June 23, 2021
The Dutch Nuclear Research & Consultancy Group (NRG) will conduct a program of irradiation tests on the proprietary Fully Ceramic Microencapsulated (FCM) fuel from Ultra Safe Nuclear Corporation (USNC) in the High Flux Reactor (HFR) in Petten. The aim of the tests is to demonstrate the safety of the fuel for the 20-year service life of the USNC’s modular microreactor.
FCM fuel pellets contain TRISO fuel particles, shown here in blue (Image: USNC)
In order to analyze the performance and safety properties of the fuel, the NRG will carry out the test using a two-stage irradiation process in the HFR. Extensive pre- and post-irradiation tests at the Hot Cell Laboratories will also be part of the program.
“The qualification of our FCM fuel by NRG will be a significant step in realizing our vision of MMR and carbon-free power generation,” said USNC CEO Francesco Venneri. “NRG has the technical ability and credibility to test our fuel and we expect them to confirm the results of our internal testing.”
“NRG has been supporting the nuclear power industry since 1955 and has extensive experience performing complex irradiations and meeting our customers’ high demands for the successful development of nuclear technology,” said Vinod Ramnandanlal, Commercial Director of NRG. “Innovative Generation IV reactors have real transformation potential and Ultra Safe Nuclear has a leading edge in design.”
USNC, based in Seattle, Washington, describes FCM as a tri-structural isotropic (TRISO) particle fuel design with next-generation uranium oxycarbide that replaces the 50-year-old graphite matrix of traditional TRISO fuel with silicon carbide (SiC). The result is a safer nuclear fuel that can withstand higher temperatures and more radiation. The SiC matrix in the FCM fuel provides a tight, gas-tight barrier that prevents the escape of fission products, even if a TRISO particle should burst during operation. The new matrix improves the structural and retention properties of TRISO particles, permanently traps radioactive fission products and seals them, thus preventing contamination of the environment. The higher thermal conductivity of FCM fuel enables a flatter temperature profile of the fuel pellets and lowers the peak temperatures in nuclear reactors.
FCM fuel is first used in USNC’s MMR, a 15 MW thermal and 5 MW electrical high temperature gas cooled reactor that draws on operating experience from reactors developed in China, Germany, Japan and the United States. It consists of two systems: the nuclear power plant, which generates heat, and the adjacent power plant, which converts heat into electricity or provides process heat for industrial applications. The USNC system is designed to be simple, with minimal operation and maintenance requirements, and with no on-site fuel storage, handling or processing. The MMR uses fuel in prismatic graphite blocks and has a sealed transportable core.
The MMR is at an advanced licensing stage on the Chalk River Laboratories campus of Atomic Energy of Canada Limited in Ontario. The project is a collaboration between USNC and Ontario Power Generation through the joint Global First Power Limited Partnership (GFP). Last month, GFP’s application for a license to prepare an MMR site in Chalk River entered the technical review phase of the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission’s licensing process. GFP plans to build and operate an MMR unit by 2026.
Researched and written by World Nuclear News
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