Fast Reactors and Accelerator Driven Systems Knowledge Base

Conference Article: Minor actinide burner reactor and influence of transmutation on fuel cycle facilities

Abstract

Two concepts of minor actinide burner reactors were previously proposed by the authors, one with metal fuel core and the other with nitride particle fuel core. These reactors have very hard neutron spectrum and very high neutron flux which are effective and efficient for fissioning of minor actinides. In these burner reactors, however, beta_eff was very small and the sodium void coefficient of a metal fuel reactor was positive and large. In order to improve the safety characteristics, the design of these burner rectors was modified. As a part of transmutation system evaluation, minor actinide transmutation by actinide burner reactors is compared with that by power reactors from both the reactor physics and fuel cycle view points. The technical feasibility of these burner reactors heavily depends on the technical feasibility of fuel and the fuel cycle process. The study on manufacturing technology of TRU nitride fuel with TiN coating and the TRU alloy fuel studies are discussed.

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Reference:

Safety and environmental aspects of partitioning and transmutation of actinides and fission products. Proceedings of a technical committee meeting, Vienna, 29 November - 2 December 1993

International Atomic Energy Agency, Vienna (Austria)

IAEA-TECDOC--783, pp:105-114