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Front-end nuclear fuel supply cooperation: Turning allied interdependence into strategic advantage
The global nuclear revival, which is fueled by unprecedented demand for firm, affordable, dispatchable power for artificial intelligence and data center build-out, energy security imperatives, and climate commitments, has exposed a structural reality of the Western fuel cycle: No single allied nation currently possesses the full suite of front-end capabilities. From mining through conversion, enrichment, fabrication, and the emerging deconversion and metallization steps required for reactor fuels, capability is distributed across Canada, France, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States (collectively, the “Sapporo Five”), as well as a small group of close partners.
Hangbok Choi, Thomas J. Downar
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 133 | Number 1 | September 1999 | Pages 23-39
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.13182/NSE99-A2070
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A comprehensive sensitivity and uncertainty analysis was performed on a 1200-MW(thermal) minor actinide burner designed for a low burnup reactivity swing, negative Doppler constant, and low sodium void worth. Sensitivities of the performance parameters were generated using depletion perturbation methods for the constrained closed fuel cycle of the reactor. The uncertainty analysis was performed using the sensitivity and covariance data taken from ENDF/B-V and other published sources. The uncertainty analysis of a liquid-metal reactor for burning minor actinides has shown that uncertainties in the nuclear data of several key minor actinide isotopes can introduce large uncertainties in the predicted performance of the core. The relative uncertainties in the burnup swing, Doppler constant, and void worth were conservatively estimated to be 220, 120, and 59%, respectively. An analysis was performed to prioritize the minor actinide reactions for reducing the uncertainties.