Re:Energy Department teams up with Bill Gates to move mini-n...
by pfdietz on Sunday August 26, 2018 @08:09AM
(#17845581)
He's talking about FLiBe. Both 7Li and 9Be are fairly light isotopes, so they moderate neutrons, better than carbon in graphite does. Unfortunately both are expensive.
The fluoride cooling salt used by Moltex does not use lithium or beryllium. Instead, it's sodium-zirconium fluoride or sodium-potassium-zirconium fluoride, with no isotope separation required. The atomic mass of these isotopes is high enough that the neutron spectrum remains hard. In fact, Moltex's design adds a bit of hafnium (a strong thermal neutron absorber that is chemically very similar to zirconium) to the coolant salt to shield the walls of the reactor from thermal neutrons.
One issue with fluoride salts in homogenous reactors is that the salt must be kept a bit oxidized, so uranium does not disproportionate into UF3 and U metal. The metal would plate out on surfaces, which is a no-no. Unfortunately, this means the salt must be oxidizing enough that it will dissolve chromium, so ordinary stainless steels cannot be used.
By using a barren coolant salt, Moltex can make the salt reducing enough that chromium is stable (they do this by using a sacrificial anode of zirconium metal.) Their design can use stainless steels that have already been tested and proven for use with the neutron exposures of fast reactors.
The chloride fuel salt in Moltex (and Terrapower) don't have that chemistry issue; uranium is more chemically stable there.
The fluoride cooling salt used by Moltex does not use lithium or beryllium. Instead, it's sodium-zirconium fluoride or sodium-potassium-zirconium fluoride, with no isotope separation required. The atomic mass of these isotopes is high enough that the neutron spectrum remains hard. In fact, Moltex's design adds a bit of hafnium (a strong thermal neutron absorber that is chemically very similar to zirconium) to the coolant salt to shield the walls of the reactor from thermal neutrons.
One issue with fluoride salts in homogenous reactors is that the salt must be kept a bit oxidized, so uranium does not disproportionate into UF3 and U metal. The metal would plate out on surfaces, which is a no-no. Unfortunately, this means the salt must be oxidizing enough that it will dissolve chromium, so ordinary stainless steels cannot be used.
By using a barren coolant salt, Moltex can make the salt reducing enough that chromium is stable (they do this by using a sacrificial anode of zirconium metal.) Their design can use stainless steels that have already been tested and proven for use with the neutron exposures of fast reactors.
The chloride fuel salt in Moltex (and Terrapower) don't have that chemistry issue; uranium is more chemically stable there.