The Role of Ceramics in a Resurgent Nuclear Industry

Marra, J

Savannah River Site (S.C.)

关键词: Natural Gas;    Proliferation;    Reprocessing;    02 Petroleum;    Stabilization;   

DOI  :  10.2172/890064
RP-ID  :  WSRC-MS-2006-00116
RP-ID  :  DE-AC09-96SR1850
RP-ID  :  890064

美国|英语

来源: UNT Digital Library

【 摘 要 】

With fuel oil and natural gas prices near record highs and worldwide energy demands increasing at an alarming rate, there is growing interest in revitalization of the nuclear power industry within the United States and across the globe. Ceramic materials have long played a very important part in the commercial nuclear industry with applications throughout the entire fuel cycle; from fuel fabrication to waste stabilization. As the international community begins to look at advanced fuel cycles that minimize waste and increase proliferation resistance, ceramic materials will play an even larger role. Many of the advanced reactor concepts being evaluated operate at high-temperature requiring the use of durable, heat-resistant materials. Ceramic fuels are being investigated for a variety of Generation IV reactor concepts. These include the traditional TRISO-coated particles as well as advanced inert-matrix fuels. In order to minimize wastes and legacy materials, ceramic processes are also being applied to fuel reprocessing operations. Ceramic materials continue to provide a vital contribution in ''closing the fuel cycle'' by stabilization of associated low-level and high-level wastes in highly durable grout, ceramics, and glass. In the next five years, programs that are currently in the conceptual phase will begin laboratory- and engineering-scale demonstrations. This will require production-scale demonstrations of several ceramic technologies from fuel form development to advanced stabilization methods. Within the next five to ten years, these demonstrations will move to even larger scales and will also include radioactive demonstrations of these advanced technologies. These radioactive demonstrations are critical to program success and will require advances in ceramic materials associated with nuclear energy applications.