ads - The Atom Unexplored

ACCELERATOR DRIVEN SUBCRITICAL

NUCLEAR SYSTEMS (ADS)

A.Alemberti and G.Ricco The atom unexplored

Torino May 2012

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• What is an ADS?

• What ‘s an ADS for?

ISSUES

• ADS projects in Europe

• ADS projects in Italy

A.Alemberti and G.Ricco The

atom unexplored Torino May 2012

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ADS:a three component infrastructure

Proton accelerator

Beam transport system

A.Alemberti and G.Ricco The

atom unexplored Torino May 2012

Subcritical reactor

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!

The subcritical reactor

• The maximum thermal power P th from the subcritical reactor

is limited ( and controlled!) by the input beam power P beam

Pth

Pbeam

= "(Ep). keff

keff #1

• In real subcritical conditions (keff

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The particle accelerator

Restrictions to particle accelerators for ADS driving:

• High neutron production rate(proton or deuteron

beams)

• High beam power (high energy E p and/or current i p)

• Very high stability:very few interruptions during long

running times

• Minimal electric power consumption P abs:i.e. optimal

P abs /P beam ratio(from 4 to 25 in existing accelerators)

Most of these requirements are more severe than in

conventional research accelerators and require,at

least for high power ADS,special design

A.Alemberti and G.Ricco The

atom unexplored Torino May 2012

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WHAT IS AN ADS FOR?

• Electric Power production

• Nuclear waste management

• Training and research

A.Alemberti and G.Ricco The

atom unexplored Torino May 2012

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Electric power production

It has an high safety level,but:

• The peak power P th is somewhat limited by the beam power P beam

• The Infrastructure and maintenance costs are definitely higher than in a

conventional critical reactor

!

Pth

Pbeam

= "(Ep). keff

keff #1

• The required advanced technology is not always available

ADS do not seem at the moment the most convenient investment

for electric power production

A.Alemberti and G.Ricco The

atom unexplored Torino May 2012

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Nuclear waste management

In Italy high activity or long lifetime wastes from spent reactors are estimated

to about 5000/6000 m 3 ,most of which are presently being reprocessed in England

and France,but all will be sent back in 2025

A.Alemberti and G.Ricco The

atom unexplored Torino May 2012

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The
reprocessing
cycle

In Europe and Japan for spent fuel reprocessing is

adopted:

A.Alemberti and G.Ricco The

atom unexplored Torino May 2012

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Nuclear
waste
transmutation

Fission
Fragments
(LLFF)

151 Sm,
 99 Tc,
 121 I,
 79 Se
…

neutron
capture
(n,g)


 n
+
 99 Tc
(2.1x10 5 
y)






 100 Tc
(16
s)





 100 Ru

Transmutation (or nuclear

incineration) of radioactive waste

Neutron induced reactions that

transform long-lived radioactive

isotopes into stable or short-lived

isotopes.

Transmutation
reactions

A.Alemberti and G.Ricco The

atom unexplored Torino May 2012

Pu
and
Minor
Actinides

240 Pu,
 237 Np,
 241,243 Am,
 244,245 Cm,

…

neutron‐induced
fission
(n,f)

neutron
capture
(n,g)

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Generation
IV
ADS

Apart
 for
 
 
 245 Cm,
 minor
 actinides

are
 characterized
 by
 a
 fission

threshold
around
the
MeV.

Such
 isotopes
 can
 efficiently
 be

burned
 in
 fast
 reactors
 (neutron

spectrum
from
10
keV
to
10
MeV).

In
 true
 ADS
 delayed
 neutrons
 are

uninfluent
for
the
reactor
control:

fast
 ADS
 can
 therefore
 be
 fueled

with
 almost
 any
 Transuranic

element
and
burn
them.

