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Argonne updates: Fuel research and materials lab
Over the past two weeks, Argonne National Laboratory has announced numerous significant advancements being made by its staff to push forward nuclear fuels and materials research. Those announcements include the opening of the new Activated Materials Lab, the development of a new measurement technique, and the application of new artificial intelligence tools.
Robert J. Teitel, John B. Brown
Nuclear Technology | Volume 1 | Number 1 | February 1965 | Pages 13-24
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.13182/NT65-A20459
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The Liquid Metal Breeder (LIMB) reactor is an internally-cooled fluid fuel reactor based upon a Th232-U233 thermal breeder cycle. It employs a molten lead coolant, a uranium-bismuth solution fuel, a thorium bismuthide dispersion in lead-bismuth blanket fluid and a graphite moderator. Heat from the fuel is transferred through a graphite fuel element to the coolant which transports the heat to an external boiler and pump. This arrangement overcomes the major disadvantages found in previous “externally-cooled” liquid-metal-fuel reactors. Equilibrium concentrations of uranium isotopes heavier than U233 and other reasonable assumptions were derived from existing information and then used to develop a broad survey of LIMB reactor sizes. Two sizes, 200 and 1000 MW(th), were chosen for more detailed evaluation. The 200 MW(th) has a potential breeding ratio of 1.08 and an 8 year doubling time. The 1000 MW(th) reactor has a breeding ratio of 1.05 and a 12 year doubling time. Using the most pessimistic estimates on processing could reduce the breeding ratio, while improvements in design and the utilization of low-cross-section coolants can counteract these losses. LIMB reactor technology can lead to an efficient breeder, even in large power sources, and warrants further engineering evaluations.