Economic competitiveness of small modular reactors versus coal and combined cycle plants

Alonso, Gustavo; Bilbao, Sama; Valle, Edmundo del

doi:10.1016/j.energy.2016.10.030

Cited by 43 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 14 publications

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“…To monitor the heat transfer process inside the ICLASS facility, the rate of the heat transfer by means of the steam condensation and air convection was compared with the cooling duty of the condenser using Equations (1) to (3). In addition, we defined the heat rejection ratio as shown in Equation (4) to investigate the initiating condition of the insufficient condenser performance.…”

Section: Data Reduction and Measurement Uncertaintiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…[3][4][5] In particular, the low power capacity of the SMRs has facilitated the introduction of an air-cooling technology into various types of heat removal systems. [3][4][5] In particular, the low power capacity of the SMRs has facilitated the introduction of an air-cooling technology into various types of heat removal systems.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…As the demand for small and safe nuclear reactors has increased steadily, the modularized reactor known as the small modular reactor (SMR) has been investigated for its potential advantages of easy construction, 1 enhanced safety, 2 and economic efficiency. [3][4][5] In particular, the low power capacity of the SMRs has facilitated the introduction of an air-cooling technology into various types of heat removal systems. For instance, mPower from Babcock and Wilcox uses an air-cooled condenser and NuScale from Fluor Enterprises has adopted aircooling in a condenser and also as an ultimate heat removal mechanism in a passive residual heat removal system.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Performance criterion of an indirect dry air‐cooled condenser for small modular reactor based on pressure transition temperature

Shin

Lee

et al. 2019

Int J Energy Res

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Summary In terms of reducing the environmental pollution caused by effluent water from typical condensers and the water dependency of small modular reactors, indirect dry air‐cooled condensers (IDACs) are being considered an ultimate heat sink. While the performance of air‐cooled heat exchangers has been investigated thoroughly for decades, evaluations of the condenser performance rely primarily on empirical data. Thus, a method for precisely determining the performance of the IDAC under various environmental and thermal‐hydraulic conditions has not yet been understood. The objective of this study is to experimentally investigate the critical parameter that initiates the deterioration of the condenser performance by varying the cooling duty and water velocity. The investigation is also extended to a parametric study of the air‐cooling conditions using a best‐estimate thermal hydraulic analysis code called multi‐dimensional analysis of reactor safety (MARS‐KS) to suggest a method for designing an IDAC system. Results showed that, for a given cooling duty and water velocity, the condenser exhibited an insufficient performance above a certain cooling water temperature. The temperature was defined as the pressure transition temperature (PTT) that initiates the increase in pressure inside the condenser. The calculation results of MARS‐KS were analysed based on the PTT and was used to suggest methods for designing an appropriate IDAC for the cooling duty and environmental conditions of given target site.

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Section: Data Reduction and Measurement Uncertaintiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Performance criterion of an indirect dry air‐cooled condenser for small modular reactor based on pressure transition temperature

Shin

Lee

et al. 2019

Int J Energy Res

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“…23,26 However, although less optimal as a breeder, the RMWR concept is endowed with ideal neutronics features for more sustainable use of uranium resources than mainstream LWRs. We therefore follow a different path and design an innovative long-life variation of the reduced-moderation small modular reactor [27][28][29][30] (RMSMR) concept. The hard neutron spectrum suppresses the burnup reactivity swing throughout the cycle while preserving a long operation period.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Conceptual design of an innovative reduced moderation thorium‐fueled small modular reactor with heavy‐water coolant

et al. 2019

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Summary This paper presents an innovative conceptual design for small modular reactors, the reduced‐moderation small modular reactor (RMSMR), for the sustainable use of nuclear resources. The concept is established by a modification of the well‐understood pressurized water reactor technology. A reduced‐moderation lattice and heavy‐water coolant are used to yield an epithermal‐to‐fast neutron spectrum, which is beneficial for attaining a large conversion ratio and reducing the burnup reactivity swing throughout the core lifetime. Two‐dimensional pin cell and three‐dimensional core burnup calculations are performed to systematically analyze the neutronics influences of important parameters, such as the coolant type, moderator‐to‐fuel ratio, and fuel type. The RMSMR adopts a three‐zone uranium‐thorium dioxide fuel configuration to flatten the power distribution and ensure a negative void coefficient. The radial and axial blanket regions are found to enhance the breeding effect. The proposed RMSMR can sustain power generation of 100 MWe for 7 years without refueling and achieve a conversion ratio of 0.85 at the end of the cycle. Numerical simulations indicate that the proposed concept has satisfactory shutdown margins and reactivity coefficients and conservative thermal‐hydraulic safety. The RMSMR may be a promising candidate to fill the gap between light‐water reactors and fast breeder reactors.

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“…The results in that study showed that incremental construction and gradual shutdown steps can improve the economics of the small modular reactors by dealing with uncertainties of future prices. Alonso et al . compared the cost of electricity generation by SMRs, coal‐fired power plants, and combined cycle power plants.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Energy and exergy analyses of a hybrid small modular reactor and wind turbine system for trigeneration

Khalid

Biçer

2019

Energy Science & Engineering

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In this study, authors present a new hybrid nuclear small modular reactor system assisted with wind energy for net zero emissions trigeneration system. Small modular reactors bring multiple advantages including (a) improved thermal efficiency, (b) better building efficiency due to modularity, and (c) less operation and maintenance costs compared to standard nuclear power generation. Furthermore, the greenhouse gas emissions from small modular reactors are lower than regular counterparts. This study hybridizes small modular reactors with wind turbines for producing three useful commodities, namely electricity, hydrogen, and hot water. A two‐step high‐temperature thermochemical cycle (based on hydrogen chloride gas) is used for hydrogen production, and its performance in terms of energy and exergy efficiencies is evaluated. Additionally, the exergy and energy analyses (by writing balance equations for each component of the system) are carried out to determine the thermodynamic feasibility of the proposed system. In order to observe the effects of various parameters such as the temperature of the thermochemical cycle steps, inlet gas turbine temperature, the pressure ratio of the gas turbine, actual wind speed, and current density on the system performance, a detailed parametric study is conducted. The results of this study show that the overall system can achieve an energy efficiency of about 57.5% and exergy efficiency of about 38.1%.

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Economic competitiveness of small modular reactors versus coal and combined cycle plants

Cited by 43 publications

References 14 publications

Performance criterion of an indirect dry air‐cooled condenser for small modular reactor based on pressure transition temperature

Performance criterion of an indirect dry air‐cooled condenser for small modular reactor based on pressure transition temperature

Conceptual design of an innovative reduced moderation thorium‐fueled small modular reactor with heavy‐water coolant

Energy and exergy analyses of a hybrid small modular reactor and wind turbine system for trigeneration

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