Markets and Economics for Thermal Power Extraction from Nuclear Power Plants Aiding the Decarbonization of Industrial Processes

Abstract

Decarbonization (the intentional reduction of carbon dioxide emissions) is gaining momentum as an increasing number of governments and corporations seek to increase air quality and have a positive impact on climate change. Industrial processes use large amounts of heat in the manufacturing of materials, products, fuels, and chemicals and are of high interest for decarbonization. In this report, industrial markets are surveyed for low-grade thermal heat (less than 300°C) applications that could use heat from existing U.S. nuclear light water reactors (LWRs) as an alternative low-carbon heat source for industry in lieu of using conventional boilers fueled with natural gas. Thermal heat degrades in quality when transported long distances; thus, this report focuses on existing industry near LWRs and growth markets where a business case can be made to build new industrial facilities in close proximity to existing LWRs in the foreseeable future.

Assessments of advanced reactor heat supply to high temperature industrial unit operations: Heat Engines and Heat Pumps

“…Modern refineries are rigorously heat-integrated and consume only ~6% of the energy value of their feedstock to provide heat [4]. An average refinery that produces 138,000 barrel/day of crude oil needs a thermal energy input equal to around 15.12 TJ/day [5]. Assessments of advanced reactor heat supply to high temperature industrial unit operations February 28, 2024 12…”

“…The water conditions at the Condenser outlet are reported in Eq. (45). The disposed heat is expressed in Eq.…”

NRIC Integrated Energy Systems Demonstration Pre-Conceptual Designs

“…Figure 30, which draws on Knighton et al (2020), shows integration of nuclear energy with chemical polymer production as a pre-conceptual design scenario. As discussed in Section 4, (Worsham et al 2021) describe a process using nuclear energy to gasify coal to produce methanol or other carbon-containing products with lower carbon emissions in the production process than fossil-based methods.…”