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Dallas, TX|Hilton Anatole
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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.
Chen-Kuo Weng, Robert M. Edwards, Asok Ray
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 117 | Number 3 | July 1994 | Pages 177-185
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.13182/NSE94-A28532
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A robust feedforward-feedback controller is proposed for wide-range operations of nuclear reactors. This control structure provides (a) optimized performance over a wide operating range resulting from the feedforward element and (b) guaranteed robust stability and performance resulting from the feedback element. The feedforward control law is synthesized via nonlinear programming, which generates an optimal control sequence over a finite-time horizon under specified constraints. The feedback control is synthesized via the structured singular value µ approach to guarantee robustness in the presence of disturbances and modeling uncertainties. The results of simulation experiments are presented to demonstrate efficacy of the proposed control structure for a large rapid power reduction to avoid unnecessary plant trips.