Review of supercritical CO2 power cycle technology and current status of research and development

Supercritical carbon dioxide cycles for power generation: A review

https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2573&context=facpub

Supercritical CO2 Brayton cycles for solar-thermal energy

The development technology and applications of supercritical CO2 power cycle in nuclear energy, solar energy and other energy industries

Generation IV nuclear reactors: current status and future prospects

This paper addresses thermal-hydraulics related criteria and preliminary concepts for a small (300 MWt), proliferation-resistant, liquid-metal-cooled reactor system. A main objective is to assess what extent of simplification is achievable in the concepts with the primary purpose of regaining economic competitiveness. The approach investigated features lead-bismuth eutectic (LBE) and a low power density core for ultra-long core lifetime (goal 15 years) with cartridge core replacement at end of life. This potentially introduces extensive simplifications resulting in capital cost and operating cost savings including: (1) compact, modular, pool-type configuration for factory fabrication, (2) 100+% natural circulation heat transport with the possibility of eliminating the main coolant pumps, (3) steam generator modules immersed directly in the primary coolant pool for elimination of the intermediate heat transport system, and (4) elimination of on-site fuel handling and storage provisions including rotating plug. Stage 1 natural circulation model and results are presented. Results suggest that 100+% natural circulation heat transport is readily achievable using LBE coolant and the long-life cartridge core approach; moreover, it is achievable in a compact pool configuration considerably smaller than PRISM A (for overland transportability) and with peak cladding temperature within the existing database range for ferritic steel with oxide layer surface passivation. Stage 2 analysis follows iteration with core designers. Other thermal hydraulic investigations are underway addressing passive, auxiliary heat removal by air cooling of the reactor vessel and the effects of steam generator tube rupture.

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Thermal-hydraulic development a small, simplified, proliferation-resistant reactor.

/pdf/high-efficiency-and-low-cost-thermal-energy-storage-system-3659d12r22.pdf

High Efficiency and Low Cost Thermal Energy Storage System

The main objective of the development of multifield, multicomponent thermohydrodynamic computer codes is the detailed study of hypothetical core disruptive accidents (HCDAs) in liquid-metal fast breeder reactors. The main contributions such codes are expected to make are the inclusion of detailed modeling of the relative motion of liquid and vapor (slip), the inclusion of modeling of nonequilibrium/nonsaturation thermodynamics, and the use of more detailed neutronics methods. Scoping studies of the importance of including these phenomena performed with the parametric two-field, two-component coupled neutronic/thermodynamic/hydrodynamic code FX2-TWOPOOL indicate for the prompt burst portion of an HCDA that: (1) Vapor-liquid slip plays a relatively insignificant role in establishing energetics, implying that analyses that do not model vapor-liquid slip may be adequate. Furthermore, if conditions of saturation are assumed to be maintained, calculations that do not permit vapor-liquid slip appear to be conservative. (2) The modeling of conduction-limited fuel vaporization and condensation causes the energetics to be highly sensitive to variations in the droplet size (i.e., in the parametric values) for the sizes of interest in HCDA analysis. Care must therefore be exercised in the inclusion of this phenomenon in energetics calculations. (3) Insignificant differences are observed between the use of space-time kinetics (quasi-staticmore » diffusion theory) and point kinetics, indicating again that point kinetics is normally adequate for analysis of the prompt burst portion of an HCDA. (4) No significant differences were found to result from assuming that delayed neutron precursors remain stationary where they are created rather than assuming that they move together with fuel. (5) There is no need for implicit coupling between the neutronics and the hydrodynamics/thermodynamics routines, even outside the prompt burst portion.« less

James J. Sienicki

Papers

Thermal-hydraulic development a small, simplified, proliferation-resistant reactor.

High Efficiency and Low Cost Thermal Energy Storage System

Effects of Recent Modeling Developments in Prompt Burst Hypothetical Core Disruptive Accident Calculations