molten salt reactor disadvantages

It comes from a plentiful supply. 1. Required regulatory changes to deal with radically different design features. If something has gone wrong in a molten metal reactor you cannot see it. Thorium could even be created through the incineration of weapons-grade plutonium that is currently installed on warheads globally, which would further reduce the threat of a nuclear Armageddon from occurring. Stable Salt Reactors would be safer than conventional plants, the company argues, because they ditch uranium fuel rods in favor of a type of molten salt … Bullet point answers itself; some modern designs avoid this issue. 11 Important Three Gorges Dam Pros and Cons, 18 Major Advantages and Disadvantages of the Payback Period, 20 Advantages and Disadvantages of Leasing a Car, 19 Advantages and Disadvantages of Debt Financing, 24 Key Advantages and Disadvantages of a C Corporation, 16 Biggest Advantages and Disadvantages of Mediation, 18 Advantages and Disadvantages of a Gated Community, 17 Big Advantages and Disadvantages of Focus Groups, 17 Key Advantages and Disadvantages of Corporate Bonds, 19 Major Advantages and Disadvantages of Annuities, 17 Biggest Advantages and Disadvantages of Advertising. As a breeder reactor, a modified MSR might be able to produce weapons-grade nuclear material. Neutron damage to solid moderator materials can limit the core lifetime of an MSR that makes moderately fast neutrons. 6. The benefits of MSRs are plentiful, hence their resilience as an interesting topic throughoutreactor history. 9. Reactor core pressure can be low and the temperature much higher. [6] Getting a new reactor design licensed and built is a hideously byzantine and outrageously expensive process in most countries. Cores can be swappable. ThorCon is a molten salt fission reactor. 3. That means mining is more efficient and would be potentially safer and less costly. This means that such a reactor could not suffer from a loss of coolant leading to a meltdown. Although thorium research has occurred in Germany, Denmark, the U.S., and other locations, only India and China are actively pursuing this technology with an intent to utilize it in the near future. These thorium reactor pros and cons prove that there is a lot of potential in this technology. A subreddit decitated to thorium as a future energy resource, and the Liquid Fluoride Thorium Reactor. These levels would be illegal in most modern regulatory regimes for power plants. Thorium reactors are the latest big thing in nuclear spin. In a fuel salt reactor, just one drop of fuel salt leaking from a valve or pump seal, will be so radioactive, that you won't be able to send workers within 50 feet of the valve, even if you drain and flush the whole reactor first. 1. That means the waste products that are currently in storage could be used again as a power source. 7. One of the unique benefits of a thorium reactor is that it can be mixed with current nuclear wastes that are produced. It … For example, the MSRE was designed so that its graphite moderator sticks had very low tolerances, so neutron damage could change their size without damage. No need for onsite chemical processing. Those that don't are meant for military use. In the U.S., there is an estimated supply of thorium that could meet current energy needs for the next 1,000 years. Part of the reason for this is that traditional nuclear technologies are still functional and much cheaper. Noel Wauchope says: don't believe the hype.. Thorium reactors are the latest flavour in nuclear power hype. Do Gen IV reactors have the same bullet point compared to conventional reactors? Transatomic uses a newer variant of Hastelloy N that avoids the embrittlement problem and has zero corrosion in a high-flux reducing molten salt environment. 8. The liquid fluoride thorium reactor (LFTR; often pronounced lifter) is a type of molten salt reactor.LFTRs use the thorium fuel cycle with a fluoride-based, molten, liquid salt for fuel.In a typical design, the liquid is pumped between a critical core and an external heat exchanger where the heat is transferred to a nonradioactive secondary salt. Pit mining is possible with thorium, which eliminates the threat of high radon levels that can sometimes be found in uranium mines. The benefit of a thorium reactor is that just one ton of this element can produce as much energy as an estimated 200 tons of uranium. This is what Thorcon is doing. There is no current infrastructure to support thorium use. The technology is promising in terms of safety and economy and has the potential to avoid the release of long-lived radioactive waste in the case of severe accidents. There is growing awareness that nuclear energy is needed to complement intermittent energy sources and to avoid pollution from fossil fuels. A new breakthrough could help engineers crack the next phase of nuclear energy. It comes from a plentiful supply. Although thorium reactors have a high initial start-up cost, those costs can be reduced with proper manufacturing techniques. NOT ALWAYS On one hand you can choose between a Th-U fuel cycle and a U-Pu fuel cycle. Kind of absurd that's there. It produces high levels of energy. It eliminates the safety concerns of traditional nuclear power. Future generations would be able to benefit from this technology and it would be able to fuel innovation in many different industries because the threat of a power shortage would be effectively eliminated. Seaborg is the largest reactor design start-up in Europe and they are making an ultra-compact molten salt reactor (CMSR). This itself is not a radical departure when the fuel is solid and fixed. 2. Misconception #6: Thorium reactors and Molten Salt Reactors are the same thing! Pure thorium salt being loaded into a … Thorium reactors have a unique ability to self-regulate their temperature levels. Thank you. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. A molten salt reactor (MSR) is a type of nuclear reactor that uses liquid fuel instead of the solid fuel rods used in conventional nuclear reactors. Same question: does the IFR have that bullet point? ThorCon just uses thickened stainless steel, and swaps out the core. That reduces many of the benefits that a thorium reactor is able to deliver once it becomes operational. In thermal reactors, which comprise the bulk of the world’s nuclear power fleet, the fission neutrons are slowed down to low (thermal) energies by collisions with light atoms within the reactor—hydrogen in the water in water-cooled reactors, deuterium in heavy water in h… Press J to jump to the feed. Current nuclear technologies can achieve an efficiency rate of about 5% with its fuel. The fissile materials created by a thorium reactor provide different dangers. 4. Although a standard thorium reactor is fueled uranium-233 isotope, there is no need for uranium enrichment with this technology. Little development compared to most Gen IV designs. Emission of gamma rays: Presence of Uranium-232 in irradiated thorium or thorium based fuels in large amounts is one of the major disadvantages of thorium nuclear power reactors. It creates a molten salt mixture that is highly corrosive. 4. Many nations do not even have the knowledge base necessary to create an approval agency in the first place. MSRs are often planned as breeding reactors with a closed fuel cycle—as opposed to the once-through fuel currently used in U.S. nuclear reactors. Molten salt reactors are a class of nuclear fission reactors which use a molten salt mixture as the primary reactor coolant and/or the fuel. That reduces the risks of steam-based incidents. Molten Salt Reactors is a comprehensive reference on the status of molten salt reactor (MSR) research and thorium fuel utilization. The can encapsulates the reactor, called the “pot,” which contains molten fuel salt—a homogeneous mixture of sodium, beryllium, and thorium fluorides with low … It can be moved around with a pump and passively drained. Current estimates for nuclear storage are up to 100,000 years of maintenance. Copenhagen Atomics believes that thorium reactors could be produced on an assembly line. Unlike all current nuclear reactors, the fuel is in liquid form. For reference, their address of corrosion / embrittlement is, essentially, "We'll just use stainless; corrosion occurs slowly enough we can just make the core thicker and replaceable. With increased resource access, poverty could be reduced, security threats could be reduced, and there would be a greater chance for peace. Molten salt reactors (MSRs) use molten fluoride salts as primary coolant, at low pressure. See their whitepaper. On larger scales, a consortium of countries including Japan, the U.S., and Russia is working on the Fuji MSR, which will be a 100 to 200 MW reactor upon completion. One ton of thorium can create the same amount of energy as 3.5 million tons of coal. Ever heard of the Thorium molten salt reactor? It eliminates the threat of nuclear weapons. Molten salt reactors haven't yet been proven at a commercial scale, and that means no private company will touch the idea. That conversion also releases highly chemically corrosive unbonded fluorine. Their waste burner design, for example, is small enough that it can fit inside a standard shipping container. At the same time, when thorium is added to current nuclear waste, the storage time for the waste is reduced. Why not encase the nickel-based allow in steel to add strength? The use of thorium reactors instead of traditional nuclear reactors would eliminate the need for large-scale storage of spent fuel. On larger scales, a consortium of countries including Japan, the U.S., and Russia is working on the Fuji MSR, which will be a 100 to 200 MW reactor upon completion. 2. Molten salt reactors use fuel dissolved in a molten fluoride or chloride salt which functions as both the reactor's fuel and its coolant. That's hardly surprising, as for 70 years, it has been inexplicably kept under wraps by the nuclear industry, despite the fact it could revolutionise energy production. An MSR doesn't need to be a breeder. They operate at higher temperatures, which lead to increased efficiencies in generating electricity. Or is it just a design feature of the reactor? Some modern designs avoid this issue. For example, Reactive IVS, a company in Denmark, is developing a molten salt waste-burner (MSW) that is designed to use nuclear waste from conventional nuclear reactors as a fuel. There are various solutions to the "plumbing problem" - mostly using one or more flavor of pseudotubing using loosely interlocking plates of graphite. 3. Yes, in various flavors of solution. short description of MSRE and thorium power. It is a technology that can be mass-produced. Yet, when thorium is compared to coal-fired power plants, the difference is much greater. As Yurman says, nuclear’s fortunes are a … Thorium is believed to have at least 3 times more availability than uranium. Using … A thermal neutron molten salt reactor typically uses a LiF - UF3 - XF fuel salt mixture. Molten salt reactors are a class of nuclear fission reactors which use a molten salt mixture as the primary reactor coolant and/or the fuel. For example, Reactive IVS, a company in Denmark, is developing a molten salt waste-burner (MSW) that is designed to use nuclear waste from conventional nuclear reactors as a fuel. Required regulatory changes to deal with radically different design features. Molten salt reactors are nuclear's future, but there's still a lot we don't know. The technology is promising in terms of safety and economy and has the potential to avoid the release of long-lived radioactive waste in the case of severe accidents. ThorCon is a molten salt fission reactor. That would provide the world with enough fuel to power reactors with this element for several centuries. [6] Little development compared to most Gen IV designs. Because there is not an infrastructure in place to support thorium technologies, the cost of start-up would need to include the cost to implement administrative oversight of this technology. Does anyone know if any of these issues have been addressed? No country in the world today has an approval agency that is ready to approve the current designs that are available for a thorium reactor. The lithium is highly enriched in Li-7. This 500 MW fission power plant is encapsulated in a hull, built in a shipyard, towed to a shallow … The use of fluids allows for it to act both as their fuel (producing the heat) and coolant (transferring the heat).. The fuel salt contains a soup of dozens of fission product elements. It can be moved around with a pump and passively drained. "Two fluid" MSR designs are unable to use graphite piping because graphite changes size when it is bombarded with neutrons, and graphite pipes would crack and leak. Oak Ridge National Laboratory ran molten salt thorium reactor experiments from the 1960s until 1976. In molten salt breeder reactor designs different salt mixtures are used in the core and blanket regions which are separated by a neutron transparent pressure barrier, such as described by LeBlanc. Again, same question. The fuel in nuclear fission reactors is usually based on the metal oxide. New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast, More posts from the thoriumreactor community. Unlike all current nuclear reactors, the fuel is in liquid form. The start-up process could be lengthy and costly. If molten salts are not used and uranium-233 is preferred, then the fuel can be used in nuclear weapons, which eliminates the purpose of transitioning to this technology for many in the first place. The MSRE and aircraft nuclear reactors used enrichment levels so high that they approach the levels of nuclear weapons. Molten salt reactors are nuclear's future, but there's still a lot we don't know. It may also reduce the need for long-term storage as the technology for reusing fuels is improved. 8. 