Anti-proliferation safeguards for nuclear fuel salts

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11276503-B2
Application number	US-201916676183-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 6, 2019
Priority date	Dec 29, 2014
Publication date	Mar 15, 2022
Grant date	Mar 15, 2022

Abstract

An anti-proliferation technique is disclosed to reduce the likelihood of nuclear proliferation due to the use fissionable fuel salts. The technique includes doping the fuel salt with one or more elements (referred to herein as activation dopants) that, upon exposure to neutrons such as would occur in the fuel salt when a reactor is in operation, undergo a nuclear reaction to, directly or indirectly, form highly active “protecting isotopes” (of the same element as the activation dopant or a different element). A sufficient mass of activation dopants is used so that the Figure of Merit (FOM) of the fuel salt is decreased to below 1.0 within some target number of days of fission. This allows the FOM of the fuel salt to be controlled so that the fuel becomes too dangerous to handle before to the creation of a significant amount of weaponizable isotopes.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method of protecting a uranium chloride fuel salt comprising:
creating a protected fuel salt including UCl 3 , NaCl or KCl, and an initial mass of chloride salts of activation dopants, wherein the protected fuel salt has an FOM of greater than 1.0; and
fissioning the protected fuel salt in a nuclear reactor to obtain a fissioned fuel salt having an FOM of less than 1.0;
wherein the initial mass of chloride salts of activation dopants is sufficient to cause the FOM of the fissioned fuel salt to fall below 1.0 within 300 days of fission due to the conversion of activation dopants into protecting isotopes.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the initial mass of chloride salts of activation dopants is sufficient to cause the FOM of the fissioned fuel salt to fall below 1.0 within 200 days of fission due to the conversion of activation dopants into protecting isotopes.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the initial mass of chloride salts of activation dopants is sufficient to cause the FOM of the fissioned fuel salt to fall below 1.0 within 100 days of fission due to the conversion of activation dopants into protecting isotopes.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the initial mass of chloride salts of activation dopants is sufficient to cause the FOM of the fissioned fuel salt to fall below 1.0 within 60 days of fission due to the conversion of activation dopants into protecting isotopes.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the initial mass of chloride salts of activation dopants is sufficient to cause the FOM of the fissioned fuel salt to fall below 1.0 within 45 days of fission due to the conversion of activation dopants into protecting isotopes.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the initial mass of chloride salts of activation dopants is sufficient to cause the FOM of the fissioned fuel salt to fall below 1.0 within 30 days of fission due to the conversion of activation dopants into protecting isotopes.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the initial mass of chloride salts of activation dopants is sufficient to cause the FOM of the fissioned fuel salt to fall below 1.0 within 10 days of fission due to the conversion of activation dopants into protecting isotopes.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the protected fuel salt consists of:
UCl 3 ;
one or more chloride salts selected from NaCl, MgCl 2 , CaCl 2 , or KCl; and
one or more chloride salts of activation dopants wherein the activation dopants are selected from stable isotopes of Co, Cs, Ce, La, Pr, Nd, Bi, Ir, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Tm, Yb, Lu, or Ra;
wherein the protected fuel salt has an FOM greater than 1.0 prior to fissioning and, after no more than 300 days of fissioning, the fissioned fuel salt has an FOM of less than 1.0 due to the conversion of the activation dopants into protecting isotopes.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein the one or more chloride salts of activation dopants are selected from CoCl 3 , CsCl, CeCl 3 , BiCl 3 , IrCl 3 , LaCl 3 , PrCl 3 , NdCl 3 , SmCl 3 , EuCl 3 , GdCl 3 , TbCl 3 , DyCl 3 , HoCl 3 , ErCl 3 , TmCl 3 , YbCl 3 , LuCl 3 , or RaCl 2 .

10. The method of claim 1 wherein the protected fuel salt consists of:
UCl 3 ;
UCl 4 ;
one or more chloride salts selected from NaCl, MgCl 2 , CaCl 2 , or KCl; and
one or more chloride salts of activation dopants wherein the activation dopants are selected from stable isotopes of Co, Cs, Ce, La, Pr, Nd, Bi, Ir, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Tm, Yb, Lu, or Ra;
wherein the protected fuel salt has an FOM greater than 1.0 prior to fissioning and, after no more than 300 days of fissioning, the fissioned fuel salt has an FOM of less than 1.0 due to the conversion of the activation dopants into protecting isotopes.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein the one or more chloride salts of activation dopants are selected from CoCl 3 , CsCl, CeCl 3 , BiCl 3 , IrCl 3 , LaCl 3 , PrCl 3 , NdCl 3 , SmCl 3 , EuCl 3 , GdCl 3 , TbCl 3 , DyCl 3 , HoCl 3 , ErCl 3 , TmCl 3 , YbCl 3 , LuCl 3 , or RaCl 2 .

