TU Delft - Sustainable nuclear reactor

Sustainable nuclear reactor

by M&C

Thesis defence by Mr ir W.F.G. van Rooijen: "Improving Fuel Cycle Design and Safety Characteristics of a Gas Cooled Fast Reactor"

12 December 2006 | 12:30 o'clock
location: Aula TU Delft

Mr ir W.F.G. van Rooijen | applied physics engineer, The Netherlands
promotors | Prof.dr.ir. T.H.J.J. van der Hagen (TNW) and prof.dr.ir. H. van Dam (em.hgl. 2004 TNW)
add.prom | Dr. J.L. Kloosterman (UHD-TNW)

Improving Fuel Cycle Design and Safety Characteristics of a Gas Cooled Fast Reactor
This research concerns the fuel cycle and safety aspects of a Gas Cooled Fast Reactor, one of the so called “Generation IV” nuclear reactor designs. Application of a Fast Breeder Reactor allows to produce more new fissile material than is consumed by the reactor. The Generation IV Gas Cooled Fast Reactor uses helium as coolant at high temperature. The goal of the GCFR is to obtain a “closed nuclear fuel cycle”, where only natural uranium is used as raw material, en only fission products remain as waste material. Uranium and heavier isotopes (plutonium, americium, etc) are recycled in the reactor and are evetually fissioned. Since the heavy isotopes determine the long-term radiotoxicity of the nuclear waste, application of a closed fuel cycle maximizes the energy output of the fuel material, and can significantly reduce the lifetime of nuclear waste. The investigations have shown that it is possible to obtain a closed fuel cycle with the GCFR. The research has shown furthermore that the GCFR can use left materials from
light water reactors, and can thus play a role as ’incinerator’ of nuclear waste. To increase the safety of the GCFR, passive elements have been designed to automatically shut down the reactor in case of incidents. It has been shown that with these elements the reactor can withstand transients without damage to the fuel. This research has been performed in a European framework.

More information?
For access to thesises by the PhD students you can have a look in TU Delft Repository at: repository.tudelft.nl. TU Delft Repository is the digital storage of publications of TU Delft. Thesises will be available within a few weeks after the actual thesis defence.