Converting Maturing Nuclear Sites to Integrated Power Production Islands

Nuclear islands, which are integrated power production sites, could effectively sequester and safeguard the US stockpile of plutonium. A nuclear island, an evolution of the integral fast reactor, utilizes all the Transuranics (Pu plus minor actinides) produced in power production, and it eliminates...

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Main Author: Charles W. Solbrig
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2011-01-01
Series:Science and Technology of Nuclear Installations
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2011/519538
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author Charles W. Solbrig
author_facet Charles W. Solbrig
author_sort Charles W. Solbrig
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description Nuclear islands, which are integrated power production sites, could effectively sequester and safeguard the US stockpile of plutonium. A nuclear island, an evolution of the integral fast reactor, utilizes all the Transuranics (Pu plus minor actinides) produced in power production, and it eliminates all spent fuel shipments to and from the site. This latter attribute requires that fuel reprocessing occur on each site and that fast reactors be built on-site to utilize the TRU. All commercial spent fuel shipments could be eliminated by converting all LWR nuclear power sites to nuclear islands. Existing LWR sites have the added advantage of already possessing a license to produce nuclear power. Each could contribute to an increase in the nuclear power production by adding one or more fast reactors. Both the TRU and the depleted uranium obtained in reprocessing would be used on-site for fast fuel manufacture. Only fission products would be shipped to a repository for storage. The nuclear island concept could be used to alleviate the strain of LWR plant sites currently approaching or exceeding their spent fuel pool storage capacity. Fast reactor breeding ratio could be designed to convert existing sites to all fast reactors, or keep the majority thermal.
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spelling doaj-art-2c9219981cb84125bb29f1dff1df95f72025-08-20T03:55:00ZengWileyScience and Technology of Nuclear Installations1687-60751687-60832011-01-01201110.1155/2011/519538519538Converting Maturing Nuclear Sites to Integrated Power Production IslandsCharles W. Solbrig0Department of Pyroprocessing Technology, Idaho National Laboratory, ID 83415, USANuclear islands, which are integrated power production sites, could effectively sequester and safeguard the US stockpile of plutonium. A nuclear island, an evolution of the integral fast reactor, utilizes all the Transuranics (Pu plus minor actinides) produced in power production, and it eliminates all spent fuel shipments to and from the site. This latter attribute requires that fuel reprocessing occur on each site and that fast reactors be built on-site to utilize the TRU. All commercial spent fuel shipments could be eliminated by converting all LWR nuclear power sites to nuclear islands. Existing LWR sites have the added advantage of already possessing a license to produce nuclear power. Each could contribute to an increase in the nuclear power production by adding one or more fast reactors. Both the TRU and the depleted uranium obtained in reprocessing would be used on-site for fast fuel manufacture. Only fission products would be shipped to a repository for storage. The nuclear island concept could be used to alleviate the strain of LWR plant sites currently approaching or exceeding their spent fuel pool storage capacity. Fast reactor breeding ratio could be designed to convert existing sites to all fast reactors, or keep the majority thermal.http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2011/519538
spellingShingle Charles W. Solbrig
Converting Maturing Nuclear Sites to Integrated Power Production Islands
Science and Technology of Nuclear Installations
title Converting Maturing Nuclear Sites to Integrated Power Production Islands
title_full Converting Maturing Nuclear Sites to Integrated Power Production Islands
title_fullStr Converting Maturing Nuclear Sites to Integrated Power Production Islands
title_full_unstemmed Converting Maturing Nuclear Sites to Integrated Power Production Islands
title_short Converting Maturing Nuclear Sites to Integrated Power Production Islands
title_sort converting maturing nuclear sites to integrated power production islands
url http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2011/519538
work_keys_str_mv AT charleswsolbrig convertingmaturingnuclearsitestointegratedpowerproductionislands