Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (CNL) has just signed a collaboration agreement with U.K.-based Moltex Energy. The agreement is funded through CNL’s Canadian Nuclear Research Initiative (CNRI). It includes work in supporting aspects of Moltex Energy’s nuclear fuel development program for its Stable Salt Reactor which is a three hundred megawatt small modular reactor (SMR) design.
The new program will support the second and third phases of the Oxide Nuclear Waste Reduction Demonstration (ONWARD). The ONWARD program is exploring the commercial viability of the Waste To Stable Salts (WATSS) technology which will be used to convert spent Candu fuel into a new fuel that can produce more clean energy from a Stable Salt Reactor. The first phase of the project is already underway.
Under the proposed CNRI project, Moltex Energy, the University of New Brunswick (UNB) and CNL will collaborate in the design, construction and optimization of a fuel testing apparatus in UNB’s Center for Nuclear Energy Research. There will be parallel complementary activities at the University of Manchester in the U.K. The CNRI project will involve CNL supporting Moltex Energy on specialized equipment preparation, installation and commissioning.
The initial testing will be conducted using surrogate inactive materials. CNL’s expertise is also supporting the planning, design, costing and safety analysis that will be required to install the developed apparatus in a shielded facility or “hot cell”. In the hot cell, testing can be completed with the use of actual fuels and active materials. The data that will be collected from this work will support the design and licensing of a WATSS facility at Point Lepreau in New Brunswick which is being developed jointly by Moltex, the government of New Brunswick and NB Power.
Rory O'Sullivan is the CEO for North America at Moltex Energy. He said, “This is positive news and will advance our project in Canada. Nuclear power is essential to address our global energy issues as intermittent renewables alone cannot meet the current and future demand. Many countries around the world have stores of used nuclear fuel from their current nuclear plants and we have discovered a clean, safe and economical way to recycle what some consider waste into a fuel for our Stable Salt Reactor to create more clean energy and significantly reduce the amount of long-lived radio-nuclides.”
The Moltex SSR utilizes nuclear fuel dissolved in a molten fluoride or chloride salt. The molten salt also acts as a coolant. The reactor operates at atmospheric pressure. In the SSR design, molten salt fuel is contained in vented tubes bundled into fuel assemblies which make up the reactor’s core modules. Each of the one hundred and fifty megawatt modules is built in a factory. They each contain a support structure for the fuel assemblies, heat exchangers and all other pumps and controls. The core modules are rectangular and are held in a larger tank which is filled with the molten salt coolant. A secondary similar coolant salt system removes heat from the primary coolant salt.
CNL launched the CNRI in July of 2019 in order to help accelerate SMR deployment by supporting research and development. They are connecting global vendors of SMR technology with the facilities and expertise within Canada’s nuclear laboratories. Recipients are expected to match the value contributed by CNL in either monetary or in-kind contributions. Kairos Power, Moltex Canada, Terrestrial Energy Inc and UltraSafe Nuclear Cooperation were the firms chosen in November as the first recipients of support under the initiative.
Jeff Griffin is the CNL vice-president of science and technology. He said “NL has built considerable expertise in nuclear fuel handling and processing over the past decades and advanced fuel research is recognized as one of our key strategic areas of strength. We have made significant investments into our fuel program and will continue to do so over the coming years. The CNRI program helps reactor developers - such as Moltex Energy - tap into these key capabilities in a cost-effective way.”