The Lead-cooled Fast Reactor is a Generation IV reactor that features a fast-spectrum lead or lead/bismuth eutectic liquid metal-cooled reactor with a closed fuel cycle. Options include a range of plant ratings, including a "battery" of 50 to 150 MWe (megawatts electric) units that features a very long refueling interval, a modular system rated at 300 to 400 MW, and a large monolithic plant option at 1,200 MW. (The term battery refers to the set of long-life, factory-fabricated cores, not to electrochemical energy cells.) The fuel is metal or nitride-based containing fertile uranium and transuranics. The LFR is cooled by natural convection with a reactor outlet coolant temperature of 550 degrees C, possibly ranging up to 800 degrees C with advanced materials. The higher temperature enables the production of hydrogen by thermochemical processes.

Modular nuclear reactors

The LFR battery is a small factory-built turnkey plant operating on a closed fuel cycle with very long refueling interval (15 to 20 years) cassette cores or replaceable reactor modules. Its features are designed to meet market opportunities for electricity production on small grids, and for developing countries that may not wish to deploy an indigenous fuel cycle infrastructure to support their nuclear energy systems. The modular battery system is designed for distributed generation of electricity and other energy products, including hydrogen and potable water.

Application

LFR reactors OK-550 and BM-40A, capable of producing 155 MW of power, have been applied on soviet Alfa class submarines. They were significantly lighter than typical water-cooled reactors and had an advantage of being capable to quickly switch between maximum power and minimum noise operation modes, but lacked reliability, as solidifying of lead-bismuth solution turned the reactor inoperable.

References

1: Lead-Cooled Fast Reactor

2: ADVANCED REACTOR, FUEL CYCLE,AND ENERGY PRODUCTS WORKSHOP FOR UNIVERSITIES

3: Generation IV International Forum LFR website

See also

• Generation IV reactor

External links

• Heavy-Metal Aerosol Transport in a Lead-Bismuth Cooled Fast Reactor with In-Vessel Direct-Contact Steam Generation

• INL Lead-Cooled Fast Reactor (LFR)

Nuclear reactors