Advanced Nuclear Energy Systems

Transcription

1 Advanced Nuclear Energy Systems 3 rd International Workshop Accelerator-Driven Sub-Critical Systems & Thorium Utilization John E. Kelly Deputy Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Reactor Technologies Office of Nuclear Energy U.S. Department of Energy October 15, 214

2 Atoms for Peace The First Wave of Nuclear Power Deployment Peaceful power from atomic energy is no dream of the future. That capability, already proved, is here now today. ~ President Dwight D. Eisenhower, December 8, 1953, to the 47 th Plenary Meeting of the United Nations General Assembly 2

3 Drivers that Influenced the First Wave of Nuclear Power Deployment Encouraging drivers Post World War II: Re-emerging economies required increased energy 197s - Oil Crisis Strong Government Backing Discouraging drivers High Interest Rates Fear of Radiation Fear of Nuclear Weapons Three Mile Island Accident Chernobyl Accident Waste Management Impasse Neutral drivers Acid Rain Air Pollution Inadvertent Climate Modification. Report of the Study of Man's Impact on Climate 3

4 Existing Nuclear Commercial Power Reactors (13.8% World Wide / 21.4% OECD) 73% 38% 33% 16% 18% 18% 2% 4.6% 2% 43% 1.5% 4.4% 3.5% 2.1% 28% 27% Prior to Fukushima accident 2.8% 4.4% 5.6% ~ Source: IAEA information & news reports Number of reactors

5 Today, International Interest in the Second Wave of Atoms for Peace is Strong Energy security Nuclear shelters countries from import of costly fossil fuels Replacing retired nuclear or coal generation plants Economic incentives Nations rich in fossil fuel would prefer to export those fuels and use nuclear for domestic electricity production Environmental protection Replacing coal with nuclear can alleviate air pollution problems Climate change concerns Nuclear is the Emission-free base load generation technology Dry condenser cooling possible with SMRs when water usage is restricted 5

6 Global Nuclear Construction Plans 437 nuclear reactors operating in 3 countries (373 GWe capacity) 71 reactors currently under construction in 15 countries (28 in China) 172 reactors planned in 26 countries over next 8-1 years 39 reactors proposed in 35 countries over next 15 years ~ Source: IAEA information & news reports 6

7 Nuclear Energy Plays an Important Role in US Energy Supply Nuclear power is a clean, reliable base load energy source Provides 19% of U.S. electricity generation mix Provides 61% of U.S. emission-free electricity Avoids about 7 MMTCO 2 each year Helps reduces overall NOx and SOx levels U.S. electricity demand projected to increase ~28% by 24 from 211 levels 1 GWe nuclear capacity - 1 operating plants Fleet maintaining close to 9% average capacity factors Most expected to apply for license renewal for 6 years of operation Some plants may be vulnerable to premature closure Geothermal 1% Electricity Production, 212 Wind 11% Conven. Hydro 22% Nuclear 19% Total: 4,54,485 GWh Net Non-Carbon Emitting Sources of Electricity, 212 Solar <1% Biomass 5% Nuclear 61% Source: Energy Information Administration 7

8 Meeting Clean Energy Goals will Require a Shift in Electricity Production Source Elect (TWhr) CO 2 (Gton) Elect (TWhr) CO 2 (Gton) Natural Gas Coal Coal (CCS) Nuclear (Large) Nuclear (SMR) Hydro Renewable 2 44 Petroleum/Other TOTAL U.S Electricity Consumption and CO 2 Emissions. EIA CE=42% EIA Reference Projections 235 CE=43% Source: EIA, Annual Energy Outlook 213 8

9 U.S. Nuclear Power Plants in Operation Columbia (1) Diablo Canyon (2) San Onofre (2) Palo Verde (3) Key d Period of Extended Operation Recently shut-down plants Monticello (1) Prairie Island (2) (2) Duane Byron Arnold (1) (2) Ft. Calhoun (1) Quad-Cities (2) Cooper (1) La Salle (2) Callaway Wolf Creek (1) (1) Clinton Comanche Peak (2) South Texas (2) ANO (2) River Bend (1) Point Beach Kewaunee (1) (1) Watts Bar (1) Sequoyah (2) Grand Gulf (1) Farley (2) Vermont Yankee (1) FitzPatrick (1) Nine Mile Point (2) Palisades (1) Fermi Ginna (1) (1) Susquehanna Perry (2) (1) Peach Bottom Beaver (2) Dresden (2) Davis- Valley Besse (2) Braidwood (1) (2) Waterford (1) Hatch (2) North Anna (2) Surry (2) Harris McGuire (1) (2) Oconee (3) Crystal River (1) St. Lucie (2) Turkey Point (2) Seabrook (1) Pilgrim (1) Millstone (2) Indian Point (2) Limerick (2) Oyster Creek (1) Salem (2) Hope Creek (1) Three Mile Island (1) Calvert Cliffs (2) Brunswick (2) H. B. Robinson (1) Catawba (2) Summer (1) 9

