Molten fuel nuclear reactor

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11798694-B2
Application number	US-202017076309-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 21, 2020
Priority date	Sep 30, 2015
Publication date	Oct 24, 2023
Grant date	Oct 24, 2023

Abstract

A molten fuel salt nuclear reactor core assembly including a fluid neutron reflecting material defining a fast spectrum fuel volume configured to breed fissile fuel from fertile fuel, a first inlet channel, and a first outlet channel through which cooled molten fuel salt can enter and heated molten fuel salt can exit the fast spectrum fuel volume. The core assembly also includes a set of neutron absorbing members sized to fit within the fast spectrum fuel volume. The set of neutron absorbing members define a thermal spectrum fuel volume for a fission reaction of the fissile fuel, a second inlet channel, and a second outlet channel through which cooled molten fuel salt can enter and heated molten fuel salt can exit the thermal spectrum fuel volume.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A molten fuel salt nuclear reactor core assembly comprising:
a set of neutron reflectors, the set of neutron reflectors defining a fast spectrum fuel volume and at least one reflector fuel inlet channel and at least one reflector fuel outlet channel through which cooled molten fuel salt can enter and heated molten fuel salt can exit the fast spectrum fuel volume; and
a set of neutron absorbing members sized to fit within the fast spectrum fuel volume, the set of neutron absorbing members defining a thermal spectrum fuel volume, and at least one absorber fuel inlet channel and at least one absorber fuel outlet channel through which cooled molten fuel salt can enter and heated molten fuel salt can exit the thermal spectrum fuel volume.

2. The molten fuel salt nuclear reactor core assembly of claim 1 further comprising;
a heat exchanger fluidly connected to the at least one reflector fuel inlet channel and to the at least one reflector fuel outlet channel.

3. The molten fuel salt nuclear reactor core assembly of claim 1 wherein each absorber fuel inlet channel is fluidly connected to an associated reflector fuel inlet channel.

4. The molten fuel salt nuclear reactor core assembly of claim 1 wherein each absorber fuel outlet channel is fluidly connected to the associated reflector fuel outlet channel.

5. The molten fuel salt nuclear reactor core assembly of claim 1 wherein the set of neutron reflectors includes a removable neutron reflector, and removal of the removable neutron reflector provides access to the fast spectrum fuel volume.

6. The molten fuel salt nuclear reactor core assembly of claim 1 , wherein at least one of:
the set of neutron reflectors comprise a plurality of reflector tubes; and
the set of neutron absorbing members comprise a plurality of absorber tubes.

Assignees

• Terrapower Llc

Inventors

• Cisneros Jr Anselmo T
• Freeman Charles Gregory
• Kramer Kevin
• Latkowski Jeffery F

Classifications

• G21C7/28 Primary

  by displacement of the reflector or parts thereof · CPC title

• G21C3/54

  Fused salt, oxide or hydroxide compositions · CPC title

• G21C7/22

  by displacement of a fluid or fluent neutron-absorbing material {, e.g. by adding neutron-absorbing material to the coolant} · CPC title

• G21C7/27

  Spectral shift control · CPC title

• G21C1/026

  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