Note on Molten-Salt Reactor Strategies

Suzuki, A. & Grenon, M. (1975). Note on Molten-Salt Reactor Strategies. IIASA Research Memorandum. IIASA, Laxenburg, Austria: RM-75-032

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Abstract

In IIASA Research Report RR-74-7, Wolf Hafele and Alan S. Manne present a model optimizing strategies on a transition from fossil to nuclear fuels: substitution of LWR and FBR for coal for the use of electricity, and of hydrogen from HTGR process heat for petroleum-and-gas for the use of non-electrical energy.

This paper treats another transition from fossil to nuclear fuels, i.e. that from coal to the molten-salt reactor (MSR) for electrical use, and from petroleum-and-gas to MSR process heat for non-electrical use.

MSR technology offers important advantages for power generation: avoidance of fuel element fabrication, rapid and inexpensive reprocessing, on-line refueling, high specific power, good neutron economy and high-temperature operation at low pressure. A review of the status and future of the PISR program suggests that the MSR technology should still be considered as one of the possible nuclear options for energy supply. Therefore, it is worthwhile to study the MSR strategy as well as the FBR and HTGR strategies.

The aim of this paper is to compare the MSR strategy with the Hafele-Manne strategy via an example of the optimal transitions based on MSR technology, as opposed to today's situation where virtually all electrical and non-electrical energy demands are met by coal and petroleum-and-gas, respectively.

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