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NRC approves TerraPower construction permit
Today, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission announced that it has approved TerraPower’s construction permit application for Kemmerer Unit 1, the company’s first deployment of Natrium, its flagship sodium fast reactor.
This approval is a significant milestone on three fronts. For TerraPower, it represents another step forward in demonstrating its technology. For the Department of Energy, it reflects progress (despite delays) for the Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program (ARDP). For the NRC, it is the first approval granted to a commercial reactor in nearly a decade—and the first approval of a commercial non–light water reactor in more than 40 years.
Archie A. Harms, Greg Cripps
Nuclear Technology | Volume 81 | Number 3 | June 1988 | Pages 429-434
Technical Paper | Radioisotopes and Isotope Separation | doi.org/10.13182/NT88-A16064
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A combination fission-radioisotope compact power system involving the synergetic interaction of 251Cf and 252Cf is considered. Based on a nonlinear point kinetics formulation of the coupled reactions combined with the parametric incorporation of design and operational variables, it is shown that a stable autonomous power mode is readily attainable. This system appears particularly suitable for very long-life unattended operation for space and terrestrial applications.