7/30/2019 1-11-11 YESS Technical Session 3.1_YESS 2011 T3.1 Ingersoll US DoE

1/15

Small Modulareac ors an eNuclear Renaissance

Daniel IngersollOak Ridge National Laboratory

ingersolldt@ornl.gov

Young Engineers and ScientistsSymposium 2011J anuary 10-12, 2011

7/30/2019 1-11-11 YESS Technical Session 3.1_YESS 2011 T3.1 Ingersoll US DoE

2/15

The first commercial power plants

were small prototypes

Dresden 1

Vallicetos

200 MWe1960

1957

Shippingport

2 Managed by UT-Battellefor the U.S. Department of Energy

1957

7/30/2019 1-11-11 YESS Technical Session 3.1_YESS 2011 T3.1 Ingersoll US DoE

3/15

Commercial nuclear power plants

escalated rapidly in size during the 70s1400

1000

We)

600

800

lOutput(

U.S. plant construction

400Electric urng e rs nuc ear era

0

200

3 Managed by UT-Battellefor the U.S. Department of Energy

Date of Initial Operation

7/30/2019 1-11-11 YESS Technical Session 3.1_YESS 2011 T3.1 Ingersoll US DoE

4/15

Small modular reactor (SMR) designs first

emerged in the 1970s and 1980s

Initially motivated by optimism fornuclear power

Later motivated by lessons learned

Main f indings of 1985 Weinberg study:*

-but high risk to the investor

Large reactors are difficult to operate: complex and finicky

Small inherently safe (highly forgiving) designs are possibleif they can be made economically

4 Managed by UT-Battellefor the U.S. Department of Energy

*A. M. Weinberg, et al, The Second Nuclear Era, Praeger Publishers, 1985

7/30/2019 1-11-11 YESS Technical Session 3.1_YESS 2011 T3.1 Ingersoll US DoE

5/15

Interest in SMRs is reemerging

Enabled by excellent performance of existing fleet oflarge nuclear plants

, ,

financing concerns Key Benefits

Reduced capital cost

Competitive power costs (hopefully)

Smaller incremental ca acit addition to match owerdemand and growth rate

Domestic supply chain

Enhanced safety and robustness from simpli fied designs

Enhanced security from below-grade siting

Adaptable to a broader range of energy needs

More f lexible sit in access water im acts seismic etc.

5 Managed by UT-Battellefor the U.S. Department of Energy

7/30/2019 1-11-11 YESS Technical Session 3.1_YESS 2011 T3.1 Ingersoll US DoE

6/15

Meeting the national GhG reduction

goal will require heroic efforts7000

2005 U.S. CO2Emissions (Tg)

Solution:

1. Pursue all clean ener

Electricity5000

6000

technologies2. Extend nuclear energy tomore energy markets

4000

Transportation

2000

3000

Commercial

Residential1000

GoalIndustrial

6 Managed by UT-Battellefor the U.S. Department of Energy

Misc0

7/30/2019 1-11-11 YESS Technical Session 3.1_YESS 2011 T3.1 Ingersoll US DoE

7/15

Deliberately small designs share a

common safety philosophy Eliminate potential accident initiators if

possible

EXAMPLE: Integral system to eliminate largepipe loss-of-coolant accident

occurring

EXAMPLE: Lower radiation exposure of reactorvessel reduces likelihood of pressurized thermalshock accident

Miti ate conse uences of otentialaccidents

EXAMPLE: Increased volume of primary coolant-

7 Managed by UT-Battellefor the U.S. Department of Energy

7/30/2019 1-11-11 YESS Technical Session 3.1_YESS 2011 T3.1 Ingersoll US DoE

8/15

Integral Design: Simple and Robust

Loop-type

Primary System

Integral

Primary System

Control

Generator

Pressurizer

Controlressur zer

DrivePump SteamGenerator

RodDrive

CoreCore

Pump

8 Managed by UT-Battellefor the U.S. Department of Energy

7/30/2019 1-11-11 YESS Technical Session 3.1_YESS 2011 T3.1 Ingersoll US DoE

9/15

U.S. LWR-based SMR designs forelectricity generation

Pressurization

Volume

Containment

Vessel

Steam generator

coils

Reactor

Vessel

Reactor coolantpumps

Mechanisms

Steam

Generator

DHRS heat

exchangers

Reactor

Core

Core

9 Managed by UT-Battellefor the U.S. Department of Energy

es ng ouse m ower a coc cox

tbd MWe 125 MWe 45 MWe

7/30/2019 1-11-11 YESS Technical Session 3.1_YESS 2011 T3.1 Ingersoll US DoE

10/15

Demonstrating the M in SMR is a

key to economic viability

4-Module (500 MWe)

mPower Plant

12-Module 540 MWe

10 Managed by UT-Battellefor the U.S. Department of Energy

NuScale Plant

7/30/2019 1-11-11 YESS Technical Session 3.1_YESS 2011 T3.1 Ingersoll US DoE

11/15

Gas-cooled reactor designs can providehigh-temperature process heat

MHR General Atomics PBMR Westin house ANTARES Areva

11 Managed by UT-Battellefor the U.S. Department of Energy

280 MWe 250 MWe 275 MWe

7/30/2019 1-11-11 YESS Technical Session 3.1_YESS 2011 T3.1 Ingersoll US DoE

12/15

Fast spectrum reactor designs canprovide improved fuel cycles

PRISM General Electric TWR TerraPower EM2 General Atomics

12 Managed by UT-Battellefor the U.S. Department of Energy

311 MWe TBD MWe 100 MWe

7/30/2019 1-11-11 YESS Technical Session 3.1_YESS 2011 T3.1 Ingersoll US DoE

13/15

SMR Challenges Technical

LWR-based designs have some degree of innovation

Integral primary system configuration

Internal control rod drive mechanisms and pumps (some)

Multiplexed control systems

- , . .

Long-lived fuels with more diverse compositions

High-temperature and radiation-resistant materials

Sensors, instrumentation and controls development areimportant for near-term and advanced designs, e.g.

Advance prognostics and diagnostics for remote operations

Control systems for process heat/co-generation plants

13 Managed by UT-Battellefor the U.S. Department of Energy

7/30/2019 1-11-11 YESS Technical Session 3.1_YESS 2011 T3.1 Ingersoll US DoE

14/15

SMR Challenges Institutional

Market competition vs. design standardization

Mindset for large, centralized plants

Fixation on economy-of-scale Concern for nuclear hassle factors

Perceived risk factors for nuclear plants

Traditional focus of regulators on large, LWR plants an ar -m e ra us n e . .

Staffing and security force size

Fear of f irst-of-a-kind

Need to demonstrate new desi ns and new business model

14 Managed by UT-Battellefor the U.S. Department of Energy

7/30/2019 1-11-11 YESS Technical Session 3.1_YESS 2011 T3.1 Ingersoll US DoE

15/15

Bottom Line

SMRs can extend clean andabundant nuclear power to a

demands

Emer in SMR desi ns arebased on decades ofexperience

Several technical andinstitutional challenges mustbe solved and demonstrated

If commercially successful, SMRs would significantly expand the options for

nuclear power and its applications.

15 Managed by UT-Battellefor the U.S. Department of Energy

- Steven Chu, Wall Street Journal, 3/23/10