Application submitted for US molten salt research reactor
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Application submitted for US molten salt research reactor
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Re: Application submitted for US molten salt research reactor
#2A 1MW research reactor.
Anyway, why is it always a fluoride salt? Is it because of the melting point or because of some nuclear property?
I imagine there is some very relevant reason, because a less reactive anion (even chlorine) would be much easier to work with.
Re: Application submitted for US molten salt research reactor
#3A 1MW research reactor. Anyway, why is it always a fluoride salt? Is it because of the melting point or because of some nuclear property? I imagine there is some very relevant reason, because a less reactive anion (even chlorine) would be much easier to work with.
Re: Application submitted for US molten salt research reactor
#4A 1MW research reactor. Anyway, why is it always a fluoride salt? Is it because of the melting point or because of some nuclear property? I imagine there is some very relevant reason, because a less reactive anion (even chlorine) would be much easier to work with.
Good question - here's a paper and quote on this:
"Molten Salt Reactor (MSR) was designed to operate at high temperature in range 700 - 800°C and its fuel is dissolved in a circulating molten fluoride salt mixture. Molten fluoride salts are stable at high temperature, have good heat transfer properties and can dissolve high concentration of actinides and fission product."
Re: Application submitted for US molten salt research reactor
#5I thought these were outlawed, per a LFTR video I saw once. To emphasize, I'm asking if that is the case, or was the LFTR video was engaging in misinformation, or if something changed in regulations.
Re: Application submitted for US molten salt research reactor
#6A 1MW research reactor. Anyway, why is it always a fluoride salt? Is it because of the melting point or because of some nuclear property? I imagine there is some very relevant reason, because a less reactive anion (even chlorine) would be much easier to work with.
Without knowing the specifics as apply to nukes, anion reactivity is inversely proportional to atomic reactivity, fluoride is far less reactive than chloride or bromide or iodide, respectively in order of increasing reactivity. Ergo fluoride and fluoride containing anions are quite common in molten salts/ionic liquids.
In English: the flouride, having so voraciously devoured that 8th electron it was missing, really doesn't want to give it up, whereas chlorine et al have lots of spares.)
Re: Application submitted for US molten salt research reactor
#7A 1MW research reactor. Anyway, why is it always a fluoride salt? Is it because of the melting point or because of some nuclear property? I imagine there is some very relevant reason, because a less reactive anion (even chlorine) would be much easier to work with.
It is very stable both chemically and atomically.
Re: Application submitted for US molten salt research reactor
#8I thought these were outlawed, per a LFTR video I saw once. To emphasize, I'm asking if that is the case, or was the LFTR video was engaging in misinformation, or if something changed in regulations.
I believe it's less outlawed and more not really approved for use due to insufficient research.
Re: Application submitted for US molten salt research reactor
#9A 1MW research reactor. Anyway, why is it always a fluoride salt? Is it because of the melting point or because of some nuclear property? I imagine there is some very relevant reason, because a less reactive anion (even chlorine) would be much easier to work with.
Fluoride salts are good for fissile uranium + fertile thorium. If you want to work with a plutonium/uranium 238 cycle then chloride salts are a better choice. Plutonium doesn't dissolve very well in fluorides.
Molten chloride reactors can have performance characteristics right out of science fiction, it seems possible for such a reactor to not only breed more fuel but to destroy the long-lived (500 year) fission products such as cesium and strontium.
It never gets upvoted on HN when I link it but I've been following MSRs for a while and even spoke at the first thorium energy conference and I've been watching people's thoughts about designs evolve and this one
is well ahead of the others.
Re: Application submitted for US molten salt research reactor
#10I thought these were outlawed, per a LFTR video I saw once. To emphasize, I'm asking if that is the case, or was the LFTR video was engaging in misinformation, or if something changed in regulations.
I believe that the video was misinformed or your recollection is a bit fuzzy. The closest true approximation I can muster is "there is no commercial molten salt reactor design yet approved by the NRC, and the NRC approval process may need updates to consider reactor designs that significantly deviate from the common water-moderated types."