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NRC proposed rule for licensing reactors authorized by DOE, DOD
Nuclear reactor designs approved by the Department of Energy or Department of Defense could get streamlined pathways through the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s commercial licensing process should applicants wish to push the technology into the civilian sector.
A proposed rule introduced April 2 by the NRC would “improve NRC licensing review efficiency, where applicable, by explicitly establishing by regulation an additional means for reactor applicants to demonstrate the safety functions of their reactor designs, and thus, would contribute to the safe and secure use and deployment of civilian nuclear energy technologies.”
Christopher J. Steffen, Jr., Joshua E. Freeh, Diane L. Linne, Eric W. Faykus, Christopher A. Gallo, Robert D. Green
Nuclear Technology | Volume 166 | Number 3 | June 2009 | Pages 240-251
Technical Paper | 2007 Space Nuclear Conference / Fission Reactors | doi.org/10.13182/NT09-A8838
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A method for estimating the mass and fission surface power requirements of a lunar oxygen production facility is introduced. The individual modeling components involve the chemical processing and cryogenic storage subsystems needed to process a beneficiated regolith stream into liquid oxygen via ilmenite reduction. The power can be supplied from one of six different fission reactor-converter systems. A baseline system analysis, capable of producing 15 tonnes/yr of oxygen, is presented. The influence of reactor-converter choice was seen to have a small but measurable impact on the system configuration and performance. Finally, the mission concept of operations can have a substantial impact upon individual component size and power requirements.