Neutron
energy


spectrum
In
fast


reactors(Gen
IV

ADS)

A.Alemberti and G.Ricco The

atom unexplored Torino May 2012

1

MeV

Fission
probability
in


Minor
actinides


Fast ADS can be good candidates as transmuters of the high activity and

long lifetime(thousands of years) Generation III reactor wastes into much

shorter lifetime fragments(few hundred years) to be stored in temporary

surface deposits.But further R&D is still needed

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Training and research

A modern research infrastructure based on a low power

(

---

• In Europe

• In Italy

ADS projects

A.Alemberti and G.Ricco The

atom unexplored Torino May 2012

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Fast Reactors in the European Substainable

Nuclear Industrial Initiative(ESNII)

A.Alemberti and G.Ricco The

atom unexplored Torino May 2012

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European LFR/ADS Activities

MYRRHA

project schedule

2010-2014

Front End

Engineering

Design

2015

Tendering &

Procurement

Accelerator

(600 MeV - 4 mA proton)

2016-2018

Construction of

components &

civil engineering

2019

On site

assembly

2020-2022

Commissioning

MYRRHA (estimated cost - 960 M€)

Accelerator Driven System – ETPP of LFR Technology

2023

Progressive

start-up

FP7 CDT project (Myrrha design) ends March 2012

Front End Engineering Design contract to be awarded by the end of 2012

FEED Pre-selection of 3 consortiums (out of 6) completed in 2011

SCK•CEN entered pre-licensing phase with the Belgian Safety Authorities

GUINEVERE

The Zero-Power facility – solid Lead – critical and sub-critical operation

Nuclear data, nuclear instrumentation, Keff measurements, code validation

Criticality reached in February 2011

Subcritical coupling performed in October 2011

A.Alemberti and G.Ricco The

atom unexplored Torino May 2012

Reactor

GUINEVERE and MYRRHA

the first two steps of the EU Road Map for the development of LFR technology

Subcritical mode - 65 to 100 MWth

2024-

Full

exploitation

Lead-Bismuth

coolant

MYRRHA

Multipurpose

Flexible

Irradiation

Facility

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Prospects in Italy

The 2011 referendum has canceled the urgent requirements for

generation III Power Plants, but has left open few pressing problems:

• To guarantee the education and professional training of

young physicists and engineers in order to to maintain and

update the national culture in nuclear science and technology

for future generations

• To keep the national research on future generation reactors

and related technologies at an excellence standard comparable

(and competitive) with the other main industrialized countries

A proposed solution:

A National Training and Research Centre in Nuclear Science

and Technology built around a modern research infrastructure

A.Alemberti and G.Ricco The

atom unexplored Torino May 2012

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What kind of infrastructure?

Few basic requirements:

• Safety

• Security

• Sustainability

• Flexibility

• High Tech

Subcritical ADS system

Low power,U235 fueled (negligible Pu and MA)

Fast neutrons for trasmutations (gen IV ADS)

Interchangeable fuels and materials

Lead Technology (ANN,ENEA,CIRTEN)

determined the INFN/ANSALDO proposal:

A fast ADS :a solid lead matrix,fueled with 20% enriched U 235 bars,cooled

with a He gas flow for a thermal power of few hundred Kilowatts

A.Alemberti and G.Ricco The

atom unexplored Torino May 2012

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INFN/ANN proposal:the fuel element

Modular cladding 2mm

(safety)

A.Alemberti and G.Ricco The

atom unexplored Torino May 2012

Void 0.7mm

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INFN/ANN proposal:the subcritical system

He

outlet

Target

He

inlet

Proton Beam

900

Upper He

Plenum

1600

Lower He

Plenum

Active fuel

2400

•Fast reactor

•Solid lead matrix(94 t)

•Fuel: UO 2 20 w/o (1.8 t)

.Helium coolant Be 9 target

Vessel

2 cm thk

(5 ton)

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INFN/ANN project:the site in LNL

Localizzazione impianto neutroni

veloci

A.Alemberti and G.Ricco The

atom unexplored Torino May 2012

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INFN/ANN project:the beam transport system