12. The method of claim 1 wherein the protected fuel salt consists of:
UCl 3 ;
NaCl;
one or more chloride salts of activation dopants wherein the activation dopants are selected from stable isotopes of Co, Cs, Ce, La, Pr, Nd, Bi, Ir, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Tm, Yb, Lu, or Ra;
and no more than 10 wt. % of any other component;
wherein the protected fuel salt has an FOM greater than 1.0 prior to fissioning and, after no more than 300 days of fissioning, the fissioned fuel salt has an FOM of less than 1.0 due to the conversion of the activation dopants into protecting isotopes.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein the protected fuel salt consists of:
UCl 3 ;
UCl 4 ;
NaCl;
one or more chloride salts of activation dopants wherein the activation dopants are selected from stable isotopes of Co, Cs, Ce, La, Pr, Nd, Bi, Ir, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Tm, Yb, Lu, or Ra; and
and no more than 10 wt. % of any other component;
wherein the protected fuel salt has an FOM greater than 1.0 prior to fissioning and, after no more than 300 days of fissioning, the fissioned fuel salt has an FOM of less than 1.0 due to the conversion of the activation dopants into protecting isotopes.

14. The method of claim 1 wherein the protected fuel salt consists of:
UCl 3 ;
KCl;
one or more chloride salts of activation dopants wherein the activation dopants are selected from stable isotopes of Co, Cs, Ce, La, Pr, Nd, Bi, Ir, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Tm, Yb, Lu, or Ra;
and no more than 10 wt. % of any other component;
wherein the protected fuel salt has an FOM greater than 1.0 prior to fissioning and, after no more than 300 days of fissioning, the fissioned fuel salt has an FOM of less than 1.0 due to the conversion of the activation dopants into protecting isotopes.

15. The method of claim 1 wherein the protected fuel salt consists of:
UCl 3 ;
UCl 4 ;
KCl;
one or more chloride salts of activation dopants wherein the activation dopants are selected from stable isotopes of Co, Cs, Ce, La, Pr, Nd, Bi, Ir, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Tm, Yb, Lu, or Ra;
and no more than 10 wt. % of any other component;
wherein the protected fuel salt has an FOM greater than 1.0 prior to fissioning and, after no more than 300 days of fissioning, the fissioned fuel salt has an FOM of less than 1.0 due to the conversion of the activation dopants into protecting isotopes.

16. The method of claim 1 wherein the protected fuel salt consists of:
UCl 3 ;
KCl;
one or more chloride salts of activation dopants selected from CoCl 3 , CsCl, CeCl 3 , BiCl 3 , IrCl 3 , LaCl 3 , PrCl 3 , NdCl 3 , SmCl 3 , EuCl 3 , GdCl 3 , TbCl 3 , DyCl 3 , HoCl 3 , ErCl 3 , TmCl 3 , YbCl 3 , LuCl 3 , or RaCl 2 ;
and no more than 10 wt. % of any other component;
wherein the protected fuel salt has an FOM greater than 1.0 prior to fissioning and, after no more than 300 days of fissioning, the fissioned fuel salt has an FOM of less than 1.0 due to the conversion of the activation dopants into protecting isotopes.

Assignees

• Terrapower Llc

Inventors

• Cisneros Jr Anselmo T
• Czerwinski Ken
• El-Dasher Bassem S
• Kelleher Brian C
• Kerlin William M
• Kramer Kevin
• Latkowski Jeffery F
• Petroski Robert C
• Walter Joshua C

Classifications

• G21C15/28

  Selection of specific coolants (if serving as the moderator G21C5/12; compositions per se C09K5/00; {organic coolants G21C5/123}); {Additions to the reactor coolants, e.g. against moderator corrosion (purification and regeneration of the reactor coolants G21C19/30)} · CPC title

• G21C19/30

  with continuous purification of circulating fluent material, e.g. by extraction of fission products {deterioration or corrosion products, impurities, e.g. by cold traps (purification of circulating fluid fuels G21C19/50; separation in general B01D)} · CPC title

• G21C3/54 Primary

  Fused salt, oxide or hydroxide compositions · CPC title

• G21C1/026 Primary

  Reactors not needing refuelling, i.e. reactors of the type breed-and-burn, e.g. travelling or deflagration wave reactors or seed-blanket reactors · CPC title

• G21C5/02

  Details · CPC title