10 1-Year Trend of U.S. Nuclear Plant Costs (212 $ per MWh) Source: Electric Utility Cost Group (EUCG) Year Fuel Capital Operating Total Step Changes: Post-Davis Besse vessel head replacements (esp. 23), license upgrades and power uprates 1

11 U.S. Gen III+ LWR Designs Gen III+ designs are a major evolutionary step in large reactor technology Westinghouse AP1 Pressurized Water Reactor 1,11 MWe Passive Safety Systems Natural forces (Gravity, natural circulation and compressed gasses) In-Vessel Retention of Core Damage 8 Units Under Construction GE-Hitachi Economic Simplified Boiling Water Reactor (ESBWR) 1,594 MWe Direct-cycle BWR with natural circulation Passive safety 25% fewer pumps, valves and motors Can safely cool itself with no AC electrical power or operator action for more than 7 days September 16, 214 NRC design certification approved ESBWR October 214 GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy 11

12 Status of New Builds First new reactors being built in U.S. in 3 years Nuclear construction Watts Bar 215 Vogtle late 217 V.C. Summer Challenges of nuclear deployment High capital cost Lower electricity demand Low natural gas prices Post Fukushima safety concerns Waste Management Construction of Vogtle Unit 3, August 214 Georgia Power Company SCE&G Places First Ring on V.C. Summer Unit 2 Containment Vessel, June 214 SCE&G 12

13 SMRs can be Game Changers Secretary Moniz addresses the Intermountain Energy Summit, August 2, 214 Small Modular Reactors represent a new generation of safe, reliable, low-carbon nuclear energy technology and provide a strong opportunity for America to lead this emerging global industry. 13

14 SMR Technologies are of Great Interest Safety benefits Passive decay heat removal by natural circulation Simplified design eliminates/mitigates several postulated accidents Below grade reactor sites Potential for reduction in Emergency Planning Zone NuScale Economic benefits Reduced financial risk Flexibility to add units Right size for replacement of old coal and other plants Job and skill creation mpower Holtec Westinghouse mpower and NuScale have been selected for the Department of Energy $452M SMR Licensing Technical Support Program 14

15 Status of SMR Licensing Technical Support Program B&W mpower Cooperative Agreement established with team consisting of B&W, Bechtel, and TVA in April 213 Initial DOE commitment of $11 M through March 214 DOE is working with B&W to establish a path forward for the mpower project NuScale Power Selection of NuScale announced on December 12, 213 Cooperative Agreement signed May 27, 214 DOE to fund up to $217 M for NuScale SMR development DCA submittal currently planned for 2nd half of 216 ~Courtesy of B&W mpower ~Courtesy of NuScale 15

16 SMRs are being Developed Globally Russia KLT-4S is a 35 MWe barge mounted PWR - Available for commercial deployment Other SMR designs: VBER-15/3, VK-3, ABV & SVBR-1 (lead-bismuth variant) Korea SMART is a 9-1 MWe PWR Plan to begin operation of a Demonstration plant in 217 Would be used for electricity and/or non-electric applications such as desalination China ACP1 is a 1 MWe PWR Plan to begin construction of a 2 module plant in 215 Would be used for electricity, heat or desalination HTR-PM is a High Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor First nuclear concrete December 212 Argentina CAREM-25 is a 27 MWe PWR Plan to complete construction of a prototype in 217 Would be used for electricity, desalination or as a research reactor Full scale 2 MWe CAREM reactor to follow in early 22 s ~ How a power plant based on the CAREM reactor could look courtesy of Invap 16

17 Evolving Vision for Fast Reactors From the initial conception of nuclear energy, it was recognized that full realization of uranium energy content would require fast reactors Fermi: The vision to close the fuel cycle 195 s: First electricity generating reactor: EBR-I with a vision to close the fuel cycle for resource extension s: Expected Uranium scarcity: Significant Fast Reactor programs 198 s: Decline of nuclear Uranium plentiful 2 Paths USA (& others): Once through cycle & repository France, Japan (& others): Closed cycles to mitigate and delay waste disposal for future resource extension Late 199 s: U.S. - Rebirth of closed cycle research and development for improved waste management 22: Generation IV launched International collaborative R&D 212: Blue Ribbon Commission Premature to commit to any particular fuel cycle given the large uncertainties. R&D should continue on a range of reactor and fuel cycle technologies 17

