Fuel (ATF) was developed around the globe to secure the steady operation for nuclear power plants. As a short-term solution, deposition of protective coatings upon the cladding tubes are proved to be effective. Among the coatings, Chromium is one of the most outstanding choices. This paper reviews the recent study results about the performance and failure mechanisms of Cr-coated Zr cladding, including mechanical, irradiation, high-temperature oxidation tests, etc. under normal and/or accident conditions. The experiments and tests collectively suggest that Cr coating possesses excellent comprehensive properties for integrity protection of claddings and provides a promising future of the commercial application in reactor cores. Finally, this review proposes ambiguities and questions needed to be analyzed and clarified in future works.
{"title":"Review on performance of chromium-coated zirconium and its failure mechanisms","authors":"Ziyi Li, Xiaomin Wang, Huanchun Chen, Ruiqian Zhang, T. Wei, Lifu Yao, Pengfei Wang","doi":"10.3389/fnuen.2023.1212351","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3389/fnuen.2023.1212351","url":null,"abstract":"The conventional Zircaloy cladding may react with coolant in light water reactors and elicit severe accident at high temperature, which constraint the safe and efficient development of nuclear energy. To avoid the tragedy happened in Fukushima, the concept of Accident Tolerant Fuel (ATF) was developed around the globe to secure the steady operation for nuclear power plants. As a short-term solution, deposition of protective coatings upon the cladding tubes are proved to be effective. Among the coatings, Chromium is one of the most outstanding choices. This paper reviews the recent study results about the performance and failure mechanisms of Cr-coated Zr cladding, including mechanical, irradiation, high-temperature oxidation tests, etc. under normal and/or accident conditions. The experiments and tests collectively suggest that Cr coating possesses excellent comprehensive properties for integrity protection of claddings and provides a promising future of the commercial application in reactor cores. Finally, this review proposes ambiguities and questions needed to be analyzed and clarified in future works.","PeriodicalId":400400,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Nuclear Engineering","volume":"140 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-06-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"127488044","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-06-20DOI: 10.3389/fnuen.2023.1214727
S. Walker, M. Tano, A. Abou-Jaoude, Olin W. Calvin
Molten salt reactors (MSRs) are innovative advanced nuclear reactors that utilize nuclear fuel by dissolving it in a high-temperature liquid salt. This unique feature differentiates MSRs from other types of reactors and allows for enhanced safety and economic performance. The liquid fuel also entails several multiphysics effects that can complicate reactor design and operation. One primary effect termed here as depletion-driven thermochemistry is a driving force in altering the multiphysics behavior of the reactor. Essentially, depletion-driven thermochemistry is the effect that fuel depletion has on changing the chemical redox potential of the fuel salt over time. As the fuel is consumed, the redox potential shifts toward a more oxidizing state. Without active control, the changing chemistry due to depletion increases corrosion thereby limiting reactor component lifetimes. Additionally, the changing redox potential of the fuel salt alters the vapor pressures of chemical species dissolved in the fuel salt. Changing vapor pressures of species in the fuel salt is an important parameter to understand when off-gassing volatile species during normal reactor operation, and for source term characterization during accident scenario transients. The present work represents a fundamental step toward modeling and coupling the driving physics (i.e., neutronics and chemistry) involved in altering the redox potential in an MSR. Here, the neutronic code Griffin models the depletion of the fuel-salt system, while the chemical equilibrium code Thermochimica calculates the thermochemical state of the isotopic inventory, using the Molten Salt Thermodynamic Database - Thermochemical (MSTDB-TC). These two codes are tightly coupled to predict the impact of fuel depletion in altering the chemistry in MSR systems. Redox potential control methods are discussed and can be modeled using this multiphysics approach. The vapor pressures of chemical species that could be extracted to an off-gas system, as determined by the reactor’s thermochemical state, are examined. The neutronics-chemistry coupling developed in this work is expected to have potential application for analyzing corrosion, source term evolution, and material safeguards in MSR systems. Lastly, suggestions for areas of further improvements of the models to expand these capabilities by incorporating other coupled physics effects is provided.
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