Quadr

upole

triplet

Magnet

length

[m]

QUA4/

QUA6

0,30

0,035

-3,0










QUA6





QUA5

QUA8 0,40 0,04

QUA4

-3,7










QUA6

QUA7/

QUA9

0,30

0,03





QUA5 4,5

QUA4

4
m

MAG1

Radi

us

[m]

Mag

netic

field

[kG]

QUA5 0,40 0,045 3,8

10,8
m

Bending

magnet

MAG1/MAG

2

MAG3/MAG

4

MAG2

Radiu

s

[m]

Bending

angle

[°]

QUA8

QUA7 QUA9

9.
4
m

A.Alemberti and G.Ricco The

atom unexplored Torino May 2012

Magnetic

Field

[kG]

MAG3

Gap

[m]

4.5
m

QUA4






QUA5











QUA6

Pole width

[m]

1.0 -45°/45° 12.0 0,065 0,365

1.0 45°/45° 12.0 0,065 0,365

MAG4

2
m

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INFN/ANN proposal:the project targets

• Training and Education

• Physics of fast (gen.IV) reactors

• Waste management and transmutation

• Production of isotopes for industry and medicine

• Study of materials for fission and fusion reactors

• Safety and licensing

A.Alemberti and G.Ricco The

atom unexplored Torino May 2012

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INFN/ANN proposal:tha burn up of minor actinides

A.Alemberti and G.Ricco The

atom unexplored Torino May 2012

SPES Cyclotron

IFMIF Linac

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THE EUROPEAN ADS ROAD MAP

Future ADS for

waste transmutation

GUENEVIERE(Mohl)prototype

Subcritical P=0kw operating

Measures:k eff ,fluxes,cross sections

INFN/ANN(Legnaro)prototype

Subcritical P=200kw t project(CD)

Gen IV and transmutation Physics

MYRRHA(Mohl)

Crit./subcr P=100Mw t approved(TD)

Optimized for radioisotope production

ALFRED(ANN)exper.fast power

reactor genIV critical P=120Mw t

project

A.Alemberti and G.Ricco The

atom unexplored Torino May 2012

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INFN/ANN proposal: Conceptual Design Report(CDR)

INTRODUCTION

L.Mansani (ANN), S.Monti (ENEA), G.Ricco (INFN), M.Ricotti (PoliMi)

Section 1 – GENERAL DESCRIPTION

M.Bruzzone (ANN), S.Frambati (ANN), L.Mansani (ANN), M.Reale (ANN)

Section 2 – CORE DESIGN

G.Ricco(INFN), C.M.Viberti (INFN)

Section 3 – TARGET PROFILE OPTIMIZATION

M.Ciotti (ENEA)

Section 4 – NEUTRON YIELD FROM BE

R.Alba (INFN), M.Osipenko (INFN), G.Ricco (INFN), M.Ripani (INFN), et al.

Section 5 – THE CYCLOTRON AND RELATED BUILDING

A.Lombardi (INFN), M.Maggiore (INFN), L.Piazza (INFN), G.Prete (INFN)

Section 6 – THE BEAM TRANSPORT SYSTEM

L.Calabretta (INFN), M.Maggiore (INFN), M.Schillaci (INFN)

Section 7 – REACTOR SHIELDING

M.Ciotti (ENEA), O.Frasciello (INFN), M.Sepielli (ENEA)

Section 8 – SYSTEM KINETICS AND DYNAMICS

A.Cammi (PoliMi), S.Cesnef (PoliMi), S.Dulla (PoliTo), P.Ravetto (PoliTo), Rebora (Uni.Ge),

P.Saracco (INFN)

Section 9 – A ZERO POWER EXPERIMENT

A.Borio (LENA), E.Previtali (MIB), et al.

A.Alemberti and G.Ricco The

atom unexplored Torino May 2012