18 Generation IV International Forum 18

19 Recent DOE Advanced Fast Reactor Concept Studies 21 Advanced Accelerator Applications (AAA) Program initiated Supported by DOE, Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), other national laboratories, and universities Involved feasibility studies regarding spent nuclear fuel transmutation Developmental studies of an Accelerator Driven Test Facility (ADTF) also took place 25 Development of the Small Modular Fast Reactor (SMFR) Collaborative effort involving ANL, France, Japan 5 MWe small modular sodium-cooled fast reactor concept Metallic fueled core with innovative passive safety features and supercritical CO 2 Brayton power conversion system 26 Development of the Advanced Burner Test Reactor (ABTR) Based off of Global Nuclear Energy Partnership burner objectives 95 MWe sodium-cooled fast reactor concept Metallic fuel as primary (Oxide as backup) 29 1 MWe Advanced Fast Reactor (AFR-1) Study Targets local grids with SMR design with no frequent on-site refueling Adopts advanced technologies under development in DOE-NE programs 19

20 DOE Fuel Cycle Options Study Major DOE study to evaluate fuel cycle options for the U.S. Over 4 fuel cycle options evaluated in study Six fundamental characteristics were used to evaluate performance improvements Once-through or recycle (limited or continuous) Critical and/or sub-critical (externally driven systems) Neutron spectrum for irradiation (thermal, intermediate, or fast) Uranium and/or thorium Need for uranium enrichment Recycle elements (for recycle fuel cycles): One or more of: U (includes 233U bred from (Th); Pu; minor actinides (MA); All transuranic elements (TRU); Th; fission products (FP) Study prioritized fuel cycles the would be significant improvement to current approach in U.S. 2

21 High-level Results of Fuel Cycle Options Study For the criteria and metrics used, the best performing fuel cycles had one or more of the following characteristics Continuous recycle of actinides (U/Pu, U/TRU, or 233U/Th) Fast neutron spectrum reactors (may also include intermediate spectrum reactors) Critical reactors High internal conversion (of fertile to fissile) No uranium enrichment is required once steady-state conditions are established The potential benefits associated with thorium use in thermal or fast reactors are not quite as great as for uranium use in fast reactors 21

22 Catalog Home Page 22

23 Mechanisms Engineering Test Laboratory at Argonne National Lab The facility will test small and intermediate-scale sodium components, examples include: Components for advance fuel handling systems such as grippers, spline shafts, universal joints, bearings, etc. Instrumentation including detectors for rapid detection of impurities and improved methods for sodium level measurement In-service inspection and repair technologies 23

24 Lead Fast Reactor Corrosion Tests Performed at LANL DELTA Loop Goal Investigate oxide formation on selected structural materials and candidate cladding steels subjected to Lead-Bismuth Eutectic (LBE) exposure under controlled Oxygen environment Understand flow velocity and hightemperature effects on LBE corrosion properties Heat Exchanger Recuperator Expansion Tank Canister 2 Canister 1 Extend corrosion tests beyond the accepted LBE flow-rate limit of 2 m/s Heater Section Melt Tank Test Section Diameter: 2.54 Length: ~ 3 m 24

25 Gen IV Nuclear Construction in China Operation of Chinese Experimental Fast Reactor (2 MWe Test Reactor) Startup in , Fully operational in 214 Design of Chinese Prototype Fast Reactor Construction of demonstration High Temperature Gas Reactor 21 MWe Plant which consists of twin 25 MWt Pebble Bed HTR-PMs Basemat pour completed March 29, 214 Scheduled to start electricity generation by the end of 217 Design of a small Fluoride Salt Cooled Reactor CEFR Finished The construction site of the first HTR-PM at China s HTR-PM, Shidao Bay-1 China s HTR-PM, Shidao Bay-1 25

26 Gen IV Nuclear Construction in Russia Completion of BN-8 Reactor First criticality date - June 27, 214 Design of BN-12 Gen IV SFR Competitive economics to LWRs Design of MBIR test reactor to replace BOR-6 Demonstration project planned on lead-bismuth LFR Beloyarsk-4 July 214 Assembling a reactor in the 'clean area' of the BN-8 power unit at the Beloyarskaya NPP (RIA Novosti / Pavel Lisitsyn) Refuel floor during the recent first-time fueling of BN-8 (Rosatom) 26

27 Summary: Future of Nuclear Power is Bright Strong International Interest in Nuclear Power Energy Climate & Environment Economic Current Gen III Construction is Progressing SMRs can be Game Changing Technology Generation IV Demonstration Phase is Beginning Investing in clean energy isn t a decision that limits our economic potential; it s an opportunity to lead the global clean technology markets that are forming right now. ~ Secretary Moniz at National Press Club, February 1,