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2025 ANS Annual Conference
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Chicago, IL|Chicago Marriott Downtown
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Smarter waste strategies: Helping deliver on the promise of advanced nuclear
At COP28, held in Dubai in 2023, a clear consensus emerged: Nuclear energy must be a cornerstone of the global clean energy transition. With electricity demand projected to soar as we decarbonize not just power but also industry, transport, and heat, the case for new nuclear is compelling. More than 20 countries committed to tripling global nuclear capacity by 2050. In the United States alone, the Department of Energy forecasts that the country’s current nuclear capacity could more than triple, adding 200 GW of new nuclear to the existing 95 GW by mid-century.
Halil I. Avci, Gerald L. Kulcinski
Nuclear Technology | Volume 44 | Number 3 | August 1979 | Pages 333-345
Technical Paper | Reactor | doi.org/10.13182/NT79-A32270
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The placement of liquid metals (lithium, lead, and a Pb-Li eutectic Pb4Li) between the first wall and the source of neutrons has been considered as a mechanism for extending first wall lifetimes in inertial confinement fusion reactors. This scheme is called the Internal Spectral Shifter and Energy Converter (ISSEC). All three liquid metals have been shown to reduce the radiation damage in the Type 316 stainless-steel structural first wall and thus increase the first wall lifetime. On a per-unit thickness basis, a Pb4Li ISSEC is most effective, followed by lead and lithium in decreasing order. If the first wall is operating at 300°C, it is estimated that ∼50 cm of liquid lithium or liquid lead, or ∼40 cm of liquid Pb4Li zone will give enough protection to the Type 316 stainless-steel first structural wall so that it may last for 30 yr at a nominal 5 MW/m2 wall loading and 70% plant factor. If the wall is operating at 500°C, ∼85 cm of lithium, 50 cm of lead, or 40 cm of Pb4Li is needed, and at 600°C the required ISSEC thickness goes up to ∼2 m for lithium, ∼70 cm for lead, and 65 cm for Pb4Li. The lead and Pb4Li ISSECs increase the total energy multiplication in the reactor, while the lithium ISSEC keeps it about constant. It has been shown that the liquid ISSECs could produce in the first wall a primary knock-on atom spectrum, as well as a gas production to displacement damage ratio, close to that found in fast or thermal fission test reactors, thus allowing more confidence in applying data from current systems to future fusion devices. An overall conclusion of the study is that the Pb-Li eutectic ISSEC has better characteristics than both pure lead and lithium ISSECs, and for best results it should be used at thicknesses ranging from 45 to 65 cm.