3. To put that into perspective, coal currently creates about 40% of the electrical power produced in the U.S. and about 60% of the electrical power produced in China. Some reactor designs required the addition of new fissile materials, such as plutonium, to maintain production levels. Storage costs for spent fuel would be reduced. Thorium is weakly radioactive, has a high melting point, and is available with more abundance than uranium as an element. The materials used to process these materials must be able to withstand its harshness. As for the primary disadvantage of a thorium reactor, the toxic and radioactive elements must be properly handled to create the zero-pollution footprint. A new Beginning For China, clean energy development and implementation is a test for the state’s ability. In this respect an MSR is more similar to a liquid metal cooled reactor than to a conventional light water cooled reactor. Since the fuel salt is liquid, it can be both the fuel (producing the heat) and the coolant (transporting the heat to the power plant). There is no risk of having zero payoff occur like a thorium reactor creates. ", These disadvantages has been solved by ThorCon. If the negatives of this technology can be appropriately managed, this type of reactor could be the future of power on planet Earth. There would be fewer comparisons with these facilities operational about which leader has the bigger button to push. This also addresses corrosion, and the cores will use stainless steel. Seaborg cannot meltdown and can use spent fuel. Directed by Myriam Tonelotto. It costs more. The Company is developing their “Waste-Annihilating Molten Salt Reactor” (WAMSR) which is a 520 MW molten salt reactor which uses the waste from traditional reactors as a fuel source. Thorium is safer to mine. MSRs have a small footprint on the land & are a safe continuous source of dense electric powerthey produce no greenhouse gases. Here are some additional key points to think about when looking at the pros and cons of a thorium reactor. 2. Because this is a technology not in play right now, many of the anticipated costs are only speculative and could be much higher. Molten Salt Reactors (MSRs) are nuclear reactors that use a fluid fuel in the form of very hot fluoride or chloride salt rather than the solid fuel used in most reactors. List of the Pros of a Thorium Reactor. It eliminates the threat of nuclear weapons. The disadvantages of molten salt reactors. 50MW SMRs, and even 1.5MW compact fast reactors, may become the breakthrough technologies. 6. It was first discovered in 1829 by Morten Thrane Esmark, an amateur mineralogist from Norway. In 2004, the proposed cost for a new prototype system in the United States were listed as being “less than $1 billion” with operational costs of about $100 million per year. In the United States, thorium research has been on the back burner for more than 30 years. Integral Molten Salt Reactor®: Safe, clean, low-cost, high-impact and resilient IMSR ® power plants use truly innovative nuclear technology to be safe, reliable, clean and low-cost, making them today’s alternative to fossil fuel combustion. A standard thorium reactor would use irradiated thorium to produce energy. Required onsite chemical plant to manage core mixture and remove fission products. Standard fuel rods may have storage challenges and costs that must be met, but with current technology, it is still cheaper to generate power on fuel rods than it is to provide molten salts or irradiated thorium for energy production. That means the malicious step to modify energy fuel into a nuclear weapon goes away with this technology. Molten salt reactors (MSR) use molten fluoride or chloride salts as a coolant. Molten salt reactors (MSRs) are seen in some countries as a promising advanced reactor technology because of the various benefits associated with them. A new breakthrough could help engineers crack the next phase of nuclear energy. This 500 MW fission power plant is encapsulated in a hull, built in a shipyard, towed to a shallow … Thorium ore is generally found in higher concentrations when compared to uranium ore in its respective natural states. Not every thorium design is self-sustaining. Although a standard thorium reactor is fueled uranium-233 isotope, there is no need for uranium ... 2. 1. The Department of Energy will select industry partners to build two next-generation reactors, such as the molten salt cooled reactor being designed by Terrestrial Energy USA. The potential of a thorium reactor is this: it could provide enough clean energy for every person, community, and nation on our planet. 10. 1. Lithium is used to achieve a relatively low salt melting point. MSRs, especially those with the fuel dissolved in the salt, differ considerably from conventional reactors. 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