17results about "Subcritical reactors" patented technology

A controlled reactor comprises a reactor core thermally coupled to one or more heat pipes and an active cooling loop. A fluid may be circulated through the active cooling loop. A heat exchanger is thermally coupled to the active cooling loop and extracts heat from the fluid as the fluid is circulated through the active cooling loop. A heating system may be provided to deliver the heat extracted by the heat exchanger to a community. A thermoelectric generator may be provided to convert heat extracted by the heat pipes to electricity for delivery to the community.

A barrier material is used in a structural component of a nuclear reactor (10), the barrier material comprising molybdenum or a molybdenum-based alloy, wherein the barrier material has a molybdenum content of at least 90 wt.%, based on the total weight of the barrier material.

The inventors have developed technology to improve the generation of daughter isotopes for clinical treatments. The technology includes systems and methods for using a liquid target to deliver parent isotopes to a reactor for neutron bombardment and subsequently separating desired daughter isotopes from the liquid target. According to an aspect of the technology described herein, a method of obtaining desired daughter isotopes comprises pumping a liquid target solution comprising a parent isotope through a fluid path that includes a first portion that passes through a fission reactor, a second portion that passes through a pump, and a third portion that passes through an isotope capture device.

The invention relates to a design method of a four-proton beam ADS device, and the method comprises the steps: building a reactor model which comprises a shielding layer, a reflecting layer, a fuel region and a heavy metal target; the heavy metal target comprises a central heavy metal target and three surrounding heavy metal targets; two accelerators are arranged for the heavy metal target and are respectively a first accelerator used for bombarding the central heavy metal target and a second accelerator used for bombarding the three surrounding heavy metal targets in turn so as to generate a four-proton beam; establishing an exogenous disturbance point reactor neutron kinetic equation; obtaining dynamic parameters in the reactor model based on the reactor model and the accelerator; determining a power upper limit of the reactor model based on the temperature limit value of each structure in the reactor model; the temperature limit value of each structure is based on the temperature corresponding to the melting point of the material of each structure; and if the reactor power exceeds the power upper limit, adjusting the structure parameters of the reactor model and the operation parameters of the accelerator.

A system for nuclear power generation can include an accelerator-driven subcritical nuclear reactor that operates using molten-salt fuel. The reactor includes a target positioned to receive a proton beam and to be cooled by the molten-salt fuel. A voltage signal is applied to an electrode in contact with the molten-salt fuel in the reactor for controlling corrosion of the target and other portions of the reactor. In one embodiment, the target is used as the electrode. In another embodiment, an electrode other than the target is used.

To provide a fusion-driven subcritical reactor that is more efficient and safer. [Solution] A fusion-driven subcritical reactor is a nuclear reactor that starts and operates by amplifying neutrons obtained from nuclear fusion and supplying the amplified neutrons to a reactor that holds subcritical nuclear fuel by external neutrons. It consists of a main neutron source that generates DD neutrons through a nuclear fusion reaction, a cascade member that surrounds the main neutron source, separates fusion / fission neutrons, multiplies the fast fission neutrons generated by nuclear fission, and slows down the fast fission neutrons, and a cascade member that surrounds the cascade member and is mainly made of thorium oxide ( 232 It is equipped with a subcritical main fission blanket made of uranium dioxide (ThO2), and a neutron flattening blanket that has a neutron source located around the outer periphery of the main fission blanket to improve the containment of fission neutrons.

The present invention discloses a rapid automated modeling method, system, and medium applicable to research reactors, and belongs to the field of thermal hydraulic technology of research reactors. The method includes: establishing position numbers for different positions of the reactor core; establishing coordinates under the position numbers; collecting layout information of components in the reactor core, establishing coordinate information of components in the reactor core; establishing component structured data corresponding to the positions; sequentially reading information of each position of the reactor core, establishing a component model of the entire reactor core, and completing rapid automated modeling of the entire core. The rapid automated modeling method applicable to research reactors provided by the present invention models and analyzes each type of component in the core (including beryllium components, fuel components, aluminum components, control rod components, and irradiation channels) separately, and finally establishes a one-to-one corresponding position assembly relationship for the core layout in a programming manner, thereby realizing three-dimensional automatic modeling.

A power source (100) comprises an ignition region (108) comprising a target material arranged to receive a flux of protons and generate neutrons in response thereto. A reactor core containing a sub- critical quantity of actinide material (104) is arranged as a structure having at least one layer around the ignition region (108). The actinide material comprises at least Thorium or Uranium and generates insufficient neutrons by spontaneous fission in the absence of the flux of protons to the ignition region to maintain a critical or super-critical reaction. The power source further comprises an accelerator (112) arranged to supply a flux of protons having an energy of between 4MeV and 200MeV to the target material in the ignition region (108) and a control arrangement to control the power of the proton flux to modulate reactor core power.

A transportable nuclear power generator unit is provided. The transportable nuclear power generator unit includes a container configured to be transportable by a vehicle, and nuclear power module disposed inside the container. The nuclear power module includes a sealed pressure vessel and a nuclear core disposed inside the sealed pressure vessel. The transportable nuclear power generator unit also includes a plurality of radiation shields provided at a plurality of interior walls inside the container to surround the sealed pressure vessel. The radiation shields are configured to shield radiation generated by the nuclear power module. The radiation shields include a movable shield configured to be movable between a position inside the container and a position on an exterior wall of the container.

A hybrid nuclear reactor that is operable to produce a medical isotope includes an ion source operable to produce an ion beam from a gas, a target chamber including a target that interacts with the ion beam to produce neutrons, and an activation cell positioned proximate the target chamber and including a parent material that interacts with the neutrons to produce the medical isotope via a fission reaction. An attenuator is positioned proximate the activation cell and selected to maintain the fission reaction at a subcritical level, a reflector is positioned proximate the target chamber and selected to reflect neutrons toward the activation cell, and a moderator substantially surrounds the activation cell, the attenuator, and the reflector.

A method of generating power using a Thorium-containing molten salt fuel is disclosed. One example includes the steps of providing a vessel containing a molten salt fuel, generating a proton beam externally to the vessel, where the externally generated proton beam being of an energy level sufficient to interact with the salt in the vessel to produce a (p, n) reaction resulting in the generation of a neutron at a first energy level. Neutrons generated within the vessel through the (p, n) reactions caused by the externally generated proton's interaction with an at least one salt are utilized to produce a fission reaction which increases the heat content of the molten salt within the vessel. In the example, a heat exchanger is used to extract heat from the molten salt within the vessel and power is generated from the extracted heat.

The inventors have developed technology to improve the generation of daughter isotopes for clinical treatments. The technology includes systems and methods for using a liquid target to deliver parent isotopes to a reactor for neutron bombardment and subsequently separating desired daughter isotopes from the liquid target. According to an aspect of the technology described herein, a method of obtaining desired daughter isotopes comprises pumping a liquid target solution comprising a parent isotope through a fluid path that includes a first portion that passes through a fission reactor, a second portion that passes through a pump, and a third portion that passes through an isotope capture device.

The application relates to a design method of a four-proton beam flow ADS device, which comprises the following steps: establishing a reactor model, wherein the reactor model comprises a shielding layer, a reflecting layer, a fuel area and a heavy metal target; the heavy metal target comprises a central heavy metal target and three surrounding heavy metal targets; arranging accelerators for the heavy metal target, wherein the accelerators are provided in two, and are respectively a first accelerator for bombarding the central heavy metal target and a second accelerator for alternately bombarding the three surrounding heavy metal targets, so as to generate a four-proton beam flow; establishing an external source disturbance point reactor neutron dynamics equation; obtaining dynamic parameters in the reactor model based on the reactor model and the accelerators; determining a power upper limit of the reactor model based on temperature limits of each structure in the reactor model; the temperature limit of each structure is a temperature corresponding to a melting point of a material of each structure; and if the reactor power exceeds the power upper limit, adjusting structure parameters of the reactor model and operation parameters of the accelerators.

Device for reducing spent nuclear fuel, comprising a container for receiving nuclear fuel, wherein the device is configured to transmute long-lived radioisotopes of the nuclear fuel into radioisotopes having a significantly shorter half-life than the initial radioisotopes by interaction with fast neutrons.

Device which is configured to hold a nuclear fuel and has one or more neutron sources which are configured to emit free neutrons which can interact with isotopes of the nuclear fuel, wherein the one or more neutron sources are configured such that the neutron flux strength of the generated neutrons is more than 10 12 neutrons per second and the one or more neutron sources have a power supply by means of which the neutron flux strength can be controlled.

A power source (100) comprises an ignition region (108) comprising a target material arranged to receive a flux of protons and generate neutrons in response thereto. A reactor core containing a subcritical quantity of actinide material (104) is arranged as a structure having at least one layer around the ignition region (108). The actinide material comprises at least Thorium or Uranium and generates insufficient neutrons by spontaneous fission in the absence of the flux of protons to the ignition region to maintain a critical or super-critical reaction. The power source further comprises an accelerator (112) arranged to supply a flux of protons having an energy of between 4MeV and 200MeV to the target material in the ignition region (108) and a control arrangement to control the power of the proton flux to modulate reactor core power.

To provide a material which exhibits only acceptable levels of swelling effects and neutron embrittlement when exposed to fast neutrons, without experiencing excessive degradation of structural properties of a structural component.SOLUTION: A barrier material for use in a structural component of a nuclear reactor (10) is provided, the barrier material comprising molybdenum or a molybdenum-based alloy and having a molybdenum content of at least 90 wt.% with respect to a total weight of the barrier